You may also return purchases to a Rockler store near you for store credit. Manufacturers equip their saws with guarding, instructions, warnings and recommendations for personal protective equipment (“PPE”). Items shipped directly from the manufacturer cannot be returned in store. In this case a construction laborer working on scaffolding was injured when an object he was holding contacted an electrical utility wire. * - you may encounter an occasional surprise. As a professional engineer and an accomplished woodworker, he is regularly retained in casework involving equipment operations and maintenance as well as various other safety aspects, such as equipment modifications and safety guards, including sawstop and flesh sensing technology units. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. The pushblock was used because it allowed me to pivot the piece into the blade to create the kickback while pulling my hand away from the blade. slowly. [29 CFR 1910.213(c)(2)] Use anti-kickback fingers to hold the stock down in the event that the saw kicks back the material. Kickbacks occur when the blade catches the stock and throws it back toward the operator. For example, do not use a crosscut blade for ripping. Click here to join. From contributor F: Miter saws are very dangerous - never underestimate how much energy they can generate when things go wrong. ... employees get unpaid time off. A hazardous kickback situation can occur when boards are ripped and lumber is pinched between the blade and another point on the saw, such as a guide. I recently had a kickback on my miter saw and noticed blade wobble while assessing the saw after a blade change. 10. Well, in a manner of speaking. I want to start out by saying that I do not advocate that you use a table saw without a blade guard. Deep scraps removed from the cutting zone to avoid them being thrown out by the saw blade. NOTE: * Please read your saw’s owner’s manual for a more complete list of safety rules. For ripsaws, use a spreader to prevent material from squeezing the saw or kicking back during ripping. This can also occur if the blade catches on an irregularity in the lumber. A table saw that isn't correctly set up and outfitted with the necessary safety equipment can turn a piece of lumber into a forceful projectile. The most common is the one described above, where the blade gets stuck in the material and, in the case of a sliding saw, is propelled toward the user. A 15-minute video that addresses safety procedures when using a miter saw. Stay up to date with weekly communications from Robson Forensic - Substantive technical articles, safety practices across various industries, contact information from featured experts. This is a much more dire form of woodworking mishap. A dull or inappropriate blade will also have more of a tendency to bind. discusses the causes of wood chair collapses which commonly lead to fall injuries. Many of us are familiar with the unnerving experience of having a sliding miter saw blade bind in piece of wood; in the middle of a cut, you feel a sudden, violent jerking backward of the motor and blade unit. I was trying to cut off the corners of a 3.5” square in preparation for making a circle out of it. 5) You’re Cutting with Dull Blades Most miter saws don’t have very effective dust collection systems, but it is actually … Cabinet Table Saw – Expert Overview of Table Saw Anatomy, Contractor Table Saw – Expert Overview of Table Saw Anatomy, Electrical Shock Injuries - Expert Article on Typical Causes of Electrical Exposure, Miter Saw – Expert Introduction to Injuries and Safety Equipment, Table Saw Guards – Expert Introduction to Table Saw Safety, Utility Line Contact– Expert Investigates Shock Injury, Why Do Hand Held Circular Saw Injuries Occur - Expert Article, Wood Chair Failures – Expert Article Discusses the Cause of Most Wood Chair Collapse Incidents, Jointer Injuries – Expert Witness Overview of Machinery & Mishaps, For ripsaws, use a spreader to prevent material from squeezing the saw or kicking back during ripping. http://www.powertoolinstitute.com - A 15-minute video that addresses safety procedures when using a miter saw.Did you like this video? Manufacturer guarantees/warranties for power tools, CNC and laser products will supersede the Rockler Guarantee if these items are damaged or defective. This accessory (provided with all new table saws) is one of the … It would be wildly irresponsible for me to do so. In this article, Professional Engineer and Woodworking Expert, Les Winter, P.E. Use Proper Inserts. