Tool Safety Series: Table Saws
Whether you're a professional woodworker or just a tool enthusiast, its never a bad idea to brush up on proper tool use and safety practices.
Pictured above are a contractor table saw (Left) and a cabinet maker table saw (Right). Despite their differences, the same standards and safety practices apply to both when hand feeding material.
Guard Requirements:
Blade guards
"Each circular hand-fed rip saw shall be provided with a hood-type guard that will cover the blade at all times when not in use. This may be accomplished by the use of a guard which will automatically adjust to the thickness of the material being cut, or by a fixed or manually adjusted guard" "Each circular hand-fed rip saw shall be provided with a hood-type guard that will cover the blade at all times when not in use. This may be accomplished by the use of a guard which will automatically adjust to the thickness of the material being cut, or by a fixed or manually adjusted guard"
Above is an automatically adjusting hood-type guard which doubles as a dust extraction hood. These protect operators from small debris that may be thrown back during a rip cut such as dust, splinters, loose knots, and foreign materials such as nails. A guard like this required to be in place at all times if the cut being made allows it. The hood may be removed for special cuts that would otherwise be impossible with the hood in place.
Spreaders
"Each hand-fed circular saw shall be equipped with a spreader to minimize the possibility of material squeezing the saw"
Even the slightest horizontal force on a board in the middle of a cut can cause it to kickback at incredible speed. The spreader helps mitigate this hazard by providing a static surface for cut material to slide against.
These standards are established by ANSI O1.1-1961: Safety Code for Woodworking Machinery - Section 6.1 and are incorporated by reference by 29 CFR 1926.304(f).
General Operating Procedures:
Never start the saw if material is touching the blade. The blade needs time to accelerate to operational speed and will kickback anything touching it when it starts up.
Avoid standing behind the space between the blade and the fence. It is much easier for material in this area to kickback into an operator. When possible, it is safest to stand on the left-hand side of the saw blade. Keep a wide stable stance when hand feeding material and avoid bending or leaning as this may lead to falls.
Related to the previous point, always keep a hand/push-stick on the material between the blade and the fence. This where kickback is most likely to occur. Push-sticks should be used if making narrow cuts that could bring an operators hands close to the blade.
Never apply lateral or vertical force to material being cut. Material must only receive force from behind and above to keep it flat on the table top and moving smoothly forward. Be especially aware of this when cutting large sheets of material with a partner.
Use a roller stand or ask for assistance when cutting material that hangs off the edge of the table top. Hanging material may cantilever the rest of the material, causing it to lift off the table top and kickback.
In the picture above, the person in pink in assists the operator in blue. As the operator in blue pushes the sheet through the blade, the assistant keeps their hands on the material, slowly walking along side it. If they were to apply force in any direction (other than to counter gravity) it would almost certainly cause the saw blade to bite into the material and potentially kick it back in to the operator.
Due to the versatility of table saws, these guidelines are not exhaustive. Be sure to read the operators manual before operating machinery for the first time.
