3 ms·

I don't believe that is really true. Most woodworking stores pretty much only have Saw Stop in the stores. Sure, lots of people have the super cheap Dewalt's or

I don't believe that is really true. Most woodworking stores pretty much only have Saw Stop in the stores. Sure, lots of people have the super cheap Dewalt's or whatever from Home Depot, but Saw Stop sells a lot of table saws. I won't use anything else.

semi-extrinsic 8y ago
You literally can't buy a Saw Stop outside of the US. And even if you import one, after paying $$$ for the saw and $$ for shipping, you'd need to install a big hunking $$$ 220V-110V transformer in your shop. I've never seen one over here. The European philosophy seems to be that the Saw Stop isn't worth it, because if you get in a situation where it kicks in, it means you've done something stupid like not using a riving knife and not using a crosscut sled or other pushing device. I think also the fact that you don't get the system on other types of saws (band saw, mitre saw, circular saw, etc.) says something about the efficiacy.
- detaro 8y ago
  SawStop has stopped all competing attempts for patent violation, so I'm not sure it not being sold elsewhere is a clear sign it's not wanted.
  - semi-extrinsic 8y ago
    AFAICT SawStop's patents (seems to primarily hinge on US patents 7,895,927 and 8,011,279) are only valid in the US. Also, when Bosch tried their "Reaxx" branded competitor, it was only launched in the US. The official reply from Bosch when people asked on their forum about bringing the Reaxx to Europe was """ There are currently no plans to bring the Reaxx to the European market simply due to differences in health and safety regulations across the two continents. """ My reading of this is that as long as people in Europe follow local H&S regulations, this technology is redundant. And they're not going to sell tools with features that enable people to disregard H&S regs.
    - blattimwind 8y ago
      American-style table saws (that you see in literally every YouTube video involving wood) are fairly rare in professional woodshops in Europe. Almost every larger shop has a format / sliding table saw, which avoids several (but not all) "classes" of kickback and other safety risks in the first place. Even small shops often have scaled-down sliding table saws (which have been around for many decades, usually using round steel bars for guiding the table instead of the more complex double-roller designs used by Altendorf & Co.). A Sawstop-like system could still be a useful addition, though.
- jackhack 8y ago
  >I think also the fact that you don't get the system on other types of saws (band saw, mitre saw, circular saw, etc.) says something about the efficiacy. No, I don't think it says that at all, and you should reconsider your statement. I think it's a matter of geometry more than anything else. The technology works. People do stupid things all the time. Having a backup safety device is a good idea, not a poor one. Or would you argue that safety belts and fire extinguishers are also unnecessary for "responsible" people? What is in question, is the ability for an explosive block to stop a blade in single-digit milliseconds, before it can travel far enough to cut the user. On a spinning saw blade, firing an aluminum block into a spinning blade and dropping the assembly away from the user is a matter of geometry. How would this work on a band saw? If you can come up with a way, I believe a very lucrative patent is in your future. Same goes with the other saws you've mentioned.

semi-extrinsic 8y ago

You literally can't buy a Saw Stop outside of the US. And even if you import one, after paying $$$ for the saw and $$ for shipping, you'd need to install a big hunking $$$ 220V-110V transformer in your shop. I've never seen one over here. The European philosophy seems to be that the Saw Stop isn't worth it, because if you get in a situation where it kicks in, it means you've done something stupid like not using a riving knife and not using a crosscut sled or other pushing device. I think also the fact that you don't get the system on other types of saws (band saw, mitre saw, circular saw, etc.) says something about the efficiacy.

detaro 8y ago
SawStop has stopped all competing attempts for patent violation, so I'm not sure it not being sold elsewhere is a clear sign it's not wanted.
- semi-extrinsic 8y ago
  AFAICT SawStop's patents (seems to primarily hinge on US patents 7,895,927 and 8,011,279) are only valid in the US. Also, when Bosch tried their "Reaxx" branded competitor, it was only launched in the US. The official reply from Bosch when people asked on their forum about bringing the Reaxx to Europe was """ There are currently no plans to bring the Reaxx to the European market simply due to differences in health and safety regulations across the two continents. """ My reading of this is that as long as people in Europe follow local H&S regulations, this technology is redundant. And they're not going to sell tools with features that enable people to disregard H&S regs.
  - blattimwind 8y ago
    American-style table saws (that you see in literally every YouTube video involving wood) are fairly rare in professional woodshops in Europe. Almost every larger shop has a format / sliding table saw, which avoids several (but not all) "classes" of kickback and other safety risks in the first place. Even small shops often have scaled-down sliding table saws (which have been around for many decades, usually using round steel bars for guiding the table instead of the more complex double-roller designs used by Altendorf & Co.). A Sawstop-like system could still be a useful addition, though.
jackhack 8y ago
>I think also the fact that you don't get the system on other types of saws (band saw, mitre saw, circular saw, etc.) says something about the efficiacy. No, I don't think it says that at all, and you should reconsider your statement. I think it's a matter of geometry more than anything else. The technology works. People do stupid things all the time. Having a backup safety device is a good idea, not a poor one. Or would you argue that safety belts and fire extinguishers are also unnecessary for "responsible" people? What is in question, is the ability for an explosive block to stop a blade in single-digit milliseconds, before it can travel far enough to cut the user. On a spinning saw blade, firing an aluminum block into a spinning blade and dropping the assembly away from the user is a matter of geometry. How would this work on a band saw? If you can come up with a way, I believe a very lucrative patent is in your future. Same goes with the other saws you've mentioned.