# When did they start putting guard rails on paper cutters? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 21, 2020, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541 "2020-10-21T22:50:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2020, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/1 "2020-10-21T22:50:46Z")
When I was in Junior High in the late 50s, a classmate cut off some of the fingers on her left hand with a paper cutter (and this was before surgeons could re-attach fingers). Back then, paper cutters didn’t have guard rails. When did guard rails become standard? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2020, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/2 "2020-10-21T23:01:16Z")
I seem to recall them in the early to mid 80s. Around the same time of child car seats, smoking bans, MADD mothers and DARE programs. Life started getting extra safe after I graduated HS. Raised the drinking age to 21 as well. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2020, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/3 "2020-10-21T23:05:44Z")
I was born in 1968 and maybe first encountered paper cutters around 1980. Never have seen one without a guard rail. ---
**Author:** ![Bayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bayaker/32/3454_2.png) [@Bayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2020, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/4 "2020-10-22T13:53:54Z")
Huh. I never knew that rail was supposed to be a safety feature. I thought it was only there to prevent you from cutting too many pieces at once, which would cause the blade to skew. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/5 "2020-10-23T03:38:29Z")
The guard rails still provide more than enough clearance to try too many pieces at a time. A lesson I have repeatedly learned and repeatedly ignored. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/6 "2020-10-23T03:41:09Z")
I, too, thought the guard rail was supposed to help you cut the paper. It holds it nearly in place. TIL ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/7 "2020-10-23T14:17:51Z")
Also, looking at the paper cutter I have in front of me, it seems that it would help, in that you wouldn’t get your hand caught between the cutting edges, but you could still hurt yourself if you got your hand caught between the cutter arm and the guard itself. Probably prevent losing a finger, but you could still get a pretty nasty cut. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/8 "2020-10-23T14:38:49Z")
How big a paper cutter are you talking? I used to work in printing bindery, and those cutters were capable of cutting entire reams, usually 500 sheets. They didn’t have guard rails. They required both hands to bring down the clamp and cutter, so guard rails weren’t needed. They used to have foot pedals, and they were eventually replaced with electrical motors. Those cutters were solid steel and weighed a ton. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/9 "2020-10-23T14:41:52Z")
I think that we are talking about consumer level, not industrial level cutters. something like this > **[X-ACTO® Commercial Grade Square Guillotine Paper Trimmer, 15" Cutting Length,...](https://www.globalindustrial.com/p/commercial-grade-square-guillotine-paper-trimmer-15-cutting-length-brown?infoParam.campaignId=T9F&gclid=CjwKCAjw_sn8BRBrEiwAnUGJDl4vr3VAFMXEYiCZTFh8hBg1achWy10nt1PFK94kn75btF3hUzXyTxoCDRQQAvD_BwE)** > > X-ACTO® Commercial Grade Square Guillotine Paper Trimmer, 15" Cutting Length, Brown. Ships in One Business Day. Buy it and Save at GlobalIndustrial.com ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/10 "2020-10-23T14:57:42Z")
Paper cutters, deli meat slicers, and mangles. What is, why do we have workers compensation insurance, Alex? ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/11 "2020-10-23T17:20:27Z")
I’ve seen and worked with some really old paper cutters. The only ones with without some sort of guard rail were when it broke off. And as an aside, don’t buy guillotine style paper cutters; go with rotary. Safer and more accurate. Dahle is my preferred brand. ---
**Author:** ![Tabco](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tabco/32/7644_2.png) [@Tabco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabco)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/12 "2020-10-23T17:51:20Z")
My dad was a sheetfed press operator and one day when he came home from work he told me a coworker had mangled their hand in the paper cutter. They had taped one or more of the buttons down so only the foot pedal was needed to bring the clamp down. The person didn’t seem to realize their hand was in the way. He never saw them again. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/13 "2020-10-23T18:38:57Z")
I work for a major Workers’ Comp insurance company. At our 100th anniversary celebration, they linked to video of really old ads for the company. One had a cheerful old guy showing off the new gravity-fed metal punch – instead of placing the piece of metal near the giant thing that cut it, you just dropped it into a slot and it rolled into place. He was missing the last joint of several of his fingers, and he was showing off this nifty new machine that wouldn’t do that to the workers. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/14 "2020-10-23T18:43:45Z")
All but one I’ve seen since first grade ('66) had the guard on it. The one that didn’t have one had had one, but the (foolish) librarian removed it. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/15 "2020-10-23T18:46:06Z")
The ones I saw in school 70s had to be 1950s vintage from when they built the school. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/16 "2020-10-23T20:31:09Z")
Or possibly this, which as far as I can see has no kind of guard rail at all > **[Mind Reader Black & White Paper Cutter](https://www.zulily.com/p/black-white-paper-cutter-586048-70679993.html)** > > Measure twice and cut once with the precise measurements of this paper cutter that features a spring-action design to keep the blade from dropping on its own. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/17 "2020-10-23T20:55:37Z")
Had one very much like that for many years. It might still be in a closet somewhere. The guard rail is a great idea. I operated an electric paper cutter that was used for cutting spines off of books. Activating the cutting blade required two buttons more than a foot apart and well below the cutting surface so you couldn’t leave a stray finger up there. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/18 "2020-10-23T22:36:24Z")
You just know at _some_ point _somewhere_ a person has gotten bored with the two-hand reach and taped one of those buttons in the permanently-on position… Like many others in the thread I first started seeing the guards popping up in the 80s, but unlike many, I’ve never stopped seeing unguarded ones - they’re all over the place. Perhaps this says something about Australians. The commonest short of guard - the flat bit of plastic you slip the paper under - doesn’t really stop you sticking your fingers under the blade in any case. Though at least it removes the primary reason for your fingers to be anywhere near there. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/19 "2020-10-23T23:33:42Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > You just know at _some_ point _somewhere_ a person has gotten bored with the two-hand reach and taped one of those buttons in the permanently-on position… You had to put each finger about an inch into a narrow tube to push the buttons and it required some force. But if someone was both clever and stupid they could find a way around it. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2020, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541/20 "2020-10-24T21:01:30Z")
Never underestimate the cleverness of stupidity. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-they-start-putting-guard-rails-on-paper-cutters/923541.md?page=2)