If you are going to buy a new TS in the near future and think that there are too many safety devices on the TS's now, you better buy one now before the UL regulations require the new TS's to be equipped with a riving knife.
For the rest of us, this is probably good news.
The bait has been cast. ;~)
About freakin' time. Won't keep you from cutting off a finger or two, but will go a long way towards reducing the number of kickbacks and projectile wood. Hopefully they'll include a thin kerf and regular kerf riving knife with each new saw. Not sure what they'll come up with for stacked dado blades - which is why the Euro equivalent of OSHA doesn't allow table saws to hold stacked dado blades.
charlie b
I'm confused, why would I need a riving knife to cut dados?
jim e
Another thing to look at carefully is that TS in the UK now have the safety guard fitted to the top of the riving knive. This means that you can only ose the TS for cutting completely through the wood. I suggest that if this is the case then you should get a second knive and adapt it so you can, if required just cut slots in wood or for cutting the lid on a box.
decision without any consultation with the people who use the tools.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzing as that line goes flying off that reel.
Don't have a strong opinion on riving knives, never used one, however, anything the market drives is probably OK. Anything that a regulator requires is suspect. Keep in mind that it is not necessary to have a UL listing to sell the product, and, I know at least a few years, ago most of the industrial cabinet saw manufacturers did not have the listing. UL listing used to mean some really strange and useless restrictions. As an example, cannot manufacture a saw without a blade. So, instead reducing the cost of the saw and of letting you purchase the blade of your choice for your particular operation, the manufacturer of a listed unit has to "guess" what you want and include that (usually a cheap combo) in their offering. Another example is that none of the very good after market guards, which are much better than the "approved" supplied guards could be UL approved to offer as an option with the saw as a single number package. They can be swung out of the way for unguarded operations and will not "automatically fall back in place"
Things may have changed.
Frank
That's not the reason - it's related to spin-down times with a heavy blade stack (web search under "PUWER 98"). If you sort that problem, as big industrial saws have, then you can use dado sets.
Leon, (or others) (and please be kind to me if you think my question is rooted in ignorance) Are riving knives any safer than removable splitters? I know that they sit closer to the back of the blade tha a splitter - like my Biesemeyer - but aside from that, what makes them better? Marc
I looks like the "requirement" is voluntary and was recommended on January 31, 2005. See:
I have never used a riving knife but many will raise and lower with the blade. Safer? I don't know.
My guess is that they're safer than a splitter. As well as some raising and lowering with the blade, they usually match the curvature of the blade. Seems to be a much more encompassing protection against kickback.
My guess is that they're safer than a splitter. As well as some raising and lowering with the blade, they usually match the curvature of the blade. Seems to be a much more encompassing protection against kickback.
My guess is that they're safer than a splitter. As well as some raising and lowering with the blade, they usually match the curvature of the blade. Seems to be a much more encompassing protection against kickback.
For any safety device to ultimately be effective, it needs to be more convenient to use than not.
For that reason I would think the safety factor of a riving knife is marginally greater, mainly because of its "convenience".
IOW, since it rises and lowers with the blade and doesn't extend over the top of the blade, it is a lot more convenient to leave on for most type of cuts, and if you don't have to remove it, you won't forget to put it back on for the next cut.
You could also probably argue that a riving knife, which usually rides closer to the back of the blade, leaves less room between it and the blade for something to get caught in.
I'm all for their incorporation into TS technology ... wish my Uni was so equipped.
Good point. That's something that isn't mentioned too often, but it is one of the more important factors. You can come up with all the improvements in the world, but it they're not convenient to use, then they're mostly discarded. As humans, we're a lazy bunch of SOB's aren't we? :)
Same for my General.
I have yet to see a negative for a riving knife, other than the 50-60 year old designs of most of our saws.
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RE: Subject
Remember the cartoon of a few years ago which showed a riding horse equipped with all the OHSA guards attached?
Lew
There seems to be a certain amount of confusion on that last point, Charlie. Stacked cutters are certainly available here (see
FoggyTown
You don't. The riving knife keeps the kerf open behind the blade so it can't close and make contact with the rear teeth - the ones that typcially start a kickback.
Separate issue - dados - the EU OSHA doesn't allow "blind cuts" on a table saw - that is cuts like rabbets/rebates and dados.
charlie b
Look at the second picture on this page.
A splitter on the other hand is often a) increases the distance between it and the back of the blade as the depth of cut gets smaller b) may or may not follow the blade when it's tilted (the ones attached to the throat plate don't work when the blade is tilted)
charlie b
Just out of curiosity, how does one cut a dado in the EU? And stay in compliance with the safety regs? And why do they think a dado is more hazardous than just a blade?
David Starr
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