Shopsmith Forums

paulrussell wrote:Yes, I'm debating what way to go with the safety equipment. I had a conversation just last night with my wife regarding not making a single cut until I have the saw guards and proper pushblocks etc. The Shopsmith safety kit seems nice, but I think I could duplicate it for much less than the SS price -- even on Ebay they seem to be a bit more pricey than I would have expected.

understand about the cost-savings part.

I picked up a push shoe at either Home Depot or Lowe's when I bought some feather boards for a contractor saw. it was similar to this one:
http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware ... ogId=10053
I agree with the other comments here that the shoe made me feel that I had more control over the final part of the cut than I had with a push stick.

in terms of using inexpensive sand blocks as push blocks on a tablesaw: plastic tends to cut much quicker than wood. with a push block, the critical question is whether you get to keep your fingers if the block is sitting on the table with half of it on each side of the blade (immediately after a kickback has disappeared the wood). if your fingers are lying on the table, then the handle for the push block was too low (i.e.: the push block is giving you a false sense of security). please do not take me wrongly. push blocks are great for enhancing your ability to manipulate (grip) the wood around blades and cutters. as long as you are using them for materials handling only, then the handle height is not an issue (it is not even needed except for ease in gripping). it is only when using the push block as a safety device to raise your fingers out of the danger zone that my comments apply. as a safety device for things like cutting a dado, they are wonderful as long as the handles are sized to the hazard because they help protect us from that moment of inattention when we place our hands in a place where we know better. <soap box mode off>:o

the fence straddler is just a version of a shoe that is especially useful for cutting narrow pieces. if you are not making cuts with the blade close to the rip fence, then the regular push shoe will get you cutting with control.

I never used featherboards when I was growing up. now that I have tried them, I love them and use them whenever the set-up allows.

Ivan

iclark wrote:understand about the cost-savings part.


the fence straddler is just a version of a shoe that is especially useful for cutting narrow pieces. if you are not making cuts with the blade close to the rip fence, then the regular push shoe will get you cutting with control.

Ivan

Actually a "regular" shoe will cut infinitely close to the fence which wouldn't be a great idea with the SS fence stradler. A shop made Q&D shoe is a consumable not a tool . Obviously you size the shoe based on how high above the material you let your blade emerge (another thread) so as to be confident that your pinkies are safe. The strips on the right of the fence were just cut and are less than 1/8" thick.

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Paul M (alias the shoe guy)

shipwright wrote:Actually a "regular" shoe will cut infinitely close to the fence which wouldn't be a great idea with the SS fence stradler. A shop made Q&D shoe is a consumable not a tool . Obviously you size the shoe based on how high above the material you let your blade emerge (another thread) so as to be confident that your pinkies are safe. The strips on the right of the fence were just cut and are less than 1/8" thick.

thank you for the correction. you are right.

the distinction in mindset between consumable and tool is good one. I will try to remember it in the future.

much obliged,
Ivan

iclark wrote:thank you for the correction. you are right.

the distinction in mindset between consumable and tool is good one. I will try to remember it in the future.

much obliged,
Ivan

For those of you(us:o) that occasionally as an afterthought grab whatever scrap is handy to use as a 'push stick' at the end of a cut, be careful how you hold on to that 'stick'.

It will probably have corners on it and if you are pushing the stick with the end against your palm AND it gets 'kicked back'(much more likely with a stick) the end will attempt to move through your hand.

Although not as uncomfortable, the ss 'safety' stick will perform as stated above.

JPG40504 wrote:For those of you(us:o) that occasionally as an afterthought grab whatever scrap is handy to use as a 'push stick' at the end of a cut, be careful how you hold on to that 'stick'.

It will probably have corners on it and if you are pushing the stick with the end against your palm AND it gets 'kicked back'(much more likely with a stick) the end will attempt to move through your hand.

Although not as uncomfortable, the ss 'safety' stick will perform as stated above.

Yet another reason to use a shoe instead of a push stick. Push sticks only control the back edge and do nothing to prevent kickback.

Paul M