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Doing so helps soften the effects of any binding that takes place. Kickbacks also can occur if safeguards are not used or if poor-quality lumber is cut. When you start making a cut or just want to continue cutting in the middle of … Mr. Grigonis shows students how to safely use the power miter saw. Another unpleasant miter saw event happens when the blade catches the edge of a piece of cutoff and fires it across the shop. Order Publications Now: PTI online ordering Print order form For these items, please call the store where you purchased them or our customer service department at 1-800-376-7856 so we can assist you. This video is copyrighted by Phil Grigonis. Hand-held circular saw (“skil saw”), table saw and miter saw hand injuries are frequently caused by the same type of occurrence: Kickback. How to prevent mitersaw kickback. Your order will come with a return form with convenient instructions, or you may send your returns directly to Returns Department, Rockler Woodworking and Hardware, 4365 Willow Drive, Medina, MN 55340. If all is working correctly and you are using a sharp, appropriate blade, the vast majority of your cuts should be near glass smooth and trouble free. Kickbacks can result if the blade height is not correct or if the blade is not maintained properly. This indicates that you need to replace your blade with something sharper, or that you need to make your cuts slower. Occurring most often with very small pieces of stock, this type of “kickback” is rarely puts the operator in great physical danger (as long as appropriate safety equipment is … It is an effective tool and but at the same time has some dangers attached to it. As Woodworkers’ Journal Editor Rob Johnstone explained handily in answer to an ezine reader’s question, the two types of kickback differ greatly in their potential for harm: "True ‘kickback’ is a situation where a rotating saw blade (or cutter of some sort) grabs or binds to a piece of material and throws or "kicks it back" opposite the direction that it is being pushed (i.e., towards the user). Operate the saw at the speed specified by the manufacturer. Make sure that all its guards are in proper place and are operating. This article recaps our involvement in the case and references some of the OSHA standards relevant to electrical safety. To safely cut a small piece that you cannot easily clamp to the mitersaw table, adhere the small piece to a carrier board with double-faced tape. The two pieces sag toward the middle as you finish the cut, pinching the blade and causing kickback. Worse yet, sudden kickback can cost you fingers if your hand gets jerked into the saw. Kickbacks are more likely to occur when ripping, rather than crosscutting. [1910.213(c)(2)], Use anti-kickback fingers to hold the stock down in the event that the saw kicks back the material. Align the saw blade on the waste side of the cut line. provides an introduction to circular saw injuries and an explanation of why they occur. Table saw kickback tends to throw the workpiece backward at the operator, often dragging a hand backwards through the blade, or causing the operator to fall forward into the blade. Details in this document may vary from the equipment in your case. Be attentive. 1: You’ll Need Some Miter Saw Safety Gear Some accidents with miter saws occur because the operator does not have the saw setup correctly. Hold the saw firmly and lower the blade . We proudly stand behind all of our products. When lumber isn’t perfectly straight and flat (and it never truly is) it can’t be held in firm contact with the fence and bed of the saw at every point. The saw spins fast enough for kickback to turn the board into a missile, firing it in whatever direction the saw is spinning. Even if you do follow basic miter saw safety rules – keeping your free hand well out of the path of the blade; wearing safety equipment; making sure any angle settings are securely locked in; keeping the material up tight against the fence and bed of the tool, etc. A quality blade designed for use on a slider (such as Freud’s LU91R Sliding Compound Miter Saw Blade) will not only help cut down on binding, but will also make a world of difference in quality of cut the saw delivers. Operating Procedures. The material will be pushed or thrown away from the user (toward the fence). [1910.213(s)(2)]. Hand-held circular saw (“skil saw”), table saw and miter saw hand injuries are frequently caused by the same type of occurrence: Kickback. Our experts are regularly retained in casework involving lacerations, amputations, and deaths that are associated with the use or misuse of saws and other woodworking tools. This is startling, but in most cases quite manageable. You should also check to make sure the saw is functioning properly. Yes, in a sense. This document, created by woodworking tools expert, Les Winter, P.E., is intended to promote a technical dialog involving the components of a contractor table saw. Well, I guess I need to share my misadventure in which I killed my beloved Hitachi C12FDH dual bevel miter saw and its blade. These saws include additional safety features to make rip-cutting safer. Especially if you are new to using a table saw, I recommend using every safety feature it has. If you find its guard to be slow … Moreover, the cool part about miter saws is that they can cut more than one type of 45-degree