To check the blade's alignment to the miter slot, place a straightedge next to the blade and check the distance to the slot at each end of the blade.

Make the fence parallel to the blade. Lay a straightedge tight to the blade and adjust the fence until it is parallel.

Push sticks are essential to safe operator practice.

Other safety recommendations • Wear ear protection to guard your hearing. • Wear safety goggles to protect your eyes. • Use a dust-collection system or wear a face mask to avoid breathing dust.

A table saw is a valuable and versatile tool. It can rip solid wood, crosscut solid wood, cut manufactured sheet material (MSM) and shape solid wood and MSM. But with its rapidly turning blade propelled by a powerful motor, it also poses dangers, ranging from potential injuries to hands and fingers that make contact with the blade to the possibility of kickback, which can turn a workpiece into a missile.

This lesson will show how to prevent kickback by proper machine setup and guarding the blade with a splitter and how to protect hands and fingers from contact with the saw blade by guarding the blade with a top guard and using push sticks.

Proper Alignment Is Key

The miter fence runs in one of two slots milled in the table. You can’t make an accurate crosscut unless the slots are parallel to the blade and at right angles to the arbor (on which the blade is mounted). But take note: Before starting any check involving the blade, unplug the machine from the power source. It’s unsafe to rely on the on-off switch.

Tighten a blade onto the arbor and raise it to full height. Next, lay a straightedge tight to the blade, avoiding contact with the teeth. You may have to lower the blade slightly to accomplish this. Using a vernier caliper, check the distance from the straightedge to the slot edge at each end of the slot. If the blade and slots aren’t aligned, check the factory manual to see what procedure is required to fine-tune your saw.

Next, you need to make sure the table saw’s fence is parallel to the blade. Some woodworkers advocate “toe-out,” which means setting the gap between blade and fence wider at the back edge of the blade than at the front edge. Although alleged to reduce kickback, toe-out in fact increases the risk because it allows the back edge of the blade to contact the falling board if you don’t use a splitter. Other results of toe-out are a ragged sawn surface and an inaccurate cut. It’s best to set the fence parallel to the blade.

A simple way to do this is to lay a straightedge tight to the blade and adjust the fence until it is parallel. Again, you’ll need to consult the factory manual for your saw to determine how to make this adjustment.

Check the Table Insert

The table has an opening fitted with a slotted insert through which the blade rises and falls and the splitter projects. The insert must fit snugly in the opening, sit level with the table surface and resist deflection. Check for level with a straightedge and, if necessary, adjust the four screws that sit on the lugs cast into the opening.

Use a Splitter, Top Guard

The best protection against kickback is the splitter. For kickback to occur, the wood must distort so that it is thrust into the rear blade teeth as they rise from the saw table. The blade will lift the wood from the table, carry it to the top of the arc of the blade, and kick it back at the operator. Kickback cannot happen, however, if the back edge of the blade is guarded by the splitter.

The best splitters are the thickness of the saw kerf, follow the arc of the blade and are part of the rise and fall mechanism, so they move up and down with the blade. When the splitter is mounted separately, the distance between it and the blade increases as the blade is lowered — not an ideal arrangement. And on many machines the splitter and the top guard are part of the same assembly — a clumsy design with unsatisfactory performance, leading many woodworkers remove them.

But a splitter is a crucial safety device, so if the one that came with your saw is a nuisance, replace it, either by making your own or buying an aftermarket model. Some aftermarket splitters include spring-loaded anti-kickback pawls that press on the surface of the wood as it passes through the blade. Understand, though, that with pawls, you can’t withdraw the workpiece once it has started to pass under them. The pawls may also be susceptible to getting caught on a knot, crack or narrow falling board.

The top guard should cover the blade but allow the operator a clear view of and easy access to the work. It must be robust enough not to deflect or break under pressure or impact. And it must allow the use of push sticks.

Push Sticks Protect Fingers

A push stick is an extension of your hand that allows you to both advance the work and hold it down while keeping your hands 6 to 9" away from the blade. You should always have a pair ready to use on the saw table. Whenever you feel the urge to touch a piece of scrap that’s anywhere near the blade, train yourself to pick up a push stick instead. Keep them simple because they are sure to get chewed up and need replacement.