Nervous using my SawStop...

[Brian Penning]

...because I had to put it in Bypass mode for the 1st time.
Was quite a strange feeling making a long bevel cut with the saw.

[Eduard Nemirovsky]

why did you put it in bypass mode? wet wood?

[Scott Rollins]

Nervous? I too have a sawstop. I have used the bypass mode a couple of times due to possibly wet glue or a questionable beep from my metal detector. It is a little un-nerving to turn the safety mode off and make a cut. Maybe that is what you meant. Akin to driving without a seatbelt when it is your habit to have one on.--it just feels wrong.

But please learn from everyone else here...if you are uncomfortable making a cut..don't. Find a safer way.

[Mike Heidrick]

I would not say I am nervous doing it but I do know the weird feeling you are talking about. Seems weird knowing the brake is not on.

[Brian Penning]

why did you put it in bypass mode? wet wood?

Had a thick piece of plywood laminations that were glued and screwed together so the screws were inside the laminations.
Used an old blade btw and didn't hit anything.

[Don Bullock]

A SawStop in bypass mode is no different than any table saw that doesn't have the blade stop feature. Like most here I used one for many years (most of the time without a guard) and didn't think as much about safety as I do now with the SawStop. Like some Scott said:


But please learn from everyone else here...if you are uncomfortable making a cut..don't. Find a safer way.

There are other many ways in most shops, using different tools, to make the same cut.

[Alan DuBoff]

Your SawStop is but one tool in your shop. Learn to be responsible with all your tools, so that you don't feel nervous using any of them.

Just because your SawStop has some extra added safety features, there are still many dangerous aspects...kickbacks do happen, even with a riving knife, as an example. You can't account for all type of conditions, nor can you prevent accidents from happening completely. You can minimize most of the dangerous ones by being responsible. ;)

[Brent Smith]

...because I had to put it in Bypass mode for the 1st time.
Was quite a strange feeling making a long bevel cut with the saw.

Kinda like driving without the training wheels Bri? :p

Postscript......Please, no Sawstop owners take offense. Bri is a good friend and I'm just poking fun at an excellent woodworker :).

[Bruce Page]

As long as your tablesaw is set up correctly and you use good shop practices along with good common sense, you should have nothing to worry about, regardless of the tool manufacturer.

[Dave Lehnert]

You know this is not good news for other saw manufactures. If a woodworker feels unsafe using a saw without the safety device ,they will never use any other brand saw.
How long is a patent good for on such an invention?

[Don Dorn]

While I am a big fan of the Saw Stop, I have to wonder if the safety feature eventually lulls you into a sense of security that would not serve you well on other tools? I also think it would make me nervous if the brake kicked in due to excess moisture I may not have been aware of - or as someone else said, glue. I'm not saying I wouldn't like to have one, and I don't drive faster because I wear safety belts, but I think everything has a downside to get used to.

[Charlie Kocourek]

It is a weird feeling to put it in bypass. I think it is because the electronic control is kind of a mystery, (FM) and I kind of wonder what will happen. I used mine once to cut aluminum. Not that was a weird feeling. Afterwards, I vacuumed the metal chips out and I never had a problem.

Charlie

[Denny Rice]

Even if I owned a Sawstop, which I do not I don't think I would ever treat it or think of it ANY different than any other tablesaw. It's when the "safety features" of a machine makes someone too comfortable using it, when someone will get hurt.

[Mike Heidrick]

I kinda knew this thread would give the sense that sawstop owners are not as safe, or can be lulled into not being safe, or cannot use any saw without the brake, or are somehow unsafe because they have a brake. All total BS.

The message here is that it seems weird because a saw with a safety brake is now turned off and you know it. It has nothing to do with you being unsafe. If anything it is your heightend sense of safety that is making you feel this way. Anytime you use your sawstop you know the brake is there and you hope you know all the reasons the brake would fire. You do everything you can not have that happen - mostly because that is $150-$170 min if the blade is ruined and you are using a decent blade.

I think using a sawstop makes you more safe because of that extra precaution you take when using one. When I had my Delta I did not have to worry about that.

[Alan DuBoff]

I kinda knew this thread would give the sense that sawstop owners are not as safe, or can be lulled into not being safe, or cannot use any saw without the brake, or are somehow unsafe because they have a brake. All total BS.
Seems pretty harsh words to make in response to a thread where people admittedly state there are times they are unsure when cutting a piece of wood on their SawStop.

The fact that someone needs to measure the moisture content of a piece of wood so they feel safe to use their table saw seem quite odd to me. I don't worry about that, I just cut it no matter how much moisture it has in it. Whether it be green wood, freshly glued wood, or even a piece of nail/metal in a piece of wood, there is more than one owner on this fora that feels uncertain to use their SawStop without disarming the very safety feature they bought it for.

I rather think the last part of your quote above sums it up pretty well.:o

The message here is that it seems weird because a saw with a safety brake is now turned off and you know it. It has nothing to do with you being unsafe. If anything it is your heightend sense of safety that is making you feel this way. Anytime you use your sawstop you know the brake is there and you hope you know all the reasons the brake would fire. You do everything you can not have that happen - mostly because that is $150-$170 min if the blade is ruined and you are using a decent blade.

