I have a friend that is looking into buying a Saw Stop table saw. He is curious if the safety precaution on the saw still work when the saw is off but is still spinning. I told him to email the manufacturer and then I thought that I would ask here in case someone knew. Is there a brake on the blade or does the stop function still enabled even when the power is off. I would think that this would cause some problem because if you touched the blade at all the safety device would fire.
get back to me.
Replies
I don't know if your friend has been on their website but IIRC, the stopping time is shown there and it's faster than most- only a few seconds.
I recently visited their website and I'm 95% sure that the safety feature is still active during the time period in which the blade is spinning to a stop.
As you stated earlier, a simple email to the manufacturer is the best idea.
The safety system on the Saw Stop functions until the blade comes to a complete stop and then for approximately a half second more, after that the blade can be touched without triggering the cartridge. There is no brake, but the saw seems to stop a bit faster than most saws.
John White, Shop Manager, Fine Woodworking Magazine
Edited 6/13/2006 1:32 pm ET by JohnWW
Edited 6/14/2006 9:31 am ET by JohnWW
According to the review in #184, "the Sawstop saw features a remarkable safety device, a brake that stops a spinning blade within 3 to 5 miliseconds when the blade touches skin"“The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” – Albert Einstein
We are talking about two different types of brakes here. The brake I was saying the Saw Stop lacked was a device to bring the blade to a quick stop anytime the power was switched off by simply hitting the stop switch.
A number of European saws have this feature and it does add some safety in that some unbraked saws can coast for several seconds after the power is switched off, enough time to get hurt if you touch the blade before it comes to a complete halt.
The brake on the Saw Stop that stops the blade in milliseconds is the "emergency" brake and in the process of engaging it destroys the replaceable safety cartridge and ruins the blade, but, since it will prevent amputating a finger, the trade off is worth it.
John White
>> and I'm 95% sure
You can be 100% sure.Howie.........
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