Table Saw: Safe Ripping and Cross Cutting

The table saw is at the heart of most woodworking shops, so it’s VERY important that you use it correctly and safely. In this video we’ll demonstrate safe ripping and crosscutting on a Laguna Fusion 1 table saw. We’ll cover:

• – Blade selection, ripping versus crosscutting
• – The importance of a riving knife
• – Body position relative to the saw
• – Kickback and how to avoid it
• – What cuts require a push stick
• – Hand position when cutting
• – Dust collection
• – The importance of an outfeed table

Crosscutting safely

There are some crosscut-specific rules you should pay attention to. They have to do with retrieving your material after making a cut, and how to make repetitive cuts to exactly the same length. A stop block allows the miter gauge and rip fence to be used in conjunction with each other, which helps avoid the potential of binding or kick back.

Cutting lots of parts to size

Using the rip fence to get lots of parts cut to the same size makes great sense, as long as you’re didn’t it correctly and safely. Watch the video for the “rectangle rule,” which dictates when you can and can’t use the rip fence for these cuts.

More info

For more info on the Laguna table saw visit www.lagunatools.com or call (888) 677-9765.