TS Blade DC - Using a Push Stick

[Steve Eure]

I recently made a hood to go over my TS blade. It is designed after one that I saw on this forum a while back. This thing works great with my dust collection system. My question is; when using the saw with the fence close to the blade, how do you safely use a push stick? I tried to lower my push stick down at a lower angle but did not feel safe doing this. Am I missing something with this setup or is there another approach?
Thanks.

[Mark Carlson]

I use the blade guard as much as possible but remove it when the cuts are less than 1.5 inches or so. At that point my Shark Guard is too close to the fence to safely use the push stick.

[Andy Giddings]

Sounds like you want to safely rip thin strips from your question, Steve? If that's the case, there are various ways to do this depending on the length of material to be cut. For shorter rips, a simple piece of ply with a short stop at the end can be used against the fence as a carrier or sub-fence for the lumber you're cutting. This gets the fence away from the guard and acts as a push stick. Another way to do it is to clamp an L shaped sub-fence to the fence.

[Wayne Lomman]

Steve, Andy has the right idea - it is simple and it works. There are only excuses for removing the blade guard, not reasons.

Also by the time the piece of timber is so far under the guard that you can't use your push stick at the usual angle, it is perfectly safe to drop your hand down closer to the table. The heel of the stick will remain engaged with the work piece. Do a dry run with the saw turned off and watch what happens. It will give you confidence in your technique. Cheers

[Robert Engel]

Wayne, I have a reason: I have this quirk that I have to see the blade as it cuts (whats up with that anyway?).

Steve this is one of the drawbacks of an overarm collector. You are limited on how close without elevating the shroud above the fence, which affects DC. I wasn't totally kidding about having to see the blade, but the truth is I have never used a blade guard and never seen the need for overarm collection.

I use push blocks/sticks and never push wood with my hands less than 2" from fence (just kidding its more like 4). Oh well, 10 fingers and still counting.......

Not saying don't do it but I can't help to wonder the small amount of sawdust shooting off the blade at whatever MPH on to the top - do those overarm collectors really work that well?

BTW, ZCI's are the problem.
I know you built it, but maybe all you need is a guard?

[Hoang N Nguyen]

For thin cuts like that, I would remove the blade guard and use the grr-ripper. It's the safest way I can think of.

[Sean Troy]

Maybe need to use a thinner push stick? http://www.rockler.com/bench-dog-pocket-push-stick

[glenn bradley]

Wayne, I have a reason: I have this quirk that I have to see the blade as it cuts (whats up with that anyway?).

You are not alone. Many suffer from the same irrational addiction; operators are standing by. Even though we know intellectually that the blade is, where the blade is and that on a tablesaw it doesn't go anywhere else during a cut, many people want to see the blade. The affliction keeps these folks from ever hoping to use a large slider format saw.

Seriously, I use a guard whenever it is safe to do so. If the guard limits your ability to safely guide the material, do not use it for that cut. My comfort zone is a few inches between guard and fence. Doing the hula or over-reaching to get past an obstruction during a cut is asking for a . . . oh, what is it that people call it when they do unsafe things . . . ? Oh yeah, an "accident".

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Steve, the issue isn't the guard, it's using the wrong fence.

For narrow strips, or bevel cuts use a low fence ( about 1/2" high) which will allow your push stick iv from the left.

Presuming that you have Bies fence, you need to make a piece of 4" angle iron out of wood. Clamp it to the Bies and if you make it exactly 4 inches (or any integer value) you can still use your rip fence ruler.

This fence can also be clamped in the proper short position for ripping solid wood ( it ends at the front blade gullet), this helps prevents binding, and of course cut pieces are free to fall away from the blade...........Rod.

[Steve Eure]

Thanks Rod. That makes more sense then using any other method. I think I will try that first to see if it rectifies the problem. Thanks for all the replies. Any and all suggestions are appreciated.

[Tom Ewell]

Rods solution is a good one, on mine I made a long push stick using 1/4" ply that allows the push to go through the narrowest cut allowed by the Shark without 'bumping' the guard, thinner than that I remove the Shark and go with my hold downs (similar to board buddies) and virtually get down to most of what I need between the fence and blade. Narrower than that I setup to cut the rips on the offside of the blade and reset the fence each time using the thin cut jig similar to the one shown.
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[Wayne Lomman]

Sorry guys, I tend to lose my sense of humour where safety is is concerned. I've been responsible for workplace health and safety on worksites everywhere from power stations to refineries to one man workshops and there are only ever excuses, not reasons.

I stand by Andy's solution and Rod's is pretty much the same. Exposing the saw blade? It's all good until it isn't and then your family have to deal with the consequences - not you. Take a thought for others for a change. Cheers

[Justin Ludwig]

I made a push stick out of 3/16 birch that is the size of a hand rip saw. I have the DC hood over the blade adjusted so that I can set the fence down to 3/4" with no problems. Anything less than that I'll run the piece so the need strip comes off the outside of blade. Dados and rare instances of trim or ripping odd pieces where the hood is in the way - I rotate it 180 upwards out of my way.

[glenn bradley]

To Rod's point; maybe an 'L' fence would suit you. It provides the low fence profile and does many other things to earn its keep. Takes only minutes to make.

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[David Pascoe]

Its an inescapable trade-off: Safety or dust collection, you can't have both. I opted for safety and gave up on the dust when I have to do small, detail work. It's much different than when ripping large boards, where I wouldn't bother with a push stick anyway. You risk making mistake when trying to work around a collector and risk losing fingers. Not worth it even with a stick if it slips. I use an ice pick on all small rips where there is no chance of slipping, twisting or skewing. A tip from an old Fine Woodworking mag.

[John Lankers]

Steve, Andy has the right idea - it is simple and it works. There are only excuses for removing the blade guard, not reasons.

Also by the time the piece of timber is so far under the guard that you can't use your push stick at the usual angle, it is perfectly safe to drop your hand down closer to the table. The heel of the stick will remain engaged with the work piece. Do a dry run with the saw turned off and watch what happens. It will give you confidence in your technique. Cheers

Thank you Wayne, for pointing this out. Why remove a guard so you can put your hands where they should never ever go to begin with. I witnessed a terrible accident involving machinery when I was 12 years old and believe me it teaches a person to respect machinery and appreciate safety devices.