I've always worried about the shatter possibility. Hasn't happened in a big way but when they get down to the end of their lifespan, they do start to send out little bits of themselves.

I've got some of those welding goggles used for Oxy/Acet. with reading glass lenses inserted. Regular safety glasses will often let sawdust and other crap through the gaps around the glasses. They're still better than nothing, but the welding goggles really do the trick.

When I worked for the big companies, them guys are death on not using eye protection -- way too much legal liability from that, and they get reduced insurance rates if they have safety meetings and random inspections by safety consultants, who will dole out black marks for lack of using safety equipment.

I don't always use the eye protection for everything, but for grinding/cutting metal, always.

Once, I was sawsalling some steel and a small bit shot onto my forhead, about an inch from my saftey glass protected eye, and sizzled on my skin for a second or two.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K