table saw talk

[ChookHappy]

Quote:
+1 I had no idea a featherboard was a what it is. I thought it was a chook thing!

Great knowlege everyone, thanks! I'm, erm... asking for a table saw for xmas and the tips are highly appreciated. I have never used a table saw so I'll be really paying attention to my actions.

 

[al6517]

The most important thing to remember is don't force the work piece, let the tool do the work, if the tool was an inexpensive under powered model and your feed rate was a tad to quick it will kick back or jam. just get back on that horse if not you will be afraid of it forever. Have a very healthy respect for these power tools and be confidant in your handling of them and you will become safer with time.

AL

 

[Ernie]

Have you guys ever heard of the "Saw Stop"? It looks really cool. It constantly monitors an electrical signal in the blade and if there's a change, it retracts the blade nearly instantly. I'm sure it's expensive, but if you use a table saw on a regular basis, it could pay for itself by saving some digits

Check out this video...

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Thats neat but it is actually detecting moisture. It will save a finger but not stop a kickback. It also wrecks its self every time. Seems to me that if you ever cut wet wood that would get expensive in a hurry.

 

[tdgill]

Quote:

funny, was thinking the same thing Al, got to get back on that horse. ONe more refresher...lol.

 

[Chris09]

If I might add that you might want to get a Anti Kickback Guard..
I know they can get in the way and be a pain for some applications but they do there gob...

Chris

 

[RocketDad]

My table saw is actually a circular saw attached to a piece of plywood. I don't have any safety features on it whatsoever. I have all my fingers and both eyes. It's main redeeming feature is the maple "t-square" fence I made for it out of really nice scraps from a job.

I use push sticks religiously. The kind I use

has a long contact surface, like a shoe with a heel, and a handle I can grip rather than some variations that just have a curved top to push down with the palm of the hand. This allows me to "grip" the work piece better, using the "toe" of the stick. The safest way to use it is to keep it closer to the blade than to the fence - that way it doesn't twist the workpiece into the blade, but away from it. I make them from furniture grade plywood (baltic birch when I have it... ) and round the edges with a 1/4" router bit. Long skinny push sticks with a little notch in the end give me too little control. Being that far from the piece freaks me out. I'd rather be closer to the blade and know where I'm going to end up, than farther away and always afraid the stick will slip off.

I tried to put a splitter blade on it once, but gave up. Splitters are great at keeping wood from pinching the blade. Anti-kickback pawls do the job they're intended to, but they get in the way of handling small pieces safely. I learned to do without them working in a shop where I had to make absurdly narrow pieces sometimes. I would love to have a chip-guard, and have one sitting in a box. I salvaged it from a crummy saw that died. I intended to attach it to the splitter, but that didn't work out. Instead I have to wear a face shield when I cut, and accept that my hands and arms get hit with chips. I dress accordingly.


I don't use it to rip hardwood. Hardwood is the worst offender for pinching the blade, in my experience. Some boards will twist, bend and curl all over the place as you rip 'em.

The best safety feature is a brain. I've never hurt myself with this saw, and I've been using it for years. Would I like something better? Yeah! But I HAVE this, so I had to learn to live with it and use it. It's outlasted a craftsman with a horrid fence, and a Ryobi BT3000.

I've used feather boards on big saws sometimes. They can be a pain to get set up for one-off cuts, but they're perfect for controlling the first quarter of 10' and longer boards when you have to be way out on the end.

Controlling your "outfeed" is an important part of safety, too. I use adjustable height rollers and I hate them - if they're not angled right they drive the stock in weird directions. I prefer a good slick outfeed table.

 

[mightieskeeper]

Safety first, lets keep all 10 fingers. Good luck with your next project.

 

[millebantam]

A lot of really good info in this thread. I'd just like to add that when it comes to tablesaws, you get what you pay for. I use mine almost daily and I have a big, commercial type Delta with a super-nice Biesemeyer fence. It cost about 1300.00 a couple of years ago. I had previously used smaller, "portable" type models with success, but you have to be extremely careful with them and they are underpowered. It's possible to do quality work with the smaller ones, but once you use a "big" one, you will never understand how you used the other ones. If you see yourself doing any amount of carpentry in the future, it wouldn't be a bad idea to save a little bit of money here and there to put toward a larger saw down the road.

A good point previously brought up was the use of the right push sticks. You can make good ones yourself, but there are also really nice, strong, thin, ones available for sale at hardware stores. I also agree that the safety guards are a great device for a beginner, or for certain applications, but there are a few cuts that I make that just can't happen with the guards on. Like others have said, safe use of a tablesaw is mostly common sense, and paying attention to everything that's going on at all times. Sometimes a close call is just what the doctor ordered to remind you to pay more attention, especially if you start taking the safety of the saw for granted.

 

[farmercharlie]

Quote:
Just a quick note, silicone is not recommended if you are using any kind of varnish finish as the silicone will screw up the finish. A coat of good old paste wax (no silicone) will slick up the table and fence nicely.

Charlie