angle. But in the real world, I have to acknowledge that many, perhaps most people are not using blade guards. Subject: Hand Injuries Caused by Hand-Held Circular Saw, Table Saw and Miter Saw Kickbacks. At least one manufacturer currently provides an additional safeguard known as flesh sensing technology or “sawstop”. The simple answer here is that yes, a miter saw is the best tool that you can use to cut a 45-degree angle. Basically I had a miter saw kickback. Flying chips—Wood chips and splinters may be thrown by the cutting action. into the material being cut. Dust Extraction. These topics are discussed in the article written by woodworking machinery expert, Les Winter, P.E. This occurs when the operator attempts to pass the saw quicker than it can cut. This is very dangerous, as it can pull your fingers through the saw blade or even impale you with the material that is being thrown back at you. In this quiz, you will get to test out just how much you know about operating this tool and some of the safety measures you should follow. Les Winter is a professional engineer who specializes in table saw, miter saw, band saw, circular saw (“skilsaw”) and other woodworking machinery-related injuries. Be Attentive. Kickback occurs when the teeth of the saw blade, moving at tip speeds of 120 miles-per-hour impart sufficient force to cause the workpiece to move in a violent and unexpected manner. Wet wood or wood with a high pitch content is more “sticky” and can be more grab-prone. It’s a good idea to make sure that the two sides of the fence are on the same plane. In either case, more resistance is required to move the lumber forward, than back, and the energy of the rotating blade forces the lumber in the opposite direction. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. Another unpleasant miter saw event happens when the blade catches the edge of a piece of cutoff and fires it across the shop. When you don't feel your best, be it due to common cold, bad night's sleep or getting … If the material is tight to the fence when you start your cut, then with a chop saw or the like, it is really not a dangerous thing. This type of kickback happens when the kerf closes in on the blade and “grabs” it. The miter saw is used for crosscutting operations ONLY! Safety Hazards of Jig Saws. Kickback isn’t really an issue with miter saws (as it is with table saws), but you still don’t want whatever material you’re cutting to get flung around somehow by the saw – so, holding the piece steady while the blade works is very important. This document, created by woodworking tools expert, Les Winter, P.E., is intended to promote a technical dialog involving the components of a cabinet table saw. Can a chop saw or sliding miter saw cause kickback? Or they try to cut a small piece and their fingers are too close to the saw. Other injuries happen when the operator believes they have proper control but they don’t and kickback happens. In fact, this is the intended purpose of a miter saw, to be able to make angled cuts, and not just at 45 degrees, but all sorts of angles. What causes this? 9. It happens frequently when sawing long, wide boards near the middle. Stand a little to the left or right, therefore if kickback occurs, you wont be directly hit by the saw. It’s also advisable to use a moderate slicing stroke instead of slamming though the wood as fast as you can (chop saw is a name, after all, not an instruction). Stand to the side of the saw blade to avoid injury due to kickback. If the saw should kickback, continue to hold it firmly in the down position, release the off/on switch and wait for the blade to stop rotating. As the cut proceeds and the wood moves into closer contact with the fence and/or bed, the kerf changes shape and can impinge on the path of the blade. The scope of our investigations can include equipment operation and maintenance as well as various safety features, such as guards, protective equipment, and flesh sensing technology units (sawstop). A good blade and a correctly functioning saw are the best defense against flying cutoff. Make sure that bevel and miter settings are holding fast, that the blade is on tight, and that there’s no appreciable slop in any of the working parts. In this article, woodworking machinery expert, Les Winter, P.E. Other factors contribute to blade binding, including one or two that are entirely preventable. For international returns, please click here. This video is intended to show the viewer the results of kickback in a controlled and safe manner. In this article, woodworking tools expert, Les Winter, P.E. It is prione: marily a problem with a table saw (or in some cases a table-mounted router or shaper). We are proud of the quality of our products, and we stand behind them 100%. Occurring most often with very small pieces of stock, this type of “kickback” is rarely puts the operator in great physical danger (as long as appropriate safety equipment is in use). Miter Saw Procedures And Safety Quiz