Risk Assessment - Table Saws

This risk assessment is intended to provide guidance on the risk associated with the above equipment and activities in normal use. Please also check general risk assessments for the space as a whole. Any discrepancies, errors or concerns should be raised with the document maintainers or trustees - do not edit this assessment directly. For responsible persons and last update, see 'version log' of the assessment page.

Activity

Cutting wood or plastic on the table saw

Signage

Understanding Risk Rating

LOW - Ensure current control measures are in place and continue with activity

MED - Control measures may be adequate, co-supervision is recommended

HIGH - Do not undertake activity without further consultation with area specialists

Risk Assessment

Identify Hazards	Who May be Harmed and How	Severity	Control Measures	Likelihood	Risk Rating
Incompetent user	User, Bystander	HIGH	Users must be inducted to use this tool. Members must challenge use that they believe is dangerous. Users should read the user manual where applicable. Users must read the risk assessment before using a tool.	LOW	MED
Contact with blade	User	HIGH	Use guards as per instruction manual. Do not put hands into exclusion zone (within 30cm of blade). Use push sticks and the fence provided when making cuts. Do not move hands past the blade. Do not lean over the blade. Saw should be switched off immediately after use. Saw blade should stop within 10 seconds of being turned off	LOW	MED
Drawing in (being pulled into the saw)	User	HIGH	User should not wear gloves, ties, scarves, or other long flowy clothing that could get pulled into the blade. Do not put hands into exclusion zone (within 30cm of blade). Do not lean over blade	LOW	MED
Ejection of workpiece (Kickback)	User, bystander, the space	HIGH	Do not stand directly behind blade. Use a feather board when working with smaller pieces. Take care to keep the workpiece against the fence when making mitre cuts Ensure riving knife is in place	LOW	MED
Dust (inhalation, fire, explosion)	User, bystander	LOW	The saw should be used with the dust extractor attached and working. Maintenance must include the cleaning of dust from within the saw housing. A respirator or mask should be used whilst operating this tool for prolonged periods	LOW	LOW
Blade snatching or jamming	User, bystander	MED	Only cut wood and plastic on the table saw Ensure a visual inspection of the table saw is undertaken before every use to check for physical obstructions	LOW	LOW
Noise	User, bystander	LOW	Ear protection is advised. User to give audible warning (EARS, GOING LOUD) before switching on	LOW	LOW
Flying splinters	User, bystander	LOW	Eye protection must be worn whilst using the table saw Eye protection must be worn by all users of the workshop. Do not cut small pieces	LOW	LOW

What is a Table Saw For?

Straight cuts in wood and certain plastics

Sheet materials
Rip cuts
Crosscuts, to a certain extent
Fancy joinery cuts of hundreds of types

Alternatives:

Mitre saw generally easier for crosscutting
Bandsaw for deep rip cuts
Bandsaw for small stuff (smaller than A4 sheet of paper)
Hand saws for even smaller stuff

Parts of the Machine

Point Out:

The table
The blade
The guard
The riving knife
The throat plate
The fence
The fence locking lever and rack adjustment
The fence scale
The height adjuster
The bevel adjustment
The roller infeed stand

Pre-inspection

Check guard is fitted, lifts easily and falls under own weight

Check blade spins freely, not caught on guard

Check dust extractor is fitted

Guards

A guard is not always required, e.g. for tenon cutting, but must be used on all cuts where it reasonably can

Default induction does not cover changing guards. Tell the story about the badly fitted guard that nearly hit Toby in the face and ended up embedded in a nearby wall

Once you've done a regular induction ask someone for a 'level 2' quick session on changing guards at some point

Kickback

Kickback is probably the biggest risk with a table saw.

It happens when the wood gets pinched on the back part of the saw (where the motion is up and forwards towards the user) and gets flung.

It can have a variety of causes, the most common are

Badly aligned fence (must be exactly parallel to the blade for success)
Residual stress distortion of the wood pressing on the back of the blade
Bad user technique twisting the wood.
Attempting a freehand cut (never do this)
Attempting a cross cut with the fence as a depth stop (never do this)
Sometimes, it can just happen even with all the precautions.

It's not 100% reliable but the riving knife will protect you from most of these causes if it is properly fitted.

Very detailed article and video here that would make good secondary reading: https://kmtools.com/blogs/news/how-to-prevent-kickback

Hand Safety

To put it in one sentence, don't put your hand in the blade
Always know where your hands are and where they're going. Think through any movement before you make it, even if that bits stopping or pausing the cut
Don't put them between the blade and the fence (unless the cut is more than about 300mm wide)
Don't push wood in in-line with the blade
Be careful reaching around the back, don't move hands over the blade
We have push sticks. If we don't have a suitable push stick, stop cutting and go make on on the bandsaw (if trained) or scrollsaw.

Rip Cutting

Set blade height - ideally 3 to 4mm (3 teeth) of saw sticking up above the material
Set fence position - unlock, rack adjust, lock down
Turn on dust extractor
Set up roller stand for long material
Turn on saw, blade not touching the wood, allow to come up to speed
Push through the wood at steady pace. Use push sticks to keep simultaneously pressed against the fence, down against the table and forwards into the saw
Switch off when cut complete

Bevel Cutting

Loosen lock on front dial
Best way to reach the bevel is to reach under the body of the saw from the side and lift up the blade enclosure
Front dial is good enough for most purposes but check with angle measurer if critical
Then, cut proceeds as normal. Just be more careful about hand placement with the side on
Note fence scale doesn't apply to bevel cuts

Crosscuts

As of 2024-09-26 the default mitre guide is broken and can't be used, so we won't actively train on it

And anyway, it's usually a waste of time - the mitre saw gives better results than a bad mitre guide

The crosscut sled gives good results but you will need training on how to remove the guard.

After Use

Sweep down the bed and the surrounding bench
Hoover inside the machines if they've been run without extraction.
Restore any guards/ bevel settings if you've messed with them

Induction Script - Table Saw