Calling for advice from married men about ring wearing

[waltklatt]

I'm recently married and have run into a bit of a quandary.
When working on the cars or doing carpentry, or in general working with the hands. 
Does one take the ring off to preserve it from being scratched, damaged or else?
I'm a little new to this and thought I'd seek some advice from the pros out there.

I feel a bit awkward wearing the ring while doing repairs or hitting the weight machines at the gym.

Walter just married
1967 220SL-diesel

[dtuttle123]

Hi Walter -

Tons of advice here - first - if you take it off - don't loose it - put it in the tool box, with a zip-wrap tied to the box.  Second, explain to your (new) wife that you are taking it off only to work on the car, and not because you don't love her, or want to appear not married.  Third, you'll only have to worry about this for a year, and then it becomes a part of you, like your new wife!   

Doug

[scoot]

I'm married and I don't take off my ring for anything because if I did I think I would lose it.  I made the choice that scratches to the ring are going to occur and that it isn't supposed to look like it just came out of a box.   For some things I wear work gloves over the ring.  My husband on the other hand doesn't wear a ring so he doesn't have this issue.

Scott

[J. Huber]

Just another angle -- I was helping a contractor do some work on my house and he saw I had my ring on. He said, you should probably take it off because if it catches on something, your finger or hand will go with it. Though he was a little paranoid but it did make me think. (I can hardly remove mine... its wedged on!)

As far as around the car -- another thing is to be sure you use your right hand when you polish or wipe. I have come close to scratching things with my left...

[Peter van Es]

Can't take my ring off anymore... It's been on for 17 years (or is it eighteen now) and I've grown a little since then... and I don't mean vertically!

Peter

[Garry]

James is very on the money.    I have seen it happen with a guy jump off the back of a flat bed and left his finger and wedding ring behind.   It is one way of not wearing one as it was in the days when micro surgery was unknown.

It also put me off wearing one from that point on.

[Iconic]

I too remove mine for safety reasons.
Additionally, I DON'T WANT TO SCRATCH MY CAR. 
My wife understands .... heck, she let me buy this car .. so, she must be understanding.

[Cees Klumper]

I never take my wedding ring off, it just doesn't feel right.

Once a year or so, I apply some metal polish (Autosol - made in Germany, www.autosol.com) which rubs out minor scratches which renews the feeling.

Yes, wearing a ring, watch or similar foreign object increases the risk of injury. But imagine the impression on your wife, or husband, if you can report rather losing a finger than violating this  symbol of your special bond.

On the other side of the argument, my own father had to take off his wedding ring when he went into the hospital, somewhere in the fifties, and as a result it went missing and, for as long as I knew him, he wore no wedding ring. My parents did stay happily married for 53 years, so wearing a ring is not actually a 'must-have' prerequisite to a long-lasting marriage.

[thelews]

Been married over 23 years.  Never worn a wedding ring.  I do wear two different rings (one at a time), but rarely when around the cars.  The key is, when they're off my finger, they're only in one other place.

[ejboyd5]

Not only does a ring pose the risk of a degloving injury (very nasty), but it also provides the opportunity for an unintended electrical short when reaching into dark areas (you will be surprised how quickly 12V will heat up a ring).  Take it off to be safe.

[Dash808]

I just got married a few months ago and I'm always concerned about my ring catching on something. It crosses my mind every time I'm working on the car or doing carpentry work.  I caught it on a circuit breaker one time and that hurt enough to get me thinking.    I like all my fingers so I'll probably start taking it off.   

[Cees Klumper]

One additional point to consider - I always wear surgical gloves when working on my car; consequently, the risk of anything catching on the ring is very small. Saves a lot of time scrubbing afterwards as well ...

[Peter van Es]

And I can confirm, all Cees ever uses is a scalpel too! That takes some doing 

Peter

[Andres G]

Walter,

Some advise from another recently wed here... Some of us wear laces/chains around our necks, I for once, have one with a Catholic cross hanging from my neck. Whenever I work on the car or other things, or when I practice Wakeboarding, I take the rings off (Wedding band and HS graduation ring) and place them around my neck hanging next to the cross. They never get lost there and rarely do I forget doing this.

Cheers,
Andres G

[Benz Dr.]

I think I have a wedding ring??
  I won't wear any rings, chains, earings or even a watch. I grew up around farm equipment and just about every old timer around my place had some body part missing when I was a kid. Fingers, hands, arms, toes, feet, ears. eyes, teeth ( from injury ) and one guy even lost most of his scalp. I won't even mention things like burns and chemical poisonings or broken bones from falling off tractors, combines and hay wagons. Then there's suffication from flowing grain or silo gas that can kill you in seconds. A 2,000 pound pissed off bull can jump over a wall 8 feet high and stomp your ass until there's nothing left. It's not very pretty.


