Why do so many people remove their tablesaw blade guards?

Why do so many people remove their tablesaw blade guards?

Every new table saw comes with a blade guard. So how come hardly anyone seems to be using them? I can’t speak for everyone, but here’s why I don’t use one.
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50 Comments

  1. Do Alex on June 21, 2022 at 9:18 pm

    I have a question 🙋🏼‍♂️;! How high should the riving knife should be?



  2. FredGCopping on June 21, 2022 at 9:20 pm

    Good, honest presentation.



  3. Monica G on June 21, 2022 at 9:20 pm

    Hi Steve. I need some help. i heard that downgrading the blade to 7 and 1/2 inch on a table have many benefit(less dust finer cuts etc.) So that s what i did and i put it on my table saw now (it came without a blade) But i find it is a thinner blade. and my riving knife is a bit thicker and much taller than the blade to the point i can not use the microjig block to push through. What should i do now?😂😂😂 should i take the diving knife off? Will i be able to get a thinner riving knife? btw I’m just setting it up for my first ever table saw cut. Very nervous!



  4. Roy Mayh on June 21, 2022 at 9:21 pm

    Honesty is the best policy. You are doing the right thing here. Kudos.



  5. coda creator on June 21, 2022 at 9:22 pm

    Not only do they remove the blade guard, they throw them away. When they sell their table saws then the new owners don’t even start with one.



  6. 95Gabe on June 21, 2022 at 9:23 pm

    I use a blade guard because on my saw it gives almost 100% dust collection. Once I have my saw set up, I don’t need to see the blade at all.



  7. Will Erwin on June 21, 2022 at 9:23 pm

    My next big too purchase will likely be a table saw, and I’m strongly considering a SawStop. It’s just so easy to make a life-changing mistake with a table saw.



  8. Mike Hendrix on June 21, 2022 at 9:24 pm

    You never once mentioned the Kick Back Guard. Is there a reason why?



  9. my pronoun is Master on June 21, 2022 at 9:24 pm

    I see that Ouija board.
    Illuminati confirmed.



  10. this is a social experiment on June 21, 2022 at 9:26 pm

    I tried to build a workbench with the blade guard installed in my table saw a few years back. I didn’t really get far before I decided to remove it.



  11. Edward M on June 21, 2022 at 9:27 pm

    I’m a newbe table saw user. Love the videos on safety, mitre sled and pusher. At this point in time I will continue using the blade guard…a bit of a pain (no pun intended) at times when watching along the cut line.



  12. Gobear Gromit on June 21, 2022 at 9:28 pm

    And I always wear some sort of hearing protection…



  13. Dukefazon on June 21, 2022 at 9:28 pm

    2:33 – thank you for the unit exchange XD
    (but I guess it was meant to be Kmh)



  14. K. Cashman on June 21, 2022 at 9:29 pm

    Always good advice!



  15. Jorrit Bakker on June 21, 2022 at 9:31 pm

    Good that you converted the 1.000.000 mph 😂



  16. Joseph Romero on June 21, 2022 at 9:31 pm

    I bought a cheap little Ryobi when I first started but then found an older Delta contractor saw but that has a fixed Splitter and not a riving knife. Should I just use the Ryobi or what do u think???🙏it’s model #36-441 and I don’t know if I can get an actual Riving knife for it or only or



  17. Lee Haddock on June 21, 2022 at 9:34 pm

    Can one help in finding blade guard and Irving knife for 30 years old unisaw 5 hp



  18. Robert Mundorff on June 21, 2022 at 9:35 pm

    My craftsman table saw came with a blade guard but I’d like to put a riving knife on it instead. However I can’t attach a riving knife. There is no way to attach one. Anyone have one like this one? What can be done besides buying a new saw.



  19. exponent mantissa on June 21, 2022 at 9:35 pm

    Years ago my neighbour worked in construction. The guys were removing blade guards from their circular saws because they got in the way. One day after just making a cut the blade "touched" his leg and he got a horrific injury. There were a few of these at the Workers Compensation Board started visiting sites and issuing hefty fines.



  20. NobodyImportant on June 21, 2022 at 9:36 pm

    I’m brand new to woodworking. I’ll keep using my blade guard, thank you. I have a healthy respect for that blade.



  21. Darryl Eden on June 21, 2022 at 9:37 pm

    They are dangerous that’s why I take it off



  22. Richard Chapman on June 21, 2022 at 9:37 pm

    No pushstick?



  23. Bill rouleau on June 21, 2022 at 9:40 pm

    I have been woodworking with a 1961 10" Craftsman table saw.
    My Dad bought it new in 1961 and it became mine when he passed.
    So for more than 50 years a lot of material has passed the blade and I never used a riving knife or the blade guard.
    I don’t nelieve it ever had either one.
    You do bring up valid points but it is in the way for me.



  24. Jim Jones on June 21, 2022 at 9:41 pm

    Steve, great common sense easy info for us newbies. QUESTION – SIMPLEST CROSS CUT TABLE SAW SLED 2021 VIDEO
    have you made, can you make a mod on the sled to include a design that leaves the guard assembly in place ?
    I am like another commentator, uneasy but progressing safely using my table saw
    THX



  25. jay l on June 21, 2022 at 9:41 pm

    I just started using mine. I did install the guard but I just found it safer to stand to the side



  26. Ali Cafferty Artistry on June 21, 2022 at 9:44 pm

    Doesn’t the riving knife get in the way when using the grrrriper?



  27. Hue Janus on June 21, 2022 at 9:48 pm

    When i cut anything on a table saw, i keep one eye constantly on the blade and the other eye constantly on my fingers. Yeah, i guess you could call it a mutant superpower.



