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Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

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Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#181

Post by sjs382 »

Asooka wrote: post #144
luckydude wrote: post #95

My wife, when we were dating, bought me a Unisaw, one of the so-called dangerous saws. (She's also the woman who would say "I'm going out to get some milk, do you need more clamps? Woodworker joke, sorry :) I have no intention of getting a sawstop saw. Why? Because my shop is full of dangerous tools. My 1930's drillpress ripped some of my hair out, my 1940's metal lathe can take your arm off, my bandsaw is way more d…

Can't you just wear heavy gloves?

Absolutely not. Never wear gloves when operating spinning tools. If you're morbidly curious, do a Google image search for "degloving". [NSFW: Gore]

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#182

Post by sjs382 »

AstralStorm wrote: post #133
sjs382 wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please please please don't wear gloves while operating table saws or any other spinning tools.

You actually should wear form fitting tough gloves. (Unless you like splinters.) You should not wear loose gloves or clothing that could get pulled into the saw.

Not with spinning power tools. Nope nope nope nope!

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#183

Post by oliwarner »

yazan94 wrote: post #157

"CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle said she was also concerned that the rule might force companies to license technology from SawStop, which she said might create a monopoly." I think this is a valid sentiment. Why should the federal government literally award a monopoly to one company? This is not consumer protection. People know what they are getting into when dealing with a saw. This is government overreach.…

Do you also resent your goverment for legislating the cars are safer? There are more than glancing similarities between SawStop and airbags.

That this is currently patent-encumbered isn't really relevant. It would be trivial to write the law now but defer its enforcement. We're only 4 years away. It's time to let manufacturers know this is what they'll be building.

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#184

Post by [deleted] »

oliwarner wrote: post #183
yazan94 wrote: post #157

"CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle said she was also concerned that the rule might force companies to license technology from SawStop, which she said might create a monopoly." I think this is a valid sentiment. Why should the federal government literally award a monopoly to one company? This is not consumer protection. People know what they are getting into when dealing with a saw. This is government overreach.…

Do you also resent your goverment for legislating the cars are safer? There are more than glancing similarities between SawStop and airbags. That this is currently patent-encumbered isn't really relevant. It would be trivial to write the law now but defer its enforcement. We're only 4 years away. It's time to let manufacturers know this is what they'll be building.

[deleted]

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#185

Post by jdavis703 »

oliwarner wrote: post #183
yazan94 wrote: post #157

"CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle said she was also concerned that the rule might force companies to license technology from SawStop, which she said might create a monopoly." I think this is a valid sentiment. Why should the federal government literally award a monopoly to one company? This is not consumer protection. People know what they are getting into when dealing with a saw. This is government overreach.…

Do you also resent your goverment for legislating the cars are safer? There are more than glancing similarities between SawStop and airbags. That this is currently patent-encumbered isn't really relevant. It would be trivial to write the law now but defer its enforcement. We're only 4 years away. It's time to let manufacturers know this is what they'll be building.

Cars should be made safer WRT to the people outside the car who might have to deal with the consequences. For example, a car with spikes on the outside should probably be illegal. But as long as the danger is knowingly and exclusively contained to the occupant of a vehicle I see no reason to make it illegal. Motorcycles, for example, lack standard safety features like seatbelts and airbags, and yet we haven't made them illegal.

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#186

Post by oliwarner »

luckydude wrote: post #95

My wife, when we were dating, bought me a Unisaw, one of the so-called dangerous saws. (She's also the woman who would say "I'm going out to get some milk, do you need more clamps? Woodworker joke, sorry :) I have no intention of getting a sawstop saw. Why? Because my shop is full of dangerous tools. My 1930's drillpress ripped some of my hair out, my 1940's metal lathe can take your arm off, my bandsaw is way more d…

Curious you consider your bandsaw more dangerous. There's a lot less momentum, only one vector for injury and you generally have a lot more control over your stock. My table saw can fire a 2×4 across a room. So I don't agree with your assessment but your kit is obviously different to mine.

