King Crab Legs, shelling problem

I had these at Christmas last year and they were great.  But in the process of getting the meat out, I wound up with these little teeny bits of what I assume were shell, like little sandpaper particles - embedded in my fingers.  My fingers were sore and red for days after.  Should I be wearing special gloves while eating?  I'd use a cracker and then pry the shell open enough to poke or pull the meat out. 

I use a kitchen shears myself.

I can't give you personal experience, but my gf uses a small kitchen paring knife to slice down the entire length, then pushes open with 4 fingers on left hand, while scraping meat out with her right index finger.   All I know is she's not got the strongest hands in the world, but she will give a restaurant a hurting on an all you can eat snow crab deal.

Here's a handy video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ktmkPoWgpk

Use shears or cut them lengthwise with a chefs knife before serving. 

We  have made up a kit for crab nights.  I purchased  white washcloths and small sciossors for each member of family.  We can hold on to the crab with our washcloth  and cut away with no injuries!  Even the youngest one can  "cut crab".

If you can't handle bloody hands then stay out of the king crab.