Is the table saw (non sawstop) the most dangerous tool in the shop?

[Richard Wagner]

I have read very little of this thread but I still have an opinion. The table saw is not dangerous at all. It is the person operating it that determines the level of hazard at any given moment.

[Kent A Bathurst]

You're right. I just wanted to point out that workers do that (tie back the guard) as well as cut across their leg. I wasn't trying to say that the two were required simultaneously to cut your thigh.

Mike

Darwin was onto something. One of these fools will cut higher than their thigh, and remove themselves from the gene pool.

[Bradley Potts]

Only the RAS scares me - and that is why I don't have one.

My point - every machine is safe. Every machine is unsafe. All depends on operator's attention to correct operating procedures.

Well, it's good to respect one's gut fears as long as the phobias don't lead us to continue in a more unsafe direction. I have owned a couple of TS's and they always scared me a bit. Now, I have gotten rid of the TS's and instead have both a 14" and a 12" Delta turret arm RAS, and have used them enough to have nicked myself one time -- I figure that was my one and only "get outta jail free card" in the realm of vicious spinning saw blades -- yes, I am VERY careful, deliberate, and aware when I cut now.

I see the TS and RAS as pretty comparable in the danger department, however, I consider the TS the more dangerous of the 2 tools. Why? Because the TS' blade is always mostly hidden from view, whereas the RAS' blade is almost entirely in plain sight and sound; I find the obvious danger-maker does a better job of getting and holding my attention.

Another clear benefit of the RAS over the TS is that the workpiece is always forced down into the table and forced rearward against the fence when crosscutting. Because the workpiece is held stationary during crosscuts and it is the blade that is moved along a locked track (the anti-corollary to the sliding table TS), there is no reason for the workpiece to become bound and thereby cause things to start flying around.

When it comes to ripping on the RAS, here again it has a distinct safety advantage over the TS in that the workpiece is always forced down into the table. If the workpiece binds up, it can only kickback straight to the rear, which implies that the operator is out of harm's way as long as s/he stands slightly off to one side or the other for the feed. On the TS, the workpiece can get lifted as well as launched straight backwards, so it's hard to predict where the safest place to stand is with a TS.

I've heard really icky stories RE the shaper and how it can really draw people in toward the spinning head. And as someone else pointed out, those darned bandsaws are used for carving up sides-o-beef and for cutting really large steel beams too.

Here's another vote for that tool which is the most oft used.


-- Bradley

[Matt Mattingley]

I personally think the lathe is the most dangerous machine in any shop. They can suck you in, twist a finger off. Grab razor blade tool bit and throw it out at you, blank can explode and you could never know the extent of the damage.

[sullivan mcgriff]

I tend to be the most dangerous tool in the shop, my worst accident was with a mitre saw with all guards in place I was tired and pissed off and was just going to do one cut, somehow stuffed pinky into blade. It is being complacent tires innatentive or just plain overconfident that causes problems, and don't weld while wearing crocs