Farming might be one of the most dangerous jobs there is. I figured I'd reduce my list a bit by playing it safe and not wearing any trinkets. Never got too hurt during my years as a farmer but I had far too many close calls. Working around livestock pretty much garantees that you WILL get hurt sooner or later. I never did but I was always watching behind me. The open road is safer place..... 

[mdsalemi]

Walt,

If you take your ring on and off, you are bound to lose it at some point.  If you have it wear it.

Scratching?  Well, I was ahead of the curve and went with platinum when it wasn't "in" (a nod to my late mother).  It's considerably harder than gold in nearly any form.  It polishes up pretty nice; every 5 years like clockwork.  It shows some minor scuffing but I can't envision it causing any.  It's just a 3.5mm plain band.

Mine rarely comes off.  When working on your car, save your ring, your skin, etc. and take Cees' advice: get a box of those blue Nitrile gloves.  They are cheap, and you'll prevent that ground in grime and stuff that gets in and on your skin, under your nails, etc.  The astute and skilled mechanics around here buy them by the case.

Oh, yes--congratulations.  Bring your new wife to Blacklick!

[Cees Klumper]

Farming might be one of the most dangerous jobs there is. I figured I'd reduce my list a bit by playing it safe and not wearing any trinkets. Never got too hurt during my years as a farmer but I had far too many close calls. Working around livestock pretty much garantees that you WILL get hurt sooner or later. I never did but I was always watching behind me. The open road is safer place..... 

Brings back memories of horseback riding (closest I have come to farming is helping out on the horse ranch near my old home, cleaning out the stables etc. so I could ride the horses in exchange). I had horses step on my feet, then casually leaning over onto that one foot firmly planted on mine. Happened twice before I decided to buy a pair of wooden shoes, that helped considerably. I recall reading a statistic a few years ago, that horseback riding is actually one of the most dangerous sports.

As Michael suggests, about 6 years ago I bought 2 cases of these surgical gloves, 200 gloves in all. If one tears, I just toss it and put on a new one. The amount of grime these things keep off of your skin is unbelievable! I still have most of the 2nd case left to go, they were something like $12 per case I think.

And ... congratulations Walter!

[PnHi]

The year was 1975... working on a backhoe and jumped from the seat to the ground using my hand to steady myself. Ring caught a hose clamp and if I hadn't been able to touch the ground I woudl have lost my finger.  Ring had to be cut off and several stitches closed the finger.   The ring has been in a box ever since.

[Witt]

I am not married and don't wear any rings, watches, chains etc. We allways wore disposable gloves when I had my Auto Repair shop, cheap insurance against minor cuts and harmfull chemicals. ( and I still do when working on my cars and do other work around the house ! )
If I am not mistaken, it is a stipulation by the Workers Compensation Board here in  BC that NO trinkets be worn during work. That is why our rolling toolboxes had one small locking drawer at the very top.
On the other hand, that may be a good line to give to your wife, please feel free to use it......

CHEERS !
WITT !

[scoot]

I always wear my wedding ring for fear of losing it if I take it off.  I haven't scratched anything.  I don't have any other jewelry.  I don't worry about scratching my wedding ring - it's a part of me.  So if I'm cleaning parts, I might have on gloves and I might now, but if I accidently scrape something metal against my ring I don't freak out about it.  It's allowed to age and wear over time.

[waltklatt]

Hello All,
I wanted to thank everyone for their kind and useful advice on how, when and where to wear the ring when working on the cars.
I decided it's a learning effort, while I can still take the ring off, I will.
Removing the ring lets me be free and a little reckless with weilding the tools and use a higher force than with the ring on.
But if it's a light job, then the ring will stay on.
Smile!
Married life is so great and I am looking forward to each day!
Now back to fix the mistakes as posted in the drivetrain/brake section.
I've never seen such incompetence as this!
Grrrrrr!  Makes me really upset to see such aloofness.
Walter
1967 220SL-diesel
1970 280SL-being restored for a friend

[Jordan]

Like the BenzDr, I too work on a farm and my ring comes off each spring and goes back on after harvest in the fall.  My wife is a nurse and she understands that the ring is a liability when working around farm equipment.  Far better to wear it for four or six months than to lose the finger entirely and not be able to wear it again.  And somehow she still seems to love me, even after 18 years.  Go figure.
Marcus

[abe280SL]

You can always hang the ring around something else....and you can surprise her
Best thing is no ring around cars...don't want to scratch when washing, don't want to get it stuck when working on something, and gold is a great conductor of electricty and you can realy burn yourself.
abe