Kickback scare

[Phil Hughey]

Here is a kickback story from my shop this past Saturday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFiIjCsTxXY

Never knew a kickback could pack such a wallop. As I think about it, I'm thinking that using a splitter would have kept this from happening. I always thought splitters just kept the wood from pinching into the blade, but in this case, it would also have kept the piece from rotating into the blade. I've got to rethink that one.

[Rod Sheridan]

Phil, I'm glad to hear that you're ok.

Yes a splitter or riving knife prevents the work from rotating into the rear of the blade, that prevents kick back accidents. You need one, no question about it, whether you buy or make one for your saw.

Regards, Rod.

[David Nelson1]

Glad to hear your Ok Phil. The table and the shaper get my full attention, as you have witnessed it doesn't take much for things to go wrong real quick!!

[Peter Aeschliman]

I don't know if you've seen my thread about how I took a board to the forehead (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?170208-Kickback-Hurts!-(WARNING!-GORY-PICTURES!!)&highlight=), but I'm with you man.

I always thought people were blowing kickback out of proportion. In one magazine a year or so ago, there was a funny write up about how a man was hit in his "man parts" by some kickback. It was written with a lot of humor, and at the time I thought the author was embellishing. My forehead and your piece of 3/4" ply are clear evidence that kickback, even if it doesn't throw your hand into the blade, can really injure you.

As for how to prevent this- yes, riving knives help a lot because it keeps the workpiece from coming into contact with the backof the blade. However, there are other parts of the blade where the workpiece can come into contact with the teeth and throw the piece back at you: the top and the front.

To keep the top of the blade from being a problem, you need to raise the blade enough that the bottom of the gullets clear the top of the workpiece. For the front of the blade, you need to use feather boards to keep the workpiece against the fence. It doesn't hurt to use the spring-loaded anti-kickback pawls as well.

Since my injury, I do not stand in the line of the blade. I was working in the shop on Saturday, standing safely to the side, and experienced another kickback. This time, I was ripping a board and it was the waste piece that kicked back as the saw was shutting down. It was a small piece (maybe about 1" wide by 24" long). After I completed my cut, the waste piece was stuck under the blade guard in an awkward position. I could hear it rubbing against the blade, and it was slowly moving back toward the front of the saw. I grit my teeth knowing what was coming as the saw was slowing down. And sure enough, Boom! the piece hit the wall and shattered into pieces!

Anyway, I'm glad you're okay man. Thanks for the reminder. All woodworkers need to read these threads to keep them honest!

[Jim Rimmer]

Great video. Glad you are OK. Thanks for the post.

[Ray Newman]

Phil: to echo others, glad you escaped injury.

Interesting to see Fellow Woodworker who utilizes the Delta Uni-Guard on a Uni-Saw. My Uni-Saw dates from circa 1986 and came equipped with the Uni-Guard and the disappearing splitter. And I religiously use both.

Do you have the disappearing on your saw?

The disappearing splitter is very functional -- to do a cross cut, all that is required is to remove the throat plate, push down on the splitter, then re-install the throat plate. To do a rip, just pull up on the splitter. Takes no time at all. And switching back and forth quickly becomes routine.

I believe that the older style disappearing splitter for the Uni-Guard is still available. Have no idea what it costs.

[glenn bradley]

I use a splitter for every cut that can use one (and that's most of them).

[Kevin Womer]

So glad you are alright, I have been fortuate but my brother-in-law has not and he has two missing fingers to prove it.
Thanks for the video.
Kevin

[Peter Quinn]

Good to hear you are not injured. I've been there, very frightening. A spinning board missed my head last year by a hair, I could feel and hear the swish as I dropped flat on my back away from the saw. I have a splitter for my saw which did little good because it was not installed at the time. Stay safe and move forward, lesson learned at a relatively low cost. Oh, and if your push stick looks like one of those shuffle board sticks, throw it out and make a push block, or "shoe" type pusher that give you downward pressure over a longer area. Much more control over the stock that way. Of course I was not using that either when I lost control over my piece, because I was just making one quick cut......

[Phil Hughey]

Thanks you all for the encouragement and the advice.

Peter A., WOW! I followed your link, that was a nasty blow to the head. Is it healing alright? Nice of the nurse to point out the "L" thing on your forehead
It is a weird feeling when something like that happens and it brings it home just how badly things could have been. It had to put a huge fright in you to see all of that blood from the head wound. It's amazing how the "quick cuts" can cause so much trouble because they breed carelessness.

I'll be looking into a splitter. Thank you all for the admonition to do so.

Ray, I'll check into the disappearing splitter for the uniguard / unisaw. My saw did not come with the uniguard, it was an add on that I go off ebay so I don't know if the disappearing splitter will work on it or not, but, I'll definitely do some looking into it though.

[Ray Newman]

Phil H: re. the Delta disappearing splitter, see --

http://www.mikestools.com/34-868-Delta-Disappearing-Splitter-For-use-with-Delta-10-Right-Tilt-Unisaw.aspxhttp://www.toolmarts.com/del_34-868.html
The Saw Center might have a disappearing splitter.
http://www.sawcenter.com/
Then there is the newer design “easy on -easy off” Delta splitter:
http://www.toolbarn.com/delta-78-963.html

[Phil Hughey]

Thank you for the links Ray. It looks like that outfit should work on my saw. I need to look at the rod behind the blade to make sure. I like that design, it looks like it should be very effective.

[Brian Kincaid]

Wow Phil glad you are okay.
-Brian

[Larry Fox]

Phil, thanks for the reminder and am certainly glad to hear that you were able to escape injury. One other think that I noticed very early into your video and I typically classify as a safety concern is the cord on your saw. It appears to be running across the floor and in your walking path. Not a TS issue per-se but just something I noticed.

[Dave Aronson]

I have recently been thinking of selling my Jet contractor to to get a grizzly cabinet saw just for the splitter. I wish contractor saws could have good splitters.