Add me to the list - Sawstop saved my thumb

[Mike Heidrick]

Cutting ply. Moved offcut with left hand. Thumb was too close to blade and bam , tip of thumb went into blade and blade was gone as soon as I felt the knick. Loud bang like a balloon pop. Bandaid instead of ER trip. Never wanted to test the saw but glad I had it tonight. I take full responsbility for my error. These gingerbread wooden houses will have a very special memory for me.

[Bruce Page]

A happy ending!

[John Sanford]

How high did you jump when it went BANG!

It's good to hear that major trouble was averted.

[William C Rogers]

Mike, wow!! Nice to see "two" thumbs up.

[John Coloccia]

How high did you jump when it went BANG!



When it goes off on the contractor, the entire saw jumps and moves a little. With cast iron wings, that saw is nearly 400lbs. It's impressive.

[Rick Fisher]

Really glad your okay.. It just shows that its not just the newbies that get hurt.. Its the fella's who have been at it long enough to be calm as well.

Thanks for sharing..

[Dennis Aspö]

Isn't it mostly people who have been at it for a long while (and thus, complacent) who tend to get hurt?

[Peter Quinn]

Isn't it mostly people who have been at it for a long while (and thus, complacent) who tend to get hurt?

No, it's mostly people who use table saws that get hurt by table saws. Newbies, veterans, the careful sorts, the fool hardy, tired, fresh off a good nights sleep, first day at a new job....all sorts. Tables saws are not prejudiced. They will cut anyone.

Mike, I'm so glad this ended well. This sort of thing is always on my mind as I work daily with 3 saws none of which are SS. Do you think knowing the flesh sensor is there makes one complacent or not really? Sure makes a cool wall ornament....big aluminum Swiss cheese with blade imbedded. Like a monument of a tragedy averted.

[Danny Hamsley]

Good to see that it worked. Having the flesh sensor does not make me complacent at all. Several of my customers have had horrific accidents.

[Brian Tymchak]

You can love or hate the politics wrapped around SS but you have got to respect the technology! Glad to see you're OK and still able to finish the houses.

[glenn bradley]

How high did you jump when it went BANG!

It's good to hear that major trouble was averted.

On the PCS it is totally anti-climactic. I picked up a piece with a strip of metal tape measure stuck to it (my error, I shouldn't have set that piece tape side down right next to the other pieces). The blade was there and then it wasn't. There was just a "thunk" sound and an immediate realization of my error :o. The cartridge and blade now hang on the wall to remind me to be more cautious.

Glad to hear it did what it is supposed to Mike. I also do not take the system for granted. If anything I am even more aware of my attention to safety procedures. Maybe we should all just paint our table inserts red (?) :)

[Mike Heidrick]

It happened in a flash. Just as I felt the knick, pop, blade was stopped and gone. DC is on and loud. Wife looked up and she said what happened. I had a smaile on my face. thumb bled - it was not the graze on the hotdog I had seen in a demo but a bandaid and neosporin stopped it in short order.

I am more cautious about what I cut because of the blade - meaning check for metal on questionable wood from other shops/people.

No way am I complacent, juse stupid for wnting my offcut perfect with grabbing one of the two grippers or push stick on top of my saw to the left of the fence. RK was on. safety glasses were on. It was just me.

[Chris Hachet]

I am glad to see that it worked...I am thinking of buying one for myself.

[Paul McGaha]

Mike,

I'm glad the safety feature on the saw worked as advertised. Thanks for sharing your story with us.

PHM

[Paul McGaha]

I am glad to see that it worked...I am thinking of buying one for myself.

I am too Chris. Events like what happened to Mike are very compelling.

PHM

[ken masoumi]

Mike it obviously also saved you the long term psychological side effect of losing your thumb ,the pain,etc.I'm really glad you are alright.


You can love or hate the politics wrapped around SS but you have got to respect the technology!.


You are right,incidents like this makes you respect it even more,I have such a dislike for my table saw that I try as much as I can not to use it ,(it has no safety guard,no riving knife/splitter).inevitably we all will have to at least consider this alternative technology to the old.price is the only deterrent for me.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Mike,

I am very pleased to hear that the SS worked for you. I opted for one for a couple of reasons, but the driving factor was the hope that it would reduce the likelihood of a more serious injury from that type of accident.

[John TenEyck]

Glad to hear you are OK. Just curious, did you have the guard installed?

