How to use push sticks to cut wood safely on a table saw.

[Doug71]

These were the gloves with tear off fingers that I saw, good idea if you are using machinery.


https://www.axminstertools.com/uvex-phynomic-x-foam-finger-protection-gloves-size-9-l-107876

 

[Jacob]

These were the gloves with tear off fingers that I saw, good idea if you are using machinery.


https://www.axminstertools.com/uvex-phynomic-x-foam-finger-protection-gloves-size-9-l-107876

Good idea but if you are coming close enough to need gloves like these you really should be using two push sticks as well.

 

[Doug71]

Good idea but if you are coming close enough to need gloves like these you really should be using two push sticks as well.

Yes but I wasn't just thinking of table saws, any piece of machinery with any kind of spinning part/shaft is not a great place to wear gloves (or rings).

 

[Daniel2]

The only exception I make to not wearing gloves at all in proximity to revolving machinery, is that
of passing slippery wood over the surface planer.

 

[MikeJhn]

I think most kickbacks are a result of wood being trapped between fence and sawblade.

If the fence stops soon after the gullets the workpiece just falls to one side.

Also the danger comes from the shape and size of the piece being cut.

As Bob says: do a risk assessment.

there is an added benefit of using 2 push sticks -you can use them to apply pressure just in front of the blade -which makes it much easier to ensure the timber is kept against the fence and down on the bed.

And using the JessEm stock guides gets over both the above mentioned problems, holds the stock against the fence and down on the table.

 

[Cabinetman]

Well it’s your money you can do with it as you wish but I would find them inconvenient to use and rather expensive to buy at £210. Ian

 

[RobinBHM]

And using the JessEm stock guides gets over both the above mentioned problems, holds the stock against the fence and down on the table.

Yes the JessEm stock guides look great.....I keep looking at them but find it hard to justify the price.

 

[RobinBHM]

I have to say, I can't think of an occasion when I've had slippery wood to push over the surface planer.

99% of what I flatten is rough sawn.

I suppose once faced, boards have a planed face and then go against the fence as the 2nd part of face and edging.

Mind you most work I've done in the last 20 years is to flatten stock to then go through a 4 sider.

 

[Jacob]

Yes gloves for splintery rough sawn timber especially if it's heavy - gloves give you more control, which is a safety feature in its own right.
Take the point about where they are hazardous though - possibly on a lathe where friction could pull at them?

 

[MikeJhn]

Well it’s your money you can do with it as you wish but I would find them inconvenient to use and rather expensive to buy at £210. Ian

I don't put a price on my safety and I don't find them in any way inconvenient.

 

[Daniel2]

I don't put a price on my safety and I don't find them in any way inconvenient.

An often exploited emmotive argument to drive sales.

 

[MikeJhn]

Why would I be trying to drive sales, very strange post, but I do still have all of my fingers.

 

[Ozi]

This is after somebody asked on another thread how to use push sticks and so I looked online to see what there was and was a bit horrified at some of the contraptions that are being promoted.
First off, this might not be 100% to the letter of the rules and I’m sure it will be pointed out to me! But it is a million miles better than the dangerous things you see on YouTube.
View attachment 108502

if your push sticks don’t look like this – ( can be wood or plastic or ply) they are probably dangerous, particularly if they have a handle on them and your hand passes over the top or to the side of the blade or you have to remove the crown guard to be able to use them, throw them in the bin. Push blocks American style are in my opinion inherently dangerous and there are 10 amputations on average every day in America using table saws – the Americans don’t tend to use wooden push sticks as in this demonstration.
I hope the following pictures demonstrate how to use them, it doesn’t matter if the wood is thick or thin, long or short, notice when I’m cutting a long bit I only use one push stick to start with and then when the back end of the wood approaches the saw I pick up the other stick and keep pushing with that.
When I am using the cross cut on the saw I only use one to clear the pieces away from the blade. Ian
View attachment 108496View attachment 108497View attachment 108498View attachment 108499View attachment 108500View attachment 108501

Came back to say thanks, not just feeling safer but getting better cuts as well

 

[Cabinetman]

Came back to say thanks, not just feeling safer but getting better cuts as well

Thank you so much Ozi, that’s really nice of you to say so, and glad to hear it’s working well for you. Ian

 

[Daniel2]

Why would I be trying to drive sales, very strange post, but I do still have all of my fingers.

It was just an observation aimed at the selling world and how they (ab)use that argument.
I certainly didn't mean to imply yourself Mike

 

[TRITON]

The only exception I make to not wearing gloves at all in proximity to revolving machinery, is that
of passing slippery wood over the surface planer.

I might have cracked that with a sanding block you get from lidl. powerfix i think makes them.
Basically its a flat base for holding sandpaper(clips each side similar to those on a regular power sander) with a big wooden handle on top. 40 grit paper and it gives you something to hold... hang on, off to look for pic...

 

[MikeJhn]

It was just an observation aimed at the selling world and how they (ab)use that argument.
I certainly didn't mean to imply yourself Mike

Is it possible to abuse an argument for Health and Safety, I think its a very often used to allow the unwary to do something unsafe, because they can't be bothered to do it properly, Health and Safety. should never be taken lightly or flippantly, the often seen raised eyebrows with a tut and the words "Health and Safety eh" is all too often the abuse it gets.

 

[JobandKnock]

Just about as safe as I could make my table saw, you can just see on the fence the JessEm stock guides, a major contribution to safety.View attachment 108901

I think you could make it safer - by having a short rip fence. The long through fence you have means that if you saw reaction timber it could get pinched between the blade and the fence and whilst your guides may minimise the tendency to kick back I very much doubt it will do the saw much good and you will still potentially have a greater risk of kickback. With a short position rip fence top guides are redundant.

Like the crown guard , though. Good idea

 

[Daniel2]

Is it possible to abuse an argument for Health and Safety, I think its a very often used to allow the unwary to do something unsafe, because they can't be bothered to do it properly, Health and Safety. should never be taken lightly or flippantly, the often seen raised eyebrows with a tut and the words "Health and Safety eh" is all too often the abuse it gets.

I most certainly do not take safe working practice lightly.
If my observation was interpreted as flippant, then I clearly didn't express
myself as intended.

 

[Bob Chapman]

Is it possible to abuse an argument for Health and Safety, I think its a very often used to allow the unwary to do something unsafe, because they can't be bothered to do it properly, Health and Safety. should never be taken lightly or flippantly, the often seen raised eyebrows with a tut and the words "Health and Safety eh" is all too often the abuse it gets.

Yes, of course it's possible. An argument for buying some spurious piece of equipment, on the grounds that it would make working safer, would be an abuse. I agree totally with your premise that health and safety should not be overlooked or ignored, but it is possible to take advantage of people's ignorance or fears to sell them stuff that won't help them or make them safer.
Bob