Careful with that table saw, Eugene.

[Denis]

Yesterday a good friend and a great guitar player sawed through most of his knuckle while using his table saw; the worst scenario for a guitar player.

Be careful out there!

[rahock]

A guitarist I jam with now and then had his left hand ring finger cut off at the first knuckle years ago in an accident. I think it gives him some advantage. He bends that finger less playing scales aand it appears to make chording easier. He is an excellant player and if you could see how smoothly his left hand works I think you would agree.

Disclaimer: DON'T TRY THS AT HOME KIDS, it can cause excessive bleeding, severe pain, outlandish cursing and even death .
Rick

[Pilgrim]

My dad used table saws safely for 60 years, then managed to trim about 1/8" off his right ring finger.  I think about that with every pass I make on a table saw.  The fact that I'm using his 1954 Shopsmith which pre-dates blade guards just reinforces my caution.

[gearHed289]

Call me a pussy, but I don't touch the table saw anymore. A couple years ago I got a kick-back that launched a jagged piece of 1/2'' birch plywood at me and gave me a stitches-requiring puncture wound about 2'' from my.... good parts. I'm kinda tall, so my "stuff" is just above the table height.  Now if I need something cut, I have one of the guys in the shop do it for me!

[Dave W]

Table saw kickback can easily be fatal. At a woodworking forum I occasionally visit, 3 or 4 years ago one of the members was critically injured when a kickback punctured his gut. Someone posted a video of a kickback that missed the operator (because he wasn't standing directly behind the piece) but penetrated the wall behind him.

Here's an example of the force.

[Granny Gremlin]

use push guides!

I just gave a set as a Christmas gift to my woodworking buddy who just got a wicked ass table saw he has been using to cut up old railway ties into smaller boards to make furniture.  I won't go near it when we're building speakers. 

[drbassman]

I got nailed with a kickback this summer.  Fortunately, the wood wasn't sharp, but it hit my left thumb at the lowest joint and now a I have a huge bump there.  Nothing broken, but I learned a good lesson!  Fortunately, it doesn't affect my bass playing.  I plan on doing more cutting with a new band saw and much less with the table saw,

[godofthunder]

 Table saws can be very dangerous. Read the manuals and follow safety protocols Never let something or someone distract you. While working at Raymour and Flanigan I begged them to institute safety training in the shop and testing for each machine, in particular the table saw. Non shop personal and contractors would come in and use it and they had no idea what they were doing. One contractor was pushing stock through the saw in his winter jacket, sleeves down, the cord from his hood hanging down and talking on the phone! Of course no safety glasses or hearing protection.  At another R&F location some poor bastered cut off four fingers. Then they came running to institute a safety program. Oy don't get me going.

[Dave W]

Push sticks and never stand directly behind the wood.

I have an old friend who has a complete shop with power tools and he is blind since birth. He's 72 and hasn't lost any fingers yet. If he can do it, we ought to be able to.

[Denis]

My table saw is a Craftsman, about a '53 or '58 or something. The guard is rudimentary at best and I'm REALLY careful with that thing.

[uwe]

Tony Iommi comes to mind.

I first thought this thread was about Scott who has a track record ... Given that the other God of Thunder was called Eugene too everything seemed to fit ...

I'm happy all 30 (hand)  digits of yours are still there, Scott!

[godofthunder]

 You and me both! Any time I get on the saw I I think about how much I like my fingers where they are and approach the saw with the clearest of heads and utmost respect.

Tony Iommi comes to mind.

I first thought this thread was about Scott who has a track record ... Given that the other God of Thunder was called Eugene too everything seemed to fit ...

I'm happy all 30 (hand)  digits of yours are still there, Scott!