John

[Patrick McCarthy]

Mike, glad you will live to fight another day. Metal set off my ICS and it was a distinct enough bam! that my wife heard it in the house.
As to the complacency question: oh hell no. Strange as it my seem, maybe even more cautious since I don't want to "waste" a couple hundred bucks by having the brake fire and eat another WW II. Bassackwards, I know , but like Mike said, maybe more conscious of what we put thru the saw but not at all lax or cavalier about the danger.

mike, thanks for posting this. Merry Christmas, Patrick

[Patrick McCarthy]

Another thought about the complacency question, since I have seen it raised in other threads. I understand the question and the thought behind it, but if you step back and think about it, isn't it similar to seat belts and airbags? Some of us (hopefully none of us here on SMC) are crumby drivers and are going to do stupid things regardless. But for most of us that try to drive safely and responsibly , did we suddenly start taking dangerous chances on the road when (depending upon your current age) seat belts became mandatory or when airbags were added? Not me, and I bet not you either.

i don't want to use my SS brake, nor my airbags, but happy to have them just in case. JMHO, YMMV

Michael, sorry, not tying to hijack, just seemed like an appropriate place to interject the thought

[Rick Potter]

It's been a while, and I was wondering when the next 'save' would be. Congrats on your forethought, and I would bet you have a happy wife this Christmas.

I kept my Unisaw for dado work, and I find that I am more careful than before, now that I have the SS.

[Keith Hankins]

What a great Christmas gift! Nothing like a save, to make your day. I've had my ICS for almost a year, would want any other saw! Take care!

[Timothy Shouldice]

I set off my PCS once when I raised the blade too high and grazed the metal on my crosscut sled. I had hearing protection on and didn't even here or feel it, the blade was just gone.

The blade was a WWII an I pried it out of the brake, two of the teeth were damaged. I took it to a sharpening / repair service and they replaced the broken teeth, sharpened the blade and the it was fine. Cost was only $40. The did however carefully check the blade wasn't warped before doing the work. I still use the blade today and it cuts perfectly.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Just to underline the point about making sure you don't get complacent:

Kickback happens on SS saws too. It happened to me. If you've never had a kickback event, it's easy to underestimate the damage it can do. I have a huge "L" shaped scar on my forehead (ironic!) to prove it. You can find the gore photos if you search for threads I've started.

So if anybody reading this is a SS owner who has allowed him/herself to get complacent, go read my injury thread and check yourself before you wreck yourself. :)

OP: really glad you still have your whole thumb, and thanks for the important reminder to be safe!

[Jeffrey Martel]

Just a heads up, I believe Sawstop still has the deal where you send in the blade/cartridge and if they determine that it was triggered via human contact, you will get a free brake.

http://www.sawstop.com/support/report-a-save

[Mike Heidrick]

I just sent my brake off in the UPS today. It will be replaced for free. It was my fault I know but I want SS to capture the data from the cart. Its been storing it prob since I got it I would guess.

I lost one tooth on the WWII but it looks great. It will be sent off to the sharpener this week. I want it tested by a better guess than me.

I did have the RK on. I always use it. It was not kickback or anything like that. It was me sticking my thumb in the blade after the end of a cut. Purely me putting my hand in the wrong spot. I made a mistake and the saw saved my butt from major pain and issue beyond a small knick and a bandaid for a few days.

[Reinis Kanders]

Airbags do not seem to be that safe anymore:eek:

[Peter Aeschliman]

The airbag/seatbelt argument has been made hundreds of times on this forum. Some agree, some don't. Let's not go there, and simply leave it at that.

[Kevin Womer]

Glad to hear you are ok, thanks for sharing.

[Roy Turbett]

I just finished setting up my ICS today and showed my wife the pictures. Made her feel a whole lot better about the expensive Christmas present I bought for myself. I almost set the brake off on my first cut when I ripped a 2 x 4 in half and forgot to remove the tag that was stapled to the end. Fortunately the blade missed the staple.

[Patrick McCarthy]

Airbags do not seem to be that safe anymore:eek:

Touche'. You got me there! Point taken Reinis, LOL

[Tom Clark FL]

Mike,

Thanks for sharing your experience and glad all your digits lived through it.

20 years ago a neighbor bought a table saw, and within a couple of months mangled three fingers by using his fingers for a push stick. Boy did he need a SawStop!

A couple of weeks later our woodworking club traveled to the Atlanta woodworking show. We went out to lunch in the CNN building across the street from the big show. There was this little far east shop there, and while wondering around, I spotted this little dragon hanging from the ceiling. For some reason the teeth on the dragon made me think of my friend and his still healing fingers. I bought it and hung it directly over my PM66. It hangs high enough to be out of the way, but low enough to let me see it every time I go to use the saw. It reminds me of my friends fingers and to not be complacent. Everyone needs something to keep the danger fresh in your mind and to be careful - SawStop owner or not…

[Don Morris]

I lost the very tip of my left middle finger on a jointer, when I just lost concentration and pushed the pork chop guard out of the way. The right hand was on a large push stick for "safety" (because I am soooo safety conscious, LOL). That's all it takes is a moment and it's gone. At my age and stage in the middle 70's, and on a fixed income, I'll stick with my Grizzly. And thanks to our government, it's becoming worth less and less. But if I was starting out or it was 10 years ago...I'd have a SS. Thanks for sharing and reminding us that we work in a dangerous environment. Something we can never be reminded of too often.