kodama22

I have been a professional woodworker for 35 years, 30 in my own studio. I have gotten more and more safety conscious over the years and have all ten fingers. I began using an overarm Exaktor guard on my Unisaw 8 or 10 years ago for the dust collection and the safety. Before that I never used a guard or worked in a shop which used guards. Even the Exaktor takes some getting used to but once you do it seems quite odd not to have it available.

Last year I replaced my trusty 30 year old Unisaw with a Sawstop and also put an Exaktor on it. I also use the riving knife.

Every tablesaw accident I have ever seen or been around has been the result of doing something stupid or being inattentive. That being said, you're still left with an injury. All of the "the best safety device is your brain" crowd can still find themselves with an injury, How much is that worth? I decided that the cost of the Sawstop and Exaktor was money well spent. Of the injuries described, who wouldn't trade $4000 or so to not have the injury.

I don't want the government in my shop either but who else can address those issues? The riving knife is a relatively inexpensive and effective safety device which I am glad is now required. Go look at 100 year old bandsaws and tablesaws without any guards whatsoever and then bitch about the relatively minimum safety requirements on tools.