Vol. 65, No. 4 winter 2020 370
Figure 4.
T e video showed an extruded piece of plastic or aluminum being cross-cut using both the saw’s fence and a miter gauge at the same time as shown in Figure 1. On any table saw this is a practice that can result in kick-back that can cause serious injury. On a full- size table saw injuries from kick-back can range from serious cuts and loss of digits all the way to death. While kick-back from small model saws is extremely unlikely to cause death, the loss of digits and serious cuts can certainly happen. All table saws need to be treated with the same respect as the full-size saws, because if one gets in the habit of not following proper saw safety on a small hobby size saw, one is likely to do the same with the full-size saw in one’s basement.
Table saws use a fence parallel to the blade to guide rip cuts and a miter gauge to guide cross-cuts. User manuals provide instruction on how the guides should be used. Users are always warned to never make cuts on a table saw without using these guides and are always warned to never use both guides when making through cross-cuts because of the danger of kick-back. When using the miter gauge to make a cross-cut the piece being cut off is no longer being guided when the cut is complete. T e piece must be free to move sideways or back to clear the blade or the blade can grab the loose piece and shoot it back at the operator. If the fence is being used to set the size of the piece, the loose piece has no room to clear the blade and kick-back can occur.
Figure 5.
T ere is a safe way to use the fence and miter gauge to make same length cross-cuts by using a stand- off as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4. Figure 2 shows the stand-off between the blade and the fence being measured to make 1/2-inch cut off s as the fence is locked in place. Figure 3 shows the stand-off moved well forward of the blade and clamped to the fence with the piece of stock butted up to the stand-off . Figure 4 shows the stock being moved forward to make the cut with adequate space between the blade and the fence for the cut off not to jam between the blade and fence.
Using the fence
When making a rip cut always use the fence to get a perfectly straight cut. Use a push stick to keep your fi ngers away from the blade. For small saws and the small parts we typically cut, small push sticks are appropriate. Erasers on the ends of pencils make great push sticks. Figure 5 shows a piece of stock being ripped against the fence and pencils as push sticks.
Using the miter gauge
T e miter gauge is used to make cross-cuts at right angles or can be set to make cuts at an angle. Figure 4 shows the proper use of the miter gauge to make a right angle cut.
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