Sawstop accidental safety trip

[Todd Mason-Darnell]

Well, I joined the idiot club. I accidently set off the brake on the Sawstop today. I was sneaking up on the cut for a rabbet cut and was using my combo square to help adjust the height of the blade. Of course, I was in a hurry and brought the METAL square over before the blade had come to a complete stop:

IMG_2142.jpg

I was impressed. I could here the brake fire through my hearing protectors.

While the blade was moving slow enough, it most likely was not damaged, I decided not to take the chance and I am going to replace it.

I like to think of it as $150 fine for being in a hurry.

[Ted Prinz]

Ummm. So you were in coast down? Bummer.

[Ben Rivel]

Oh man, that stinks. What brand was the blade? Can you send it back to the manufacturer and see if they might be able to repair it?

[Mike Henderson]

I did exactly the same thing. I was using a rule to adjust the fence and touched the blade before it came to a complete stop. It was barely moving. Didn't hurt my blade at all - only had to replace the brake.

Mike

[Neil Gaskin]

Welcome to the club. Membership is free but the self imposed fine is mandatory.

When we first had ours we trips twice in the few month. Neither involving flesh. Both with almost new Forrest blades. One was the replacement for the first.

I called forrest and no dice on the repair.

Rule in our shop is you sign the blade and hang it on the wall.

[Frank Pratt]

Me too. I did it cutting a board with some graphite cloth glued to it. Stupid, stupid. No drama at all, just a little thunk, the blade disappeared & the saw shut down. Blade was not repairable; 2 tooth missing, with part of the steel disc below one of them torn off. Lesson learned.

[Pat Barry]

Question for Sawstop owners. How many times are you willing to pay the $150 fine? Has anyone yet disconnected the safety feature?

[Robert Engel]

$150?? Wow, that's an expensive mistake, isn't it? Curiously, I have yet to see a post about someone's finger being saved.

I have a friend who works in a cabinet shop and he told me so far every time the SS has fired it has been for something other than a finger. The cut a lot of laminate and he thinks some types of laminate trigger the safety feature but they don't know why. Happens 2-3 times a year

So they keep 2 spare cartridges on the shelf. Talked to the owner said the savings on insurance aren't enough to pay for the cartridges. Don't know if that is really true but he did ask me if I wanted to buy it. And that was when the cartridges were $85.

[Kurt Kintner]

I'll pay it every time if it keeps me out of the hospital.... $150 ?? Chicken feed ....

[Eric Rimel]

We've had about 6 trips in 8 years....that I know of. Two involved flesh. One was wet material. One was someone cutting a salvaged veneered desktop down. It had a foil veneer backing. The other three are mysteries. Nobody admits to them. We figure they were facilities guys using the saws without permission. The main power switches are now locked.

[Mike Heidrick]

Curiously, I have yet to see a post about someone's finger being saved.

Well count me as your first then. Saved me 12/23/2014. 5hp ICS. I was just using the RK and stuck left thumb into blade while pushing plywood through the blade. I now use overbade guard absolutely whenever I can.

[Alan Schwabacher]

If the trip happened while the blade was spinning slowly, it seems very unlikely that there was significant damage to the blade. You probably didn't hit the teeth any harder than if you'd cut something. Most of the blade damaging energy comes from the spinning blade. Your aluminum block doesn't even look distorted.

[glenn bradley]

I did mine cutting some UHMW material that I had saved from the trash at work. Turned out it was static-dissipating UHMW; boy I really saved some money by digging that stuff out of the trash ;-) Like many misfires, totally my fault. the pieces were part of a packing frame for electronic equipment so I should have figured. As soon as it went thump . . . I knew what happened. Unlike any other insurance I have, the cost here is well worth the benefit IMHO.

[Ben Rivel]

Havent tripped mine yet, though I havent had the saw long. Any risk of a false trip is worth it to me for my safety. Just for reference: a new brake cartridge is $69 (LINK) and a new Forrest WWII is $95 from AcmeTools when they have their regular 15% coupon out. Pricey IF it goes off on you yea, but many people have never had one "accidentally" go off and many have had their fingers saved from them going off when it wasn't and accident.

[Prashun Patel]

"Question for Sawstop owners. How many times are you willing to pay the $150 fine?"

I've paid it twice so far (confounded Incra miter fence!!!). On the face of it, I feel like it's an expensive way to learn. But I can tell you from first hand experience, each time it has happened, I think "I am GLAD to pay it." At the moment, given that something far more serious COULD have happened, it feels like a bargain. I'm not a rational economist in front of the saw.