Here is something I recorded regarding safety when using sharp tools. I hope it conveys my basic approach and philosophy regarding the subject. I'm much more about a general approach and philosophy adopted as a framework in which to approach work than I am about sets of rules. Most rules that are stated as absolutes need all kinds of qualification that they don't always get. Not only is that ineffective when engaging in real world work, it can be dangerous. What I like to call dummy or boy scout rules are generally stated in absolutes like never and always. That discourages intelligent engagement with the work at hand and defers your safety to an authoritative statement or entity. The idea seems to be that if you just do this one thing, you will be safe. If you're doing real work in the real world, you'll find that most of those rules will be broken, and some frequently, in order to carry out work at all or to do work more practically or more efficiently. It would be more constructive to state these as guidelines and be realistic about the risks involved and strategies one can employ to ameliorate risk when doing things that are dangerous, or when using sharp tools in the grey area that exist between the very safest ways to do things and the most effective. The usual black and white approach can lead, I believe, to unsafe work approaches when trying to bend your self and your work to static and overstated rules which experienced craftsmen and workers may not actually follow. In the future I'll get more specific on knife and axe safety, but this is actually some of the more important part to me.
Also, I forgot to post this video on the husqvarna axe handle. It covers various points regarding the handle and planned modifications and as a matter of course addresses some stuff about axe handles in general.
