Since my videos have been getting more views on YouTube, I’ve been getting more and more comments on safety. Especially concerning table saw safety. Seems a few of those watching feel that I’m not particularly careful around that tool; that I’m too confident and even careless. I’ll take the time to address this, and try to explain that even though it may look dangerous to some, I’m not really at any extra risk.

First, let me start off by saying that I have all of my fingers, and that they are all intact. I have been using saws (table saws, jig saws, circular saws, etc.) since I was 12 years old. As I am now 46, that gives me about 34 years of experience. Also, I am a trained tradesman – a carpenter and have been working as a carpenter for more than 25 years. In other words, this is not my hobby – I do this kind of work professionally.

With all that said, I’ll confess that I am not infallible and have had some close calls and near misses in the past, but I have never been injured. I have learned from these mistakes and I now have something of a mental encyclopedia of knowledge on things to avoid and situations to be extra cautious about. This knowledge comes from experience, mostly.

Rather than ramble on about how much I know about using a table saw (boring….), I’ll take some screen caps from my recent C clamp video. That video elicited a few comments, in particular how I’m not using push sticks for some operations.

In the first picture below, I’m cutting a groove along the length of the piece, about 1/4″ deep. My right hand is pushing the piece though, while my left hand holds it tight to the fence. With the blade only 1/4″ above the table, I feel comfortable doing this. If it were any higher, I’d probably want to use a different method, such as a push stick and feather board:

In the second picture, I’m forming the tongue on the end of that piece. I’m using a block of wood to push the piece through and holding it tight to the fence with my other hand. The issue that was raised for both of these is that my hands are too close to the blade and that I should be using push sticks.

For every cut, I want at least one of my hands on the stock, if possible. This is for control and tactile feedback. There are lots of stories about kickback and for many woodworkers it’s probably the number two concern, behind getting cut. From my experience, there are three risk factors that increase the likelihood of kickback: 1 – lacking the experience to recognise a situation where kickback is likely to happen, 2 – not having total control of the work piece at all times and 3 – isolation from sensory input that can warn you that a kickback is coming by using two push sticks. This is also an issue for maintaining control over the stock.

Number 1 is what it is – if you are inexperienced, the only fix is to practice. Getting to know when a kickback may happen is well worth learning.

Number 2 is where a lot of guys are going wrong. Being tentative and hesitant weakens your control over the work and can cause the part to bind, resulting in a kickback. I have watched guys using a table saw when they are standing beside it. The idea is that they are out of the line of fire, if a kickback occurs. The problem is you cannot properly control the stock from that position, and kickback is more likely to happen because of this. Better to be in front of the saw where you can comfortably and confidently feed the parts through.

Number 3 is where the part that is being cut is pushed through with two “bird’s mouth” push sticks (one to push, the other to hold the part against the fence) and the operator is not getting any real tactile feedback from the part being cut. If the stock starts to bind, the operator may not be able to sense this, due to the small amount of contact area between the push sticks and the stock. I have often felt a cut start to bind and been able to respond in time.

On the face of it, the two push stick method may seem safer, but to become proficient enough to use these where you have enough control requires a lot of practice. Similar to using chop sticks to eat, if you’ve been using a fork all of your life. Another problem with this type of push stick is lifting – the leading end of the stock can lift if it is not firmly held down and these push sticks don’t do this effectively.

Moving on to the second set of pictures. Here I’m using a push stick to hold the stock down and push it through. I’m also using my left hand to hold the stock tight to the fence during the first part of the cut:

After the cut is started, I take my left hand away – I can use the push stick to maintain some sideways pressure to hold the stock against the fence. Near the end of the cut, I use my left hand to catch the off cut, by reaching past the blade on the left side. I do this to prevent the thin off cut from slipping into the gap between the blade and sliding table. Of course, reaching past the blade is a big no-no, one of those rules that should be followed. I don’t, in this instance, since it is preferable to bend this rule to stop the off cut from getting sucked into that gap. Reaching from the side like this and being conscious about the blade is much safer than reaching over the blade, where your view of the blade is obscured.

In nearly every situation I will choose to use my left hand to hold the stock against the fence, rather than a push stick to do this. The reason for this is that my hand is not likely to slip, where a stick may. If the stick slips into the blade, this could cause a worse injury than it was intended to prevent.

The push stick I’m using, in my opinion, is the only type that is appropriate for use on the table saw. It does two things: holds the work down and pushes it through. It’s the “holding it down” part that is important, since it increases the control you have. Because it has such a large contact area with the stock, there is better transfer of sensory input when using it – it’s easier to feel what is happening. I only use this push stick on stock that is less than 3″ wide and only when I need to push the stock through, past the blade. Often when ripping thinner material I will cut half way, flip the stock end for end and complete the cut. It’s always a safer cut when you can do this, since you are never very close to the blade and a push stick is not required.

So, that’s it. I know this will probably not satisfy some people, but that’s to be expected. I’m not looking to change minds or dictate how it should be; just to give my point of view and possibly ease the minds of those that have shown concern.

Safety is in the operators hands and I’ve always believed the best way to learn it is through hands-on experience and sound advice. It’s up to the user to decide what works best and what their comfort level is. There is risk with everything we do, and this is not limited to woodworking. To be able to work effectively and efficiently while keeping the risk to a minimum is what we should be going for.

For those interested, here is a build on how to make a push stick

Push Stick

It’s in .pdf format (opens with Adobe reader). Set your print to actual size and it will fit nicely on a standard letter sized sheet.
Paste the pattern onto a piece of 1/2″ plywood and cut it out. Round the edges of the handle and it’s ready to use.