"Safety Equipment Removed for Video Clarity"

[BuilderBill]

I recently did some research on tablesaw fence systems(wound up with the Incra package) and, in the process, watched a lot of videos both downloaded from various manufacturers and by independent reviewers on YouTube. With a very few exceptions most of the saws used in the demos had no splitter/riving knife or blade guard installed. Almost without exception these videos had a subtitle similar to this threads title: "Safety Equipment Removed for Video Clarity".

C'mon, guys, how much "video clarity" do you need to show one board coming into the blade and two boards coming out? Gimme a break, you trash the blade guards and splitters for the same reason most of us do: They're a PITA to work with/around and if you operate the saw properly with a modicum of common sense they're redundant.

Just chunkin' this out there for comments... I could make some observations about the number of lawyers trying to make a living or about our society's collective desire to be protected from it's own stupidity from cradle to grave or maybe even from our collective refusal to realize that some of our actions are inherently risky when undertaken by the uninformed or unskilled. But I won't....

So, what say you?

Bill

[Nick2cd]

my old craftsman tablesaw had no splitter or riving knife. i recently got a high end table saw that has a fantastic riving knife. it's not a pain to work with at all. and if i do want to remove it, there's a quick release lever that allows me to take it off in about 5 seconds. however, i just can't think of any situation where i would want to do so.

BTW, BuilderBill....is that ur house in your avatar pic? if so, it's BEAUTIFUL!

[jimmykx250]

My current craftsman saw is a 1.75 hp model and the splitter and riving knife are one assembly. Not very easy to work with and a pita to install and remove. Honestly I havent used a splitter or guard in years. To many different operations to run back to back where it just takes too much time. Know if I had a new model like the delta unisaw or saw stop that would be another story altogether. I know i would use them then.

[Vic]

I use the Biesemeyer aftermarket splitter..and use it all the time. It's rare that I remove it, but it's simple to remove and reinstall, so I DO use it all the time.

[JimB1]

I don't know about that. I have a splitter attached to the blade guard that I pretty much always have on for through cuts because I've caught way too many flying pieces of wood but the blade guard is pretty scratched up and always dusty so it's possible they just want it to look nicer on the video. Also when I do a cut with the blade at an angle, the blade guard just looks odd tilted sideways with the motor (contractor style saw). I guess you could make an argument that it would be distracting to watch if they left the guard on. That said, no excuse for not leaving a riving knife on if they have one. I'd love to have one on mine...

But yes, I agree that they should have bold print "do not do this at home" on the bottom of the screen when they take the guard off. I've talked to lots of people who immediately take the splitters and blade guards off their saws when they get them. I did that for a little while but I think we have fear of spinning blades for a good reason and a few years back decided to listen to that fear and keep the blade cover and splitter on almost all the time now. I just take it off for doing dados and whatnot or if I need to use my crosscut sled or box jig or something. I setup my crosscut sled so you really have to work at being stupid to get your hands anywhere near the path of the blade.

Honestly, it doesn't even get in my way anymore most of the time as long as I use an outfeed for long stuff. When I don't or if I have the outfeed set too low, the back of the piece will pull the blade guard up and the piece will climb the splitter, then it could be dangerous...

-Jim

[BuilderBill]

BTW, BuilderBill....is that ur house in your avatar pic? if so, it's BEAUTIFUL!

Nick,

I wish it was my house but it's just another of the 800 or so I've framed in the last ten years, I'd put it in the Top 20 for difficulty. It finished out absolutely gorgeous. Split-level basement and main, garage angled off at 30 degrees, multiple wall heights on the upper level and a bonus over the 3-car garage. Your typical million-dollar weekend home that used to be my bread and butter before the market tanked.

I just happened to have some decent photos of this one to pick from for an avatar.

Them was the Good Old Days.....

Bill

[ChetlovesMer]

My riving knife is almost always on. It works great any any cuts I make. I take it off when I run dados but that's about it.

Having said that. I don't buy that the splitter and riving knife were removed for video clarity in most cases I assume they have a splitter or riving knife which is a PITA and so they remove it. The statement at the bottom of the video is just for CYA.

I like your avatar as well.

[petersb]

I believe that they could be removed for clarity... and never put back on.

First thing I did was take my guard and splitter off. I didn't know any better. Now I know better and still don't have them on. I don't even have them anymore. I must have thrown them away at some other point in my ignorance.

If I had them now, I MIGHT be using them. At least the splitter. I ended up making my own splitter with a piece of stainless steel. I still don't use that. It is a hair too thick and I need to thin it some.

I have done all kinds of cutting operations on the saw that most would not recommend. I wouldn't recommend them to others either. I started out doing a lot of these things in my earlier days of woodworking and have been spared from any mishaps.