I don't disagree with your wider point about respect, but even seasoned pros make genuine mistakes. A lapse in concentration or material behaving abnormally. That's all it takes and you've lost a finger.

It would be great to see similar things implemented in other tools but for the moment, what's wrong with making sure new models are safer by default? I mentioned airbags in another comment and I think it's a good comparison. Why would you NOT want this?

And yes, why isn't somebody doing the exact same thing in bandsaws and routers? The same premise would work with little adaptation.

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#187

Post by cr0sh »

yladiz wrote: post #50

I remember seeing this either on Science or Discovery channel when I was younger, talking about great inventions. I remember thinking it was a good idea, but forgot about it until last week when I saw an article pop up about the patent issue but that the FTC is thinking about contemplating making it mandatory. I think it should absolutely be mandatory, but I hope that the FTC can deal with the patent issue and let co…

> like the table accidentally shifting because my dog ran into it.

Damn - just how cheap are the table saws you buy?!

/table saws tend to be fairly heavy, and don't typically move unless you really lean into them - a dog is not likely to move a table saw (and honestly shouldn't be in your shop, either)

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#188

Post by oliwarner »

jdavis703 wrote: post #185
oliwarner wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you also resent your goverment for legislating the cars are safer? There are more than glancing similarities between SawStop and airbags. That this is currently patent-encumbered isn't really relevant. It would be trivial to write the law now but defer its enforcement. We're only 4 years away. It's time to let manufacturers know this is what they'll be building.

Cars should be made safer WRT to the people outside the car who might have to deal with the consequences. For example, a car with spikes on the outside should probably be illegal. But as long as the danger is knowingly and exclusively contained to the occupant of a vehicle I see no reason to make it illegal. Motorcycles, for example, lack standard safety features like seatbelts and airbags, and yet we haven't made th…

I guess I asked for it but I didn't really expect somebody to argue against things like airbags and SRS. Hey, what about driver seatbelts?

It's a constant surprise to me just how much some people want to forgo very reliable and affordable technology to play contrarian and stick it to the man. The problem is, it's a team of paramedics, police, fire and rescue who have to scrape your broken arse off the road. You don't just evaporate when your self-reckless decisions snuff you out.

And in many counties and US states, motorcyclists have to wear helmets that meet certain safety guidelines.

Re: Despite Proven Technology, Attempts to Make Table Saws Safer Drag On

#189

Post by cr0sh »

mrtron wrote: post #172
Gibbon1 wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tip buy a CNC router and throw the table saw out. Along with a bunch of other tools.

Interesting idea! How much would I have to spend? What if I want to do some simple cutting? Trivial?

Figure several thousand dollars if you want something that can handle a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood. One of the commonly known brands is ShopBot:

http://www.shopbottools.com/

You can DIY one cheaper, of course, but you're still looking at a few grand. If you don't mind slightly less accuracy, and want to do it as a kit (instead of completely homebrew - which can be a pain to learn about if you aren't familiar with CNC already) - this company is pretty well known:

https://buildyourcnc.com/

Also something else to keep in mind: If you do metal work, you can purchase (or build) a CNC plasma cutter. You typically have to supply your own plasma cutter, or spend extra for it (what you normally pay for is the table, mechanicals, and interface electronics - computer is also extra). Many or most of these can be easily converted to adding a router for woodwork (provided it has a height control head to handle it). Just make sure you get one that can handle 4x8 sheets.

There are also CNC routers, etc that can handle much smaller sizes, if you aren't going to do anything big. Many of these are easy to DIY and there are plenty of examples, tutorials, books, PDFs, instructables, etc - on how to build one.

A small desktop CNC router can be homebrewed for less than $500.00 (plus a fair amount of time). Of course, you will need to have access to at least some basic tools to build one, and be competent at using them.

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