Table saw fence

[mondo]

When I bought my table saw 40+ years ago I spent some time pondering which side of the blade to put the fence on for safety. I concluded that on the left side was best being right-handed. Being in the building trades I find that on the right is pretty much standard as it is on the TV shows and Videos I watch. In addition, I have been looking at upgrading to a new saw mainly because of the Sawstop but I've looked at others and I find they are all configured to have the rip fence on the right. Why?

 

[Distinterior]

I assume it is because the majority of people using a table saw are predominantly right handed and the piece of wood that is generally being kept/ wanted, is cut between the right hand side of the blade and the left hand side of the fence....( I'm not getting into the pros & cons of the use of push sticks with someone from the USA....)

 

[Orraloon]

Most right handers use the right hand (with push stick) to move the wood through the cut. Left hand keeps wood against the fence. It's what feels comfortable to most. If you have been using the fence on the left all those years and are comfortable with it then thats OK too.
Regards
John

 

[imageel]

Being more or less ambidextrous I don't really care which side it sits, I guess it depends on what you are most comfortable with and if one side over the other offers any advantage for the cut you are making

 

[TRITON]

Plus many side extension tables go on the right side. I suppose you could configure it for left side mounting, only most saws won't have that provision, and it might mean you cannot fit a sliding table.

I'd be totally freaked out using the fence on the left, even though I'm predominantly left handed(One of Gods special people).

 

[Mike Fletcher]

Having the fence on the right side of the blade allows you to see the work piece / fence contact. Standing to the left of the blade, as you should, would not allow you to see the work piece / fence contact if the fence was on the left side of the blade.

 

[ChaiLatte]

Standing to the left of the blade, as you should

That is a bit of a circuitous argument.

You stand to the left precisely because the fence is on the right in order that you can see what is going on.

If the fence is on the left, you stand on the right so you can see what is going on.

Starting with a saw and no fence, there is nothing that tells you in advance which side you should stand. At that point it is entirely neutral. It is only when you install the fence that the 'should' powers up.

Contrast this to a chainsaw, where the physical layout of the machine means your body should be to the left of the bar from the getgo. Approaching one of those machines, there is no neutrality.

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I am not sure there is any reason for it being so. It is just one of those things that has developed over time. The layout and controls of the machine have evolved to suit the traditional layout (how many sliding table saws do you see with the sliding table on the right?).

Maybe one small thing to consider is that if you move the fence to the left, and stand to the right, is the big red button still equally accessible when needed? If you need to move across the line of the blade to reach it, that might not be desirable.

 

[Doug71]

If you look at most machines eg spindle moulders, planers the fence is on the right when you feed timber in, I presume it's developed this way because most people are right handed so push with their right and apply lateral pressure with the left

 

[Distinterior]

On a side note to this,.....It is generally accepted that the inventor of the Track Saw was probably left handed because a lot of people find them awkward initially when they use one for the first time.

 

[Chubber]

Ask an optician this question and he would probably go for the side that gives the most direct and straightest view with the operators dominant eye, usually the right eye. Think rifle shooters? Hence my choice of fence to the right.

 

[ChaiLatte]

It is generally accepted that the inventor of the track saw was probably left handed...

A tracksaw has the blade on the same side as every direct drive corded circular saw that came before it in the past 50 years.

Worm drive circular saws seem to be the opposite.

What did change is cordless circular saws, where the sides are normally swapped.

Any theories why cordless track saws do not follow cordless circular saws?