TomW
New member
You guys are all "right on." Let me respond to several questions and comments. I mention earlier (I think) that I am a hobbyist, and have been one for many years. If it has a motor and makes sawdust, I have at least one of them. Like most everyone, I have had my share of close calls, and have tried to learn from them. I must also admit the guard that came on this old Sears saw is long gone. I do a great deal of cuts that would not be possible with that on the saw. That said, would it be easy to take off and put back on - much easier than me doing things now! Would I do it - absolutely - I would.
Here is how this happened. I was squaring up the edge of a 4-foot 2 x 4 - ripping iit to 2-3/4 inches. About a week prior, I installed a new Vega fence, which meant I had to relocate the on/off switch. After pushing this through the saw, I was bringing my right hand back and took my eye off the blade to find the switch. I think I brought my hand down a little to low and it caught the back side of the blade spinning toward me. What I thought was a chunk of wood flying past my ear was not a piece of wood at all. Enough said about that! I noticed what had happened when I was looking for the switch, and only then realized I had cut off the end of my right hand thumb between the joint and the nail. I consider myself extremely lucky to have only had part of my thumb cut. This could have been much, much worse!
I believe two things would have prevented this (aside from the guard being removed). First, the anti-kick back piece that my saw never had, but the SawStop unit does have perhaps would have deflected my thumb up and perhaps into only the top portion of the spinning blade; which may have resulted in a cut - perhaps serious, but perhaps not a total "removal" of that portion of my thumb. Second, the instant stopping of the blade (.004 seconds) may have reduced the seriousnessn of the cut.
I agree with those who think that being cumbersom to use may result in the total removal of any safety devices. Unfortunately, that is only toooo true! In my case, perhaps not, but then, I know me, too well.
Later this afternoon, I will be visiting my doctor hopefully to get this cast/bandage off my hand. I am also hopeful my thumb is healing properly. In any event, there will be numerous things that will be a challenge to do at least initially, but like all of you, I can also get creative when I need to. (Isn't that how you spell woodworking anyway?).
I want to also mention the two reasons I have been involved in this messageboard. 1) In the event my experiences may influence someone in this hobby to be just a little more careful - never taking their eye off a spinning or moving blade for ANY reason - guard or no guard. I hope if even one of you learns from my experience, then I can honestly say this happened for a reason, and 2) to learn more about this saw from anyone that may have used or seen this in action. The website for the manufacturer is geetech.com. It appears to be a great 2-belt design.
I also want to mention how appreciative I am of your kind thoughts and comments toward me since this happened two weeks ago this morning. I will let you all know how the meeting this afternoon with the doctor goes.
For those of you interested in seeing one of my projects (and the things I like to do the most), log onto www.workbenchmagazine.com. Once there, click on the "Craftsmanship Articles" tab under the ONLINE FEATURES box in the middle of the site. Once there, scroll down to the "Building in Minature" link. There you will see my love with building models from wood - in this case maple. These are 1931 Chevrolet 5-window coupes - that are completely detailed right down to the wooden spark plug wires. I love to build detailed models. One other model featured with the cars in the August 2004 issues, was the working auto transport. Enough about my love for models - most of you have a picture on your comments here - since I am not smart enough to know how to do this, this is the next best thing.
Updates to follow.
Here is how this happened. I was squaring up the edge of a 4-foot 2 x 4 - ripping iit to 2-3/4 inches. About a week prior, I installed a new Vega fence, which meant I had to relocate the on/off switch. After pushing this through the saw, I was bringing my right hand back and took my eye off the blade to find the switch. I think I brought my hand down a little to low and it caught the back side of the blade spinning toward me. What I thought was a chunk of wood flying past my ear was not a piece of wood at all. Enough said about that! I noticed what had happened when I was looking for the switch, and only then realized I had cut off the end of my right hand thumb between the joint and the nail. I consider myself extremely lucky to have only had part of my thumb cut. This could have been much, much worse!
I believe two things would have prevented this (aside from the guard being removed). First, the anti-kick back piece that my saw never had, but the SawStop unit does have perhaps would have deflected my thumb up and perhaps into only the top portion of the spinning blade; which may have resulted in a cut - perhaps serious, but perhaps not a total "removal" of that portion of my thumb. Second, the instant stopping of the blade (.004 seconds) may have reduced the seriousnessn of the cut.
I agree with those who think that being cumbersom to use may result in the total removal of any safety devices. Unfortunately, that is only toooo true! In my case, perhaps not, but then, I know me, too well.
Later this afternoon, I will be visiting my doctor hopefully to get this cast/bandage off my hand. I am also hopeful my thumb is healing properly. In any event, there will be numerous things that will be a challenge to do at least initially, but like all of you, I can also get creative when I need to. (Isn't that how you spell woodworking anyway?).
I want to also mention the two reasons I have been involved in this messageboard. 1) In the event my experiences may influence someone in this hobby to be just a little more careful - never taking their eye off a spinning or moving blade for ANY reason - guard or no guard. I hope if even one of you learns from my experience, then I can honestly say this happened for a reason, and 2) to learn more about this saw from anyone that may have used or seen this in action. The website for the manufacturer is geetech.com. It appears to be a great 2-belt design.
I also want to mention how appreciative I am of your kind thoughts and comments toward me since this happened two weeks ago this morning. I will let you all know how the meeting this afternoon with the doctor goes.
For those of you interested in seeing one of my projects (and the things I like to do the most), log onto www.workbenchmagazine.com. Once there, click on the "Craftsmanship Articles" tab under the ONLINE FEATURES box in the middle of the site. Once there, scroll down to the "Building in Minature" link. There you will see my love with building models from wood - in this case maple. These are 1931 Chevrolet 5-window coupes - that are completely detailed right down to the wooden spark plug wires. I love to build detailed models. One other model featured with the cars in the August 2004 issues, was the working auto transport. Enough about my love for models - most of you have a picture on your comments here - since I am not smart enough to know how to do this, this is the next best thing.
Updates to follow.
