Tablesaw blade guards/shields

[Ironwood]

I dunno, I think if I bought a few of those I may need to buy a new truck with a rear looking "bumper cam" and perhaps a "auto disengage" system so even if I did want to back over someone it wouldn't let me. I am just not into the latest "bell and whistle". I think if you are that terrified hire someone who is willing to forgo their fingers and just "ROLL". Personally I do that with lathe work, white knuckle death grip aint no fun for me. I just let someone else get all that cool stock and I give them enough that they feel compelled to make me something.

Sorry, I am sure there terrific, just cant see it. Been at it awhile, still got my fingers.  :

Ironwood

[tyb525]

I feel there is no replacement for paying attention and respecting the machine. So many safety features can lead to a relaxed state of mind, causing an accident to happen anyways, despite the safety features. Some of those new safety things are so time consuming I'd about hire it out and save a bunch of time.

[trapper]

Ironwood  Guess I may have used the wrong word when I used afraid.  Just a healthy respect for the saw Like i will shut off the saw and wait for the blade to come to a complete stop before removing any small peices left near the blade. Mostly on small peices where my hands are close to the blade. A friend who was a carpenter at work was killed by a tablesaw kickback and another friend who is the most careful person I know had to have his thumb sewed back  on.
Just dont like my hands real close to the spinning blade.

[shinnlinger]

I think if those grippers look interesting.  MIght order some up for the high school kids and try them out.  I think that  video though was pretty silly with the double push stick action.  That to me was case in point where it is safer to have a firm grip on the board than fiddling around with push sticks.

I still think it is time for us to reconsider our machoism of no guards or fixtures.  I'm as guilty as anyone else.  Even today I ripped a bunch of boards with my old rockwell w/out guard, riving knife, feather board or push pad.  At one point I stumbled a bit and thought about this thread. 

What if???? 

[tyb525]

Yes safety is important, and I may be showing my (lack of) age here, but I think everyone has their own "safety line" they establish. Some people are inherently more cautious than others, and that doesn't always mean one has less accidents than the other. Just depends on how tedious you want to get.

I don't use a tablesaw guard, not because I am trying to be macho, but because personally I feel uncomfortable using them.

[Ironwood]

Sorry didn't mean to be flip about it. It is just at some point if your that intimidated it is best to find another option. I was not joking about lathe work. I would love to do it, but I CANNOT relax enough to enjoy it. Sorry to hear about your friends. My high school Principal was ripping on a radial saw and cut the end of every finger off half way down, he was the football coach too, when he wanted your "attention" he'd hit you with the bone ends of that hand, straight on in the chest, OUCH

 Usually, if the piece get REAL small I use the bandsaw, or sacrifical push mechanism on the tablesaw. I have built some bizzarre tooling, I cut extensive bevels on boards stood vertically, clamped to 1/2" alloy aluminum sheet 20x28". The saw is a BIG Oliver with a BIG "capitive miter slide, the assembly weighed in at around 50 lbs. then add the board The bevel was on the edge of these shelves.  On three sides





Ironwood

[shinnlinger]

Thats a nice piece Reid.....

[Ironwood]

 Thanks, hollow box tube pitted plate steel. Shelves are removable. 7' tall.

Ironwood

[SwampDonkey]

Sure is unique, and I can see my mother filling them shelve up with cranberry glass. ;D

[Norm]

My tablesaw came with a riving knife and blade guard. I take the guard off for certain things but since Patty uses it also the guard is kept on. I had an uncle that cut off all four fingers with his table saw. I was about eight and it really left a lasting impression on me.

[shinnlinger]

NOrm,

Since you have stuck with the factory guard, how PITA is it for typical ripping or miter gauge work?

My personal discovery is that guards really aren't a problem for 90% of the cuts you need to make.  Of course I have to use them in the high school shop, but it seems that most homeowners simply don't install them if they buy a new saw or actually take them off the moment they come home and don't even give them a chance.

I hear all the same stuff that has been posted in this thread.  "I only use it while I am clearheaded", "I like to see the blade"(which with most guards you can), "I'm always careful", "I thinks its actually safer to not have a guard" blah, blah blah. 

