Dangerous lesson learned

[Jason Scott]

Hey guys,

So today while milling the leg stock for my coffee table I had an interesting thing happen at my table saw. I was milling 16/4 black walnut which is a lot to ask my PM 64A to do anyway, although it went through great. Anyway, I had the board jointed flat, but for some dumba$$ reason I ran it through the ts looking at the flat top and had the bowed bottom on the table. I just didn't realize it (guess my mind was elsewhere) and about 1" from having it through the stock collapse in on itself where the kerf had been run through. Well one side was pinned against my fence and the other I guess was just heavy enough to stay put, but my saw blade instantly slowed way down and I heard how hard the motor was working to keep the blade spinning...Very scary sound, so I immeadiately jumped back let go of everything (to get my hands away from the blade) and hit the stop button...Man if that never happens again it will be too soon. I guess I got too it pretty fast b/c there wasn't even a burn mark, but man that happened fast...I am so mad at myself for not noticing the flat side was up duh, what did I think I was looking at Anyway, just wanted to share b/c I feel bad about it...

[john frank]

Well, good thing you didn't get hurt, and that you learnt a lesson. If it would have been myself, I'd never let go of the stock. You're very lucky the saw didn't throw it right back at you or through the wall. Keeping a firm grip on your work is essential.

[John Myers]

Jason,

I'm glad you're okay. Table saws are scary machines. I remember I had a kickback experience back in college. And another time I was trying to make a deep dado cut on a fairly narrow piece of wood (for the trim around a chess board). Instead of making several shallower passes, I tried doing it in one pass. Big mistake, because the whole piece sort of ended up being gobbled up. I was lucky I got away with all my fingers still intact. Scared the hell out of me.

Funny thing was, there was an older, retired fellow woodworker there in the shop with me that saw it happen and he said 'here, John, let me try it.' He then picked up another of my pieces and preceeded doing the exact same thing I did, with the same result. He jumped back, his face white with fright. He said with a shaky voice 'make shallower passes'. He might have muttered a few other choice words.

The shallow passes did the trick.

[Jason Scott]

Well, good thing you didn't get hurt, and that you learnt a lesson. If it would have been myself, I'd never let go of the stock. You're very lucky the saw didn't throw it right back at you or through the wall. Keeping a firm grip on your work is essential.

John, looking back on it you are right, I wish I had, and I am lucky it didn't kick back, I guess I just got scared and since may saw is fairly new to me I wasn't sure exactly where the stop button was, it isn't second nature yet...I'll be much more careful from now on...

[Jeff Wittrock]

Glad everything was O.K.

I have been pretty lucky over the years, but I can remember one pretty bad kick back from when I was in High School. It's was quite a while back, so I don't remember what I did to cause it. The piece that kicked back had a pretty sharp edge and caught me in the web of my had. Sliced it pretty good.. that much I do remember.

A couple years ago, I had something clamped to my table saw sled with a "C" clamp. I made extra sure that the clamp was clear of the blade before I started cutting, but I didn't think about the fact that the "C" clamp handle was free to slide back and forth on the end of the clamp screw. During the cut, the vibration caused the handle to wander out into the path of the blade, and I didn't notice. BANG!! I heard a loud noise, saw some sparks and , and felt something hit me in the chest. I shut the saw off and saw what had happened. I found pieces of the clamp handle and several carbide teeth embedded in my jacket.

I think there is risk using any tool, and you just have to do your best to maintain some situational awareness. Accidents will happen no matter what you do. I think using appropriate precautions will simply help make sure the accidents will just be small embarrassments instead of loss of body parts. I will gladly take a bruise to my ego as long as I can keep my ten digits .

-Jeff

[John Myers]

Ouch! Jeff - that story about the C-clamp makes me cringe.

I wonder how many accidents happen just due to plain inexperience?

[Rob Wright]

Jason -

Glad that you are OK. The only thing that I can say (and repeat like john frank said) is hold on and let the saw's motor trip the thermal overload or circuit breaker. I had a 2x4 close up on me when ripping it and had it come back when I got scared. After a month of being scared to turn the TS on - I started the project again to have it happen again. This time I held on for dear life until the breaker tripped (3hp grizzly 1023). It couldn't happen fast enough but was a better outcome than having it shoot back into the wall behind me!

Work safe!

- Rob

[Chris Bruno]

Scariest thing that ever happened to me in my shop was the day I started my 12-36 metal lathe with the chuck key in it. BANG! as the key crashed into the ways.... and that was lucky..

I told the machinist at work about my error and how much it scared the crap out of me and he told me how he saw a guy get hit in the head with a key after doing the same thing. Apparently, he dropped dead right there. No doubt I was very lucky.

