charlie b said:

A splitter, as well as a riving knife, is intended to do one
thing - keep the kerf from closing and making contact
with the teeth at the back of the blade coming up out
of the saw table top, being lifted up off the table and
into the teeth near the top of the blade. From there
the speed of the part goes to about 150 mph and the
direction can be anyone's guess.

It is my understanding that many European machines come with riving
knives that raise and lower with the blade to retain optimal spacing.
The guard is a separate entity. But the difference in name is more of
a regional 'he says - she says' difference than a physical one.

Correct?

As for "anti-kickback pawls" they're typically
more of a PITA and less of a "safety device".

And if the pawls are not sharp enough to dig into the wood, or strong
enough to restrain the piece against 3 HP of throbbing Baldor, they
are useless anyway.

(for the regulars, sorry about posting the
url again - but if it prevents one injury ...)

More thorough information on these facts should probably be given
emphasis in a new machine's instruction manual, rather than on some
outdated, dysfunctional OEM splitter. It's Christmas time - lot's of
new table saws and lots of new owners... We don't want to kill off
any of next years tool shoppers...

Simply meeting some UL/CSA standard as to the existence of a blade
guard doesn't equate into a useable OR well designed feature. What it
DOES indicate is that MFG's designed some minimal, crappy contraption
that was needed to barely pass spec 20 years ago, and hasn't put one
iota of though into it since.

Let's take a poll - how many people here like OR use the guard that
with their saw? A show of hands, please...


Greg G.