I now liken it to motorcycling.  There are 2 types of riders, those that have been down and those that are going to go down, which for the record I have gone down and don't think I left my house thinking I was going to that day.

If I am pushing buttons a bit, I am trying too.  Really question why you don't have a guard and how much one would really interfere with what you do with a saw.  What if a spouse, child, family member or friend walked in your shop and started messing around, and don't say it could never happen. 

What if YOU slipped using your saw?  It only takes one time.  Wouldn't a guard make alot of sense in those situations?

At the end of the day though, it is your saw, your fingers and your family.

Just something to think about.....

[Norm]

About the only thing I take it off for is doing dado cuts. My tablesaw is the PM2000 and it has the best guard on any saw I've used. I have a panel saw and a sliding miter also so the tablesaw is used for ripping and dado's most of the time.

[SwampDonkey]

I have stayed out of this table saw safety discussion because it's been full of opinions. ;D Opinions? ;) I'm not one to argue where safety is concerned. Even though I don't use guards on the saw I'm not going to state that in a way to convince you to toss yours aside to. ;) It's a good idea to always reduce your chances of injury wherever you can.  

[Ironwood]

I've gone down, twice actually, lucky both times, I have lost.......maybe 6 friends over the years, and MANY more who "got lucky" and didnt die. Saw one violent death inperson at 16, in front of me at 70+ mph  hit so hard ripped the back bumper off a car backing onto the road and was the only one on the scene for the gore, had to leave them and run to a phone.

Good points Shinn,  

[metalspinner]

We all have habits.  Safty is one of them that most anyone can say is at the top of their list. To watch a seasoned pro cut down a tree, run a circle mill, or or ride a motorbike at 200 mph is a thing of beauty.  It also makes it look, to the novice, that the actions are very dangerous.  That's why we watch!

I run the table saw without a gaurd.  Using all the precautions I know and have learned over time, I feel very confident making any cut needed on the machine.  However, those precautions are under my control.  The items not under your control are the ones that jump up and get you.  The dog suddenly barking as your finishing a cut causing you to flinch.  Slipping on sawdust on the floor which changes your mechanics and focus. 

When we were first married, my wife came into the shop while I was working at the tablesaw.  I could not hear her calling me because of the TS, cut noise and dust collection going.  Plus I was in a zone of concentration.  Well, she came behind me and yelled to get my attention.  And she did!  Nothing bad happened, but after a long conversation that was pretty much one sided, she agreed never to do that again.  I mentioned to her that her grandfather lost all the fingers plus part of his left hand under that exact same scenerio.  Her grandparents never talked about the accident.  But when I came along with his similar interests, he told me about it in private.  History almost repeated itself.  :

Anyway, after all of that, I still do not use the gaurd on my saw. I routinely make cuts that are impossible with them in place.  My added procedures and safty devices allow me the confidence that the cuts can be made safely.

The Sawstop is at the top of my wishlist.

[Dan_Shade]

my brother startled me when I was a kid using a router, he was being a little brother.... Luckily nobody was hurt, but based on that experience, I have most of the tools I use oriented in a direction that I can see the shop frin the operators standing position.

nobody wants a surprise while using a table saw or jointer

[RPF2509]

I'll have to add that though none of the guys at the shop used guards on the table saw a few of them were missing finger tips.  I'd say use what your skill level dictates - the oldest best craftsman at the shop still had all 10 and I was reprimanded several times by him for doing something unsafe.  I always listened and learned.  Right on too about educating everyone in the household about shop ettiquet - while a machine is running no one in my house may enter the shop.

[RPF2509]

One more thing or two.  In my eyes ripping on a radial arm saw is about the most scary thing I've ever done in the shop - mine is regulated to crosscut only and a chop saw is even better than the radial at that.  The rubber bottom push stick I use is much simpler that the one in the video, you could even make one from wood with a piece of inner tube on the bottom.  Think a 'D' handle mounted on an angle to a 1" wide board.  A small tab projects below the wood to engage and push the board.  The D handle is forward of the tab so forward pressure also produces downward pressure. The rubber bottom helps with the lateral pressure to keep it snug to the fence. Mines made from orange plastic and I think I got it from Woodcraft or Rockler for less than $20.  The wood push stick in the throwback video is a classic style that would contribute to throwback if used improperly.