Abstract: At approximately 4:30 p.m. on January 23, 1998, Employee #1, of the Boeing Company, was using an old bandsaw to machine an aluminum aerospace part when the blade slipped off the wheel with a bang. Employee #1 started and reflexively shook his head backward when his left hand became caught in the point of operation, amputating his index finger. He was transported to Long Beach Community Hospital for treatment. After the accident, the employer replaced the existing plastic guard; changed the upper blade guide; installed working set screws in the upper half of the pedestal; and aligned the vertical slot openings of the blade guide and upper pedestal to be on the same side and away from the machine. The existing guarding was inadequate and the machine had not been adequately maintained. A cracked plastic guard was set to a higher height exposing a greater length of the saw blade. Apparently, the machine had a history of breaking saw blades. of having the saw blade slip off the top and bottom of the wheel and drum, and of steadily increasing the length of the blade exposed in the point of operation.