Believe me, I am not saying that using the table saw without the safety equipment in place, is a good idea because I haven't had any accidents. In fact, I am saying to USE the features for your safety, that is what they are designed for. Everyone has to make up their own mind on how much risk they are willing to take when using tools, or anything for that matter.

Remember that the more wood you cut on the saw, the more chance there is for operator error, equipment failure, or whatever, to happen and cause injury, serious or minor. If the safety equipment is removed, it can't do what it was intended to do....

PROTECT YOURSELF! Don't leave it up to someone else.

This thing will eat your flesh and spit wood back at ya, don't take it lightly!

[flairwoodworks]

Bill,

This bothers me too. In some cases, the guard actually does need to be removed for clarity, but in many cases, the blade guard doesn't interfere with anything at all.

[TheNehlsEnd]

I think that they are just as guilty as we are but just don't admit it.

[Vic]

I believe that they could be removed for clarity... and never put back on.

First thing I did was take my guard and splitter off. I didn't know any better. Now I know better and still don't have them on. I don't even have them anymore. I must have thrown them away at some other point in my ignorance.

If I had them now, I MIGHT be using them. At least the splitter. I ended up making my own splitter with a piece of stainless steel. I still don't use that. It is a hair too thick and I need to thin it some.

I have done all kinds of cutting operations on the saw that most would not recommend. I wouldn't recommend them to others either. I started out doing a lot of these things in my earlier days of woodworking and have been spared from any mishaps.

Believe me, I am not saying that using the table saw without the safety equipment in place, is a good idea because I haven't had any accidents. In fact, I am saying to USE the features for your safety, that is what they are designed for. Everyone has to make up their own mind on how much risk they are willing to take when using tools, or anything for that matter.

Remember that the more wood you cut on the saw, the more chance there is for operator error, equipment failure, or whatever, to happen and cause injury, serious or minor. If the safety equipment is removed, it can't do what it was intended to do....

PROTECT YOURSELF! Don't leave it up to someone else.

This thing will eat your flesh and spit wood back at ya, don't take it lightly!

Brett< I highly recommend buying the Biesemeyer Splitter. Snaps in and out. No time involved, once you install it.

[Gregory Paolini]

Totally theoretical, but I would suspect that the person on video, or in the magazine, or the book doesn't care for the guard that came with the saw. That somehow it interferes with the way they work, or their efficiency, and just removed it. And, again in theory, the publisher's legal council insisted in such a clause to remove any inference of negligence on the publishers part.

Again, I don't know much about that, so it's all just supposition...

Best,

Gregory

[Kerry]

I think that they are just as guilty as we are but just don't admit it.

Exactly. I think they just use that disclaimer so they can not use their guards and splitters while still being able to tell you that you 'need' to and not sound like a hypocrite. In other words it's just an excuse to be able to say "Do as I say, not as I do" and cover their butts from liability when someone hurts themselves at home because they didn't use the guard and splitter. Then again I don't even own a tablesaw so who am I to judge them .

[jHop]

While guards and splitters are great on table saws (I don't use one because I don't use the table saw I have access to - even if I knew where the splitter and guard were), what I really am looking for are the guards for the thinner, vertical blades.

My dad had a Dremel scroll saw, probably no bigger than 12", that had the bright orange guard on it. While he was proficient enough at the saw to not use it while he worked, that saw terrified me when I was younger. Every time I walked by it, I'd hook up the guard.

I'd love to see something similar for the band saw. I don't own one, but I'm again terrified of using one. The fact that butchers use one to cut meat really sticks out in my mind. And my mother-in-law's husband (she remarried) nearly severed his thumb using his bandsaw.

Having this experience with people recovering from injuries, and the mere thought of these injuries, has made me *EXTREMELY* cautious around the table saw. Not having a clue where the original safety equipment is, I'm looking into aftermarket gear. And, while I cannot discount the quality of other's finds, I'm limited by the fact that it's not my table saw. So any equipment I install has to be "temporary" and not cause noticeable changes/damages to the equipment. For that reason, I'm leaning towards the MJ splitters that are available, as those fit into "disposable" zero clearance inserts in the table saw. This is a simple change I would be allowed to do. If I needed to change a bolt pattern, or loosen a bolt to fit the gear, or drill a hole, I'm pretty certain I'd have a long discussion or argument on my hands to explain the "no touchy" rule.

and while I appreciate that the guards and splitters have been removed for clarity, the only time I want the clarity is when they are doing those delicate cuts, or cuts requiring precision to explain. (Like locking rabbet joints, or cutting cove molding, or other techniques I don't use on even an infrequent basis.) But I'd like to see the video host reattach the gear after the difficult part (or perhaps the tool use) has ended.

And I'd like to add a theory to Greg's comment: perhaps they are trying not to promote one brand of safety equipment over another. Which then implies some form of contractual agreement regarding safety gear and/or aftermarket gear. Maybe we need to go the masking tape label hiding approach? Or the Mythbuster's ® approach?