I think using a sawstop makes you more safe because of that extra precaution you take when using one. When I had my Delta I did not have to worry about that.
I hate to say it but I think your comment above is applicable here as well...in TOTAL.:D

No need to get so ruffled because people admittedly say there is a certain amount of FUD in using a mechanism that doesn't work perfectly in the real world we live in.

There is no question the SawStop is a good tool, but if it causes any FUD for the user, I don't see how you can claim you comment at the end of the first quote in this post.

Why are you so defensive? Do you sell these saws or something?

I think it's time to chill with a cold one and a hot dog, life is short Mike.:rolleyes:

[Dan Lee]

Maybe I missed it but the OP didn't say why he was nervous. Saftey vs is bypass really going to work.

First time I used bypass mode I was a little concerned as to whether the bypass would actually work and not trigger, certianly not be cause I felt unsafe without it.

[Brian Penning]

I kinda knew this thread would give the sense that sawstop owners are not as safe, or can be lulled into not being safe, or cannot use any saw without the brake, or are somehow unsafe because they have a brake. All total BS.

I think using a Sawstop makes you more safe because of that extra precaution you take when using one.

Honestly, I'm not sure if I agree with you. In the months since having my SS(use it almost every day) I think I've fallen into your 1st paragraph's description and it's been the opposite of your 2nd paragraph. I more or less confirmed it to myself when I used the saw in bypass mode.
Dumb? Stupid? Yep! But maybe now that I realize it I'll be more careful.

[Mike Heidrick]

OK, maybe I am in the SS minority. It is not my first tablesaw so maybe that is why. Who knows, I definately do not feel I am less safe with the sawstop.

[Alan DuBoff]

Mike,

That's fair.

I don't feel I'm safer by using a 1944 Yates American G-89 with a 5HP motor, in fact I feel less safe than my previous Ridgid 3612. :o

But I'll tell 'ya something...I wouldn't trade back for it! ;)

Funny thing is that it does make me more respectful when using it, it is such a beast I am alway very concerned about safety. Helps with other machines also, to keep me aware of the dangers in the shop. As I said in my first post here, we need to be responsible with all of our tools in the shop, goes for chisels, planes, or other edge tools...

[Glenn Shotwell]

I think using a sawstop makes you more safe because of that extra precaution you take when using one.

Why would you take extra precaution when using a SawStop table saw over say a Delta or Powermatic table saw? Should not any table saw be treated as if you could get hurt?

[Mike Heidrick]

Why would you take extra precaution when using a SawStop table saw over say a Delta or Powermatic table saw? Should not any table saw be treated as if you could get hurt?

Because the wrong cut say into the very tip of your miter gauge will cost you $170. On the Delta I had it would have been a little nick in the miter gauge to remind me to not do that again.

[Denny Rice]

This seems to be a real touchy issue on this forum. Don't get me wrong, but sometimes I think the guys that purchased the high dollar SawStop have to try to justify their purchase to the rest of us for not owning one. I just want everyone to be happy with their purchase whatever saw it is and be careful with it. SawStop or not.:)

[Kevin Groenke]

I cut some aluminum yesterday, and yes putting the ss in bypass does cause me to think twice before making a cut: Once to consider whether I'm doing what I'm doing safely and once to confirm the the saw is actually in bypass. That said, I do nothing different in everyday operation than I would have with the old unis: guards, pushsticks, proper technique etc.. It's just that I think twice: If all saw users always thought twice before making a cut, would there be fewer accidents?

As to the debate, it's ridiculous to claim the ss users are less safe than other saw users. Isn't it indicative of a concern about safety that would lead one to purchase a SS? Wouldn't those users then be more likely to employ safe practices? I think the truth is that there are some ss users who are safe and some who are sometimes unsafe: just like there are of conventional saw users.


BTW, I/we really don't worry about glue or wet wood (treated aside). Our students do not have time for glue to dry and wet glue has not set off a saw in 3 years with the saws running ~6 hrs/day. We discourage reclaimed materials and keep an eye out for staples and the like, but it's not like we're obsessing over them. We have set off the brakes (see other posts) but most have been user error (miter gauges, jigs, forgot bypass), we are learning though, we haven't had a stop in maybe a year.

-kg

[Alan DuBoff]

I just read a sad post on another forum from a guy that lost his job and took a carpentry job to pay the bills. He was pushed to get a job finished and had an accident with the table saw. This is certainly a sad story that the SawStop would have prevented.

However, I just want to point out once again that the table saw is but one tool in many modern shops. Had an accident happened with a skill saw, similar damage could have happened to him, or even the band saw. A great example is Sam Maloof. While his work is incredible, some of the unorthodox use of the band saw has earned him many cuts and losses to fingers on his hand.

The owners that have posted to this thread have certainly stated they have a certain amount of FUD in using the tool, pondering if the brake will be triggered. Seems best to use the machine responsibly and if the brake triggers, it triggers. Even if something does trigger it accidentally, a new brake would be like maintenance. Isn't that why one spends $3k for a saw with such a system to begin with?

For those that do not have or are not at liberty to spend $3k for a table saw, it seems that sleds and jigs that keep your hands out of harms way go a long way to help keep the tool safer in use. Seems like a decent investment in time that many people never think about until it's too late. PWW had a good article on building a table saw sled recently, as do other publications. Might be a good time for me to replace my cheezy sled I use now...;)