The Saw Stop – an interesting new advance in safety technology – is a very impressive thing to see. Basically, the saw can sense the difference in electrical conductivity of the materials it is cutting. If the blade is only cutting wood, the saw just hums away. But, if the blade contacts your finger, it triggers a safety mechanism that stops the blade almost immediately and drops it below the table top. Instead of an amputation, you’ll only have a small scrape where the saw’s teeth touched your skin.
Regardless of how you feel about the saw or safety equipment on your machinery, seeing this in action on high-speed film is very impressive. The Discovery Channel show Time Warp trained its high-speed cameras on the saw and triggered the guard. The video shows the dramatic results of what forces are involved in stopping a common 10″ diameter table saw blade.
Of course, you must remember to never, never, NEVER try this at home! Saw Stop is – and should always be considered – a last line of defense against injury. There is no substitute for following sound safety practices when using a table saw.
So, you’re close to graduating high school, and you still haven’t decided what to do with your life? I mean, I’m sure you are watching those Europeans fighting that war, and the Japanese Empire making trouble over in the Orient. And, I know the economy has been terrible as of late. But President Roosevelt says that the future looks bright for us.
I hear you are pretty good with your hands, and you have a good grasp of mathematics. Since you are having trouble deciding what vocation you want to follow, I’ll thread this film into the projector and we can talk about what kind of job you want after you watch it.
By watching paper-thin curls of wood coming out of a plane… OK, I am. This video is a 2005 Nishiyama Ookananna planing demo that shows just how perfect the curls of wood can be coming out of a Japanese plane…
It’s just poetry in motion… Something I hope to aspire to accomplish sometime in my woodworking career.
So, who is Frank Klausz? Only about one of the most accomplished woodworkers in the world. Frank has written a number of books and produced videos about how to cut dovetails and do other precision woodworking.
In this video, done by Popular Woodworking’s Glen Huey, see how this Hungarian-born craftsman can cut dovetails in less time than it can take to microwave a frozen dinner…
Wood Magazine’s editor Jeff Mertz is back with an interesting step-by-step procedure to put a razor sharp edge on his chisels. Sit back, relax and see how you can turn your chisels from paint scrapers to precision tools that are a pleasure to use.
This is an interesting video by Kevin Boyle of Wood Magazine. If you ever wanted to add some curve and grace to a piece you are building, here’s the how-to for adding some flair to your next project. Makes you want to go out and use the band saw, doesn’t it?
