Engine Crank handles

[Lynn Eades]

Your story reminded me of an experiece I had with a crank handle.
In 1976 I was on exercise (NZ army, stationed in Singapore, on exercise in Malaysia) I was tasked with looking after a couple of 150 cubic foot fridge units(ex Aust army) which were powered by a twin cylinder, hand cranked (Onan?) Anyhow I cranked one of them up, and the crank handle instead of coming off in my hand, stuck on the shaft. The result was that once it picked up a few revs, it came off the shaft, flew an arc through the air (maybe 30 to 50 feet) and hit a Singaporean bus driver in the head, knocking him to the ground. Fortunately for him, he was O.K.
Years later, reflecting on it, I know he was a very lucky guy. The handle was a thick heavy casting, although it hit him on the temple, it was a glancing blow. If he had been a inch to one side,it could have been a lot different.