Official Luthiers Forum!

I bought a SawStop 9 years ago because I felt it was stupid not to have the technology when it was available. Prior to that, I had over 40 years of table saw experience. I never expected to trip the saw, but I thought the extra margin of safety was worth it (I’m a guitar player—I like my fingers). A couple of weeks ago, I shut off the saw and reached down to remove a piece of cutoff stuck under the blade guard. I guess I expected that the saw had spun down. I heard the clunk and realized what happened. I felt a touch on the end of my thumb which then had a gray spot of dirt on it. The dents the blade made in the aluminum stop block were about 3/32” deep. That force on my thumb would have made a much deeper cut than that on my skin. The SawStop saved me from a pretty serious injury. It was worth the price.

The SawStop Professional Cabinet saw that I have replaced a Craftsman contractor style saw that I had been using. Until I got the SawStop, I had no idea how good and useful a table saw could be. It was so precise and easy to use, that I ended up using the table saw much more in my work.

The SawStop policy is that they replace the brake cartridge for free if a skin touch triggered it. They replaced my cartridge. I still had to replace the blade. They strongly recommended that I not reuse a blade that had been stopped.

If you use a table saw and it’s not a SawStop, seriously consider replacing it.

I am glad you avoided serious injury!

I used a table saw (10" Delta 3 hp) most of my life up until about 10 years ago.The only thing that happened in the 40 years I used one was a few kickback incidents (which the Sawstop doesn't prevent) which fortunately didn't hurt me, but it was close.
10 years ago I got an upright panel saw ( 8" Milwaukee) which I find to be very safe since when used properly your hands are nowhere near the blade and there seems to be no chance of kickback, also much easier to slide sheet goods than horse them onto the tablesaw

So My table saw has been relegated to cutting fret slots (kind of like shooting a mouse with an elephant gun) with a .022" blade sticking up an 1/8" out of the sled.

I find that since I have a large (24") and a small (15") bandsaw and ony build guitars I don't miss the tablesaw.

Their hotdog demonstration is pretty impressive. If you should have the chance to see the demo, it's worth it.

They’re also putting out a bandsaw next year that has some pretty cool features…

After my incident, my wife is insisting that I buy the bandsaw when it comes out. I told her thst I’m only going to do this for a very few more years. She said that someone else will appreciate that bandsaw when I’m done with it. When has a spouse ever demanded that you buy an expensive tool?

Ha! It’s neat but I’m not very afraid of bandsaws. Now if they made a 20” 5HP version, I’d be more interested…

what they really meant to say was "you'd be a blithering idiot to reuse a blade that had been stopped"

ever seen a tooth break off a blade when in use? I have, and it isn't pretty. I've had to deal with more than a few stopped blades (only one was my fault and that was because I was in a hurry, got distracted, and forgot to disable the system before cutting into some aluminum) and I haven't seen a blade survive the incident in a way I'd in any way feel comfortable trying to use again.

glad to hear you avoided an injury...it's very rare to get into a fight with a table saw and be able to call it a draw!

"I’m not very afraid of bandsaws".

Don't underestimate bandsaw hazards. Stuff can blow up in a hurry with them. Some things folks do with them are supper dangerous.

What kind of saw does a butcher use? Think about it.

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Brian R, Wood Mechanic
N8ZED

I've always considered my bandsaw one of the safest stationary power tools in my shop. You can still obviously put yourself in trouble by using improper set ups for things like green log cutting, odd or cylindrical shapes, not paying attention. Worst outcome I've heard of was at a local woodshop where an apprentice thought cleaning a moving blade with a rag was a good idea. Two fingers amputated.

Except for a router,1 time, I have never been injured by my wood cutting power tools. My rule is I keep my fingers away from the blade at all times, don’t work when tired and pay attention.

I've always told myself to pretend that my testicles are on the ends of my fingers when using those tools......

I didn't realize we were supposed to PRETEND. . . I guess I can raise my workbench to a more comfortable height now.

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.

Too funny!
Now I have to clean up the coffee I spewed on my keyboard....

I've tripped mine twice. I have no idea what tripped it the first time because the wood was bone dry. The second time was due to wet wood. It's startling to hear it brake engage, but humbling at the same time.