Just wondered if there was other physiological stuff at play besides “germs bad” that’s all
You would think that. But there’s one thing I learned in the army: no matter how many precautions you take to make things sterile, don’t lance that blister! They always, ALWAYS go nasty no matter what you do, no matter how long you wait until you put your boots on.
Blisters are more superficial than edemas from subdermal implants, so I can’t imagine draining the latter ending with more success without medical help.
If I get it autoclave first would a chlorahexadine Soak be sufficient until I actually use it?
Autoclave would be sufficient.
I personally feel you would be more likely to contaminate it trying to soak it after it is sterile.
Speaking of which. Work is slow tomorrow, might have a co worker help me put my wedge in.
Would saline be a sufficient lube? Anyone?
By the way, is the 5mm needle single use?
Would cleaning, sharpening on an Arkansas stone, more cleaning then autoclaving make it usable again?
Not saying it isn’t possible, but I wouldn’t sharpen it with a stone. Maybe a match box.
I personally wouldn’t sharpen it again at all if I was using it twice. No way I could get it sharp enough.
Cardboard skin @anon3825968?
Would I have to package it or something? I wouldn’t be using it for almost a week after autoclaving
Why not? It’s not difficult if you know how to do it.
I think it would need sharpening not long before use, as oxydation would dull the edge pretty quickly. Unless you have a way to vacuum-package it, or keep it in a sealed vial of chlorhexidine or something.
Location?
Going to video it?
Whoever you are paying to autoclave it, should put it in a sterile package.
That package will keep it sterile until use as long as you don’t get it wet.
The same kind of package any x series comes in.
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Needles are usually stainless steel. No rust.
Plainly I jist don’t trust my sharpening skills.
Left hand knife edge.
Sure, I can try.
But my coworker doesn’t even know she is helping me yet tomorrow, so I may have to tent my skin.
yeah, chlorhex is a step down from the autoclave
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Just curious,
Would you even need to sharpen if if you only used it once? I know human hair and cardboard are surprisingly harsh on blades, but flesh shouldn’t be that bad right? (Been wrong before however)
As far as the sterilization, is it even worth it frankly? It’s a 5-8$ needle, vs effort to reshapen(maybe?) and the cost / risk of an infection
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Not once or twice, or even 3 times maybe. Found this picture that shows what happens on a close scale…
The needle comes dirty. Gotta clean it somehow. I chose to take it to my tattoo artist, who cleaned it for free.
They have to clean stuff anyways, so really it is YOUR health at the end of the day. Even if they charged $30, I paid like 250 in all for it so far. Small price to pay for more piece of mind.
Edit: but really, what are thoughts on saline as a lube?
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Sorry I meant to say re sterilize
I know they need to autoclave it the first time either way
I’m just looking at it from the perspective that after you use it, it will be harder, or a higher risk of it not being 100% sterilized
Then again, I do understand that autoclaves are not a new toy, and enjoy a fair amount of trust
So maybe I’m in the wrong, I just figure it’s cheap enough, might as well single use it… if it cost more I’d think about it more maybe
Not ideal. Saline water only acts as a lubricant really when it’s under pressure… think hydroplaning… without pressure to force a good layer between two frictional surfaces, it can actually act as the opposite of a lubricant… think two damp (not fully wet) bits of skin trying to slide across each other vs two dry bits of skin.
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It was my understanding that, while you don’t need to resharpen it, it’d slice through flesh more easily and less painfully if you do. I seem to remember Amal stating this somewhere. But it seems I understood wrong, as shown by Backpackingvet.
Still, my thought was, if you want to reuse it, you need to prepare it for the next use anyway. So why not give it at least a quick strop to draw out the edge?
As for what dulls out edges, anything with natural fibers kills edges. especially those edges with very acute angles.
For example, the chisels and gouges used on gun stocks need honing every couple hours at the very least. You can tell when they start getting dull because you have to push harder to get them to do their job. Those have a 25 to 30 degree edge angle.
For comparison, steel chisels with a similar angle don’t need sharpening as often, despite being hammered rather forcefully into steel. Even chasing gravers with the same angle and a pointy tip don’t need honing that often.
Scalpels have a much more acute edge angle - under 20 degrees, and human meat is very fibrous. So I expected them to dull out in a hurry. But maybe not.
Er… did I read that right? Is that the cost of the 5mm needle? Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat!
He must be talking about a bundle
I just bought one it was 5$ I think 8$ Not on sale
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