Table Saw Kick Back

[Paul DeCarlo]

A guy who works for me took a pretty nasty kick back off of our Delta RT-40 table saw a couple of days ago. After reviewing the incident, its pretty clear one of the main reasons for it was the distance between the back of the blade and the splitter. Its a good 2"-3" of no mans land that if the workpiece comes away from the fence at all, BINGO!
I'm now trying to locate a retrofit splitter that closes that gap. I have a feeling it's going to be like searching for the Holy Grail.
Any help/advice is most welcome. I'd love to keep the saw for it's capacity but this may be the thing the bosses need to ax this piece of equipment.

Thanks,
-Paul

[Dan Duperron]

Paul,

Can't help you with the aftermarket splitter (actually I think you're looking for a riving knife, right?), but I am wondering about the 2-3" of clearance you speak of.

The problem with splitters is that since they don't move with the blade, the lower the blade is set the greater the distance between the back of the blade and the splitter. A riving knife solves that by moving up and down with the blade.

Short of a riving knife, assuming there is a proper blade guard on the saw couldn't you increase the safety of the situation by raising the blade higher? That would reduce the size of the gap.

I'm no expert and I don't know what OSHA would say about it, but I think raising the blade would be something to consider.

[Mike Heidrick]

Bob Ross makes the Bolt on Ripping Knife (B ORK). See if he will make one for your saw.

http://the****store.com/product.sc?productId=6&categoryId=2

[kelly logan]

I made my own using a old highway sign from the highway department. The signs are made of aluminum and can be cut easily with a jig saw and file down smooth. I have made several depending on the height of my board I am cutting.

[Paul DeCarlo]

Dan,
Yes you are correct that I'm looking for what would be the closest thing to a riving knife for that saw. Just as you suspect the geometry of the saw doesn't allow for a knife to travel with the blade but remains static.

I'm afraid that although raising the blade would close the gap, it would be way too high raising other concerns.

Mike,
I'll check that out.

Thanks guys.

[Dan Karachio]

What about these guys as a lower cost alternative? They work well for me.
http://www.microjig.com/products/mj-splitter-steel-pro/

[Charles Goodnight]

Check out the LeeWay workshop

http://www.leestyron.com/sharkguard.php

Lee's shark guard gets good reviews, he is a small shop and I bet he would work with you to get a guard for your saw. I know he covers a lot of the Delta saws. The nice thing about these guards is that the cover removes and the splitter converts to a riving knife.

[glenn bradley]

+1 on the MJ Splitter. I don't know how usable it would be in a work environment but I have been using them for years in my shop. The only time I have damaged one is when changing it and failing to use the provided hole to pull on. :o This made me pull at an angle and I bent a leg which eventually failed. This is why I now have several spares but, I leaned my lesson and have never had one damaged since :confused:.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Honestly, I think it will be easy to convince your bosses to sell this machine and buy an equivalent with modern safety devices (riving knife).

It looks like the RT-40 is a serious production machine that retails for $6,300. They could probably sell the machine for about half that and buy another with a riving knife. They may have to spend another $2-3k in excess of the proceeds to buy a replacement saw, but frankly in a commercial environment I think that it's money well spent to cover the risk.

Let's say this happens again... and you get sued. the fact that you've acknowledged the problem and have had it happen before opens a huge amount of liability.

Plus I don't think it will be worth your time to retrofit a halfway riving knife that won't work well.

I've spoken my peace! Good luck, and I hope your employee recovers quickly.

[Paul DeCarlo]

Peter,

Your thoughts are in line with the direction in which I am leaning. One of the main problems is when you retro fit a machine with non factory parts you open yourself up to liability concerns. I will need to go through a lengthy approval process to get an after market guard/knife/splitter installed on the saw. I was hoping there was something out there I wasn't aware of, I guess not.
My bosses would rather see another Saw Stop in it's place. I hate to lose the capacity of the 14" saw but I may have no choice.
My guy's pride (and gut) are the only things bruised at this point. We've all been there.

-Paul

[Karl Brogger]

Is it like the Powermatic 72/74 where the blade is way out in the field of the table? Those things are just awkward to push material through by hand. Either throw a feeder on it and buy another saw that is a bit more friendly to use or can it.

If its $6300 new, I'd be surprised if you could get much over $1500 for it. The used market is flooded with equipment.

And please, please, please train your people on proper use of a tablesaw. Widgets and gadgets don't make anything safer, they just make them more idiot proof.

http://www.guy-sports.com/fun_pictures/no_brain.jpg

BTW splitter for PM66 for sale....