Questions 20 Questions | By Tgurnell | Last updated: Nov 9, 2017 | Total Attempts: 112 Questions All questions 5 questions 6 questions 7 questions 8 questions 9 questions 10 questions 11 questions 12 questions 13 questions 14 questions 15 questions 16 questions 17 questions 18 questions 19 questions 20 questions Safety clamps, as the name suggests, are used to clamp your material to the miter saw fence. If they are not, and the fence is not adjustable, the problem can be corrected by adding a shop-made sub-fence to ether side and shimming until the two are exactly coplanar. P.E., discusses the fundamental of kickbacks - why they occur and how they can be prevented. Miter Saw Stops Mid Cut Unsafe Cross-Cutting: Avoiding Dangerous Table Saw Kickback In this article, woodworking tools expert, Les Winter. If the material is bowed or warped, clamp the stock to the saw base before making the cut to avoid binding or saw kickback. Most of what you’ll read and hear on the subject of kickback, however, relates to machines that have the power and potential to hurl a good-sized piece of material in the general direction of the woodworker. In-running nip points—Clothing, hair, or hands may be caught by and pulled into the in-running rolls. [1910.213(c)(3)], Maintain and sharpen blade. When cutting long, wide stock on a sliding miter saw, some woodworkers like to start by making a partial chop cut near the fence side of the blade. Illustration - Table Saw Kickback Scenario. If everything else is in order, doing so should leave even tiny cut off ends lying right next to the blade. You must keep your off hand out of the path of the saw in any case, as is only common sense.". 4) You’re Standing Directly Behind Your Saw/Cut. High-quality brands and products you can trust, Expert advice and free post-purchase support, Exclusive, innovative products that help you Create with Confidence, Detailed instructions, technical specs and guides to make the most of your purchases. Many woodworkers are familiar with the unnerving experience of having a sliding miter saw blade bind in piece of wood; in the middle of a cut, you feel a sudden, violent jerking backward of the motor and blade unit. Miter saw kickback tends to cause the workpiece to fold into a “v” shape, throwing the operator’s hand towards the … Pain. Kickback—Stock caught by the blade may be thrown back at operator. But it is startling, and can be very annoying when the sawn-off projectile - which can be extremely difficult to find - is the part you need. Woodworking Machinery Expert & Electrical Engineer. Details in this document may vary from the equipment in your case. Miter Saw Safety. Another trick is to let the blade come to a complete stop before lifting it up past the stock. The cause of an incident can be reliably and scientifically determined by examining guarding, work support, body posture, proper warnings, instructions, training and other contributing conditions. When using a table saw, the proper zero-clearance blade inserts should always … In this article electrical engineer, Les Winter, P.E., provides an introduction to the most common causes of electrical shock injuries that occur in domestic, commercial, industrial, and construction settings. For more information visit our Woodworking Tools practice page. The experts at Robson Forensic have investigated many incidents of chair failures to understand the cause of failure and the condition of the chair leading up to the incident. Miter-Saw Kickback Injury Story Miter-saw one, woodworker zero. If your circular saw stops mid cut, and is not a power related issue, it is likely a form or binding or kickback. This is an educational video on the safe use of the sliding compound miter saw. Miter saw procedures and safety quiz trivia. Consult your owner's manual for full instructions on safe rip cutting. In … Then clamp the carrier board tightly against the table and … Can a sliding miter saw cause kickback? discusses jointer injuries. January 19, 2011. Such an event seldom leads to serious injury (provided a few common sense safety rules have been followed) but nevertheless can leave a person with a desire to move on to something safer - like sanding or sweeping the floor. The cool part about miter saws are very dangerous - never underestimate how much energy they can prevented. Should leave even tiny cut off ends lying right next to the saw in any case, as ONLY. Are new to using a table saw and miter saw cause kickback a or... 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When an object he was holding contacted an electrical utility wire need to make angled cuts a... About miter saws are very dangerous - never underestimate how much energy they can generate when things go.. Energy they can generate when things go wrong a tendency to bind why occur! Corners of a piece of cutoff and fires it across the shop name suggests are. Many, perhaps most people are not using blade guards Behind your Saw/Cut vary from the equipment your!