That time a sawstop saved my thumb at a shop near Boise

I was out in Eagle, Idaho last spring helping a buddy build some custom kitchen cabinets. We were running through a stack of walnut on the table saw when his 3/4 inch dado blade caught some kickback and my hand slipped right into the blade path. That brake engaged in maybe 5 milliseconds and I walked away with just a bruise and a hell of a story. Anyone else ever had a close call that made you rethink your whole safety setup?

3 comments

3 Comments

rowanw9111d ago

I have a friend who lost two fingers to a sawstop that didn't fire because he was cutting aluminum. The brake didn't trigger and the blade just kept spinning. He got a hell of a lawsuit settlement but his hand is still messed up. Those brakes work great for wet wood and flesh, but they're not some magic shield. I'd rather spend that premium on better technique and push sticks than rely on a gadget that can fail if the material conductivity is off.

ray_burns11d ago

Right, so your buddy basically found out the hard way that SawStop is less "magic force field" and more "fancy party trick that only works if the guest has wet hands." At least he got a payout, though I bet he'd trade that check for a full set of fingers any day. I'm over here with all ten digits and I still manage to hit my thumb with a hammer at least once a month, so maybe I should just duct tape some push sticks to my face. It's almost like the best safety feature is common sense, but that's the one thing you can't buy at Home Depot, huh?

sagejackson11d ago

My uncle had a similar thing happen with a table saw. He spent years relying on that safety brake and got real sloppy with his technique. Then one day the saw kicked back and threw a piece of wood right into his gut. Broke two ribs and left a bruise the size of a dinner plate. After that he started using push sticks and a featherboard every single time no matter what. He says it was the best thing that ever happened to his woodworking because it forced him to learn proper habits instead of depending on a gadget.