  28. Z06Doc on June 21, 2022 at 9:49 pm

    I agree. Blade guard is often a pain to use. If you be aware and use all the other safety measures, you should be fine without it.



  29. Justin Knaup on June 21, 2022 at 9:50 pm

    Better hope your blades at least as thick as your riving knife.



  30. Jack Mahoney on June 21, 2022 at 9:51 pm

    He broke a cardinal rule with the first clip of him making a cut! That is NEVER EVER use the RIP Fence when making a CROSS CUT!



  31. Chris Dernovich on June 21, 2022 at 9:53 pm

    If you are going to keep pushing pieces through on the short side (like the very first clip) I’d keep those guards on.



  32. jgdogg441 on June 21, 2022 at 9:53 pm

    Just an fyi, when I click "Send me the list" on your site, it 404s



  33. Larry Studer on June 21, 2022 at 9:54 pm

    I learned on a table saw with no guards.All that extra stuff gets in my way, in my vision. I can’t see what’s going on with the workpiece. I learned to keep track of where my fingers were.



  34. DahPizzaBoy on June 21, 2022 at 9:55 pm

    As a Canadian, The M to KM conversation was appreciated



  35. Chuck Goodwish on June 21, 2022 at 10:00 pm

    I just bought my first table saw and was so glad to have found this video. Thank you so much! I have learned a lot.



  36. Jeff W on June 21, 2022 at 10:02 pm

    Thanks for explaining this. I just got mine, and saw the videos demonstrating it didn’t have the guards or anti-kickback pawls on them. Was wondering why.



  37. The Country Gentleman on June 21, 2022 at 10:03 pm

    My brother and i bought a Powermatic table saw about a year ago. Not completely expressed with it. Over all its a good saw, but the Blade guard came lose almost ended up in the saw blade. I am fortunate enough to smell aluminum from the back of the blade rubbing on the aluminum release in the guard. My brother and i took the top of the saw off to see whats going on. Theres 2 bolts that hold the guard onto the castiron motor mount. Come to find out the castiron were the bolt bolts into broke off, so it was held by one bolt we tried to loosen the secound bolt and the head broke of. Now i can no longer use a blade guard on my saw. If your thinking about getting a Powermatic table saw upgrade your fence to the higher end fence. Witch if i remember correctly is around $250 the one that comes with the saw is crap have had nothing but trouble with it. Good luck to all wood workers out there! God bless.



  38. Joe Martines on June 21, 2022 at 10:03 pm

    I inherited my father’s table saw but I think I’m going to sell it and buy a sliding mitre saw… a friend of mine lost several fingers using a table saw and he had decades of experience…



  39. David on June 21, 2022 at 10:03 pm

    I use the blade guard and splitter every cut except cuts that are not all the way through.

    It seems like there is a table saw culture that encourages removing safety equipment. No one takes the guard off their circular saw or miter saw. I have seen circular a saw guard removed once and pinned back a few times but it is not common.

    I have a photo of my Grandfather using the blade guard and splitter on his table saw in 1949. My Dad never used them on the same saw. I have the saw under a table but no splitter or guard (I use a 10” saw I have).



  40. Whymeme on June 21, 2022 at 10:05 pm

    All of the injuries my friend has seen was without blade guards



  41. Jason Y on June 21, 2022 at 10:07 pm

    Made for idiots



  42. eklectiktoni on June 21, 2022 at 10:07 pm

    I appreciate this and I think you do a good job demonstrating safety. It’s actually one of the reasons I did subscribe to your channel. I’ve seen some other woodworking channels that don’t even use push sticks at the saw or do really careless things like dance around with a running circular saw in their hands.



  43. Nate C on June 21, 2022 at 10:10 pm

    I have an old craftsman table saw bought used, it didn’t have a riving knife, can one be added?



  44. Spectt on June 21, 2022 at 10:11 pm

    I bought my saw used. It didn’t even come with a gaurd or "riving knife?"



  45. How I Do Things DIY on June 21, 2022 at 10:11 pm

    I love that you made this video. I get called out on this all the time on my channel and I never have a good answer. Thanks Steve!



  46. Ping Pong on June 21, 2022 at 10:13 pm

    Hearing about other people’s scary stories has forced me to become SUPER tentative – much like my driving after watching crash video… Always be afraid of the blade.



  47. Dejan Kasic on June 21, 2022 at 10:13 pm

    I am cabinetmaker for 34 years.This type of "Blade guard"is very inconvenient. I find it even unsafe in many applications,especially if you are trying to make narrow curs close to the fence. That is the reason why people are removing it. Push stick easily got jammed between the fence and guard making narrow cuts dangerous and impossible . If I can’t see the blade and work peace because of the bulky inconvenient guard I consider that kind of work unsafe. There are some "slim" more professional types of guards witch I prefer. RIVING KNIFE IS VERY IMPORTANT and should be behind the blade ALL THE TIME. There is no excuse for not using riving knife witch could be set step lower than the blade.That way is also possible to make groves without removing riving knife.



  48. Doug Prentice on June 21, 2022 at 10:14 pm

    I don’t use a bade guard because it interferes with gripper and push sticks.



  49. TheLongjohntim on June 21, 2022 at 10:14 pm

    05/07/2022 I was using my table saw without my blade guard I cut my middle finger right down the middle I will be of work for about two weeks. Learned my lesson. Those guards are on there for a reason. I was reaching for another piece of wood to cut when my finger made contact with the blade if the blade guard would have been on my saw my fingers would have made contact with it and not the blade! Luckily I’ll keep my finger(s) another 1/4 inch and I would have lost my middle finger. Guess I got lucky.



  50. Johnny Bravado on June 21, 2022 at 10:15 pm

    Yeah I need kerf put on…