A close second would be the day that the old Craftsman '100' TS kicked back a piece of pine I was ripping and shot it right through the drywall wall behind me.

Or maybe the day that I was emptying the carbeurator from my old S-10/350 too close to the kerosene heater and my whole carb/hands/sweatshirt were immediately engulfed in flames! That one sure got my heart beating fast!!

I'm MUCH safer now in my ripe old age of 33..

Good post, btw. Always a good idea to remind us of our mistakes..somehow you tend to operate more safely after a near miss...and after thinking about past near misses.

-Chris

[Paul Downes]

I'm not sure given your description, if a splitter would have helped. I made and installed one rescently for just such possibilities. I always use the band saw when milling thick stock. The worst case senario with that machine is that you break the bandsaw blade. (I've done that many times)
If I know that stock is bowed, I stick a shim underneath to keep the blade from binding. I resaw all kinds of wood for bowl blanks and figured wood is more commonly what gets run through the bandsaw. Much of the time the wood is green and it can have all kinds of stress in it that gets releaved when you saw it. It's always a shock when the blade lets go, but I try to be always aware of where my fingers are. I've had a few odd shaped pieces slam down on a finger or two........I think I learned my lesson there...BE SAAAAAFE.

[Jules Dominguez]

Well, good thing you didn't get hurt, and that you learnt a lesson. If it would have been myself, I'd never let go of the stock. You're very lucky the saw didn't throw it right back at you or through the wall. Keeping a firm grip on your work is essential.

I agree with John. Maintain control of the board. You can't move fast enough to get out of the way if it kicks back.

[Victor Stearns]

Glad you are ok.
I tend to think that most of us with table saws have one scary story to tell. I also think that we all learn from and recall that story whenever we step up to the saw. Life's Lessons Learned.
Victor

[glenn bradley]

so I immeadiately jumped back let go of everything (to get my hands away from the blade) and hit the stop button...Man if that never happens again it will be too soon.

The following sarcasm is brought to you by someone who favors "hands-free" power switches :

No, no, no . . . you simply bring your knee forward and hit the switch. No jumping, no playing kick-back-lotto where you win if you jump the right direction and don't get hit. Just bring your knee up and kill the motor.

All kidding aside, glad you weren't hurt. We all have those moments. Do consider a paddle switch. Wouldn't you pay $25 to not have to do that again?

[Jim Mims]

The following sarcasm is brought to you by someone who favors "hands-free" power switches :

No, no, no . . . you simply bring your knee forward and hit the switch. No jumping, no playing kick-back-lotto where you win if you jump the right direction and don't get hit. Just bring your knee up and kill the motor.

All kidding aside, glad you weren't hurt. We all have those moments. Do consider a paddle switch. Wouldn't you pay $25 to not have to do that again?

Now I'm getting closer to catching up with Glenn.
I bought a Rockler paddle switch and re-wired my Craftsman table saw last weekend. I feel much better now than when it still had the regular light switch under the wing my dad installed when it was his.

- Jim

[Peter Quinn]

Got to agree with Glen. My PM66 doesn't quit quite as quick as contractor model. I am not planing on standing there holding that thing back. My knee kick cost me 1sf of plywood from the scrap pile, $1.38 worth of hardware from true value, and 15 minutes to enginer/fabricate. Real cheap back up plan. Got one of those biesmeyer removable splitters too, pricey, but works great (so easy I actually use it) way cheaper than one ambulance ride.

Real careful about my body position too...Grampa used to have a big red X on the floor that read "don't stand here stupid". Like Bruce Lee, easiest way to take a punch is not to be standing where it lands. I always use a long tall push stick to controll shorter work, cause forward is often a safer direction than backwards. Got another knee kick on the 3HP 16" Dewalt RAS too..dont want to try holding that back long either. That machine doesn't play.

Did these things after a short piece of crotch walnut for the leg of a little bench I was making got weird on me. Hit a hard spot, It rose up to the top of the back of the blade while with my tenious grip I tried to hold it back. Just sorta danced there floating up off the table for what felt like 5 minutes, was probably 1/2 second. Couldn't reach the shut off, was standing ready to catch it in my teeth like a frog catching flies. It finally dropped back down, then I almost pushed my hand into the blade cause I was still pushing forward trying to hold it back! Never did finish that bench.

[Jim Summers]

I really like the hands free switch also. I have a pm2k and last weekend I was doing some tuning on a panel sled. Needed a scrap piece to cut and had a small ( ~6" square ) piece of pecan there. I started in to the cut and as I was holding the wood against the fence and pushing the sled, the piece started to come away from the fence. Scared me and I held tight, stopped and quickly swung a leg over to the switch and bumped it off. Held 'er tight while it spun down and that was that. Quickly decided to make a crosscut sled to do hardwoods with. Probably with some hold downs!