New Bosch/DeWalt Table Saw Guards

The blade guards that come with table saws are junk and everyone knows it. They are awkward, a drag to remove for rabbets, and they prohibit the rip fence from getting anywhere close to the blade. No one we know uses theirs, but it doesn't take a genius to realize that using a table saw without a blade guard increases your chances of becoming known as "Old Eight Fingers."

So what are we supposed to do? Not everyone can just run out and drop $1500 on the new SawStop jobsite saw, the most freakishly safe saw on the planet (see our buddies over at Toologics for more info on that one). What about those of us who can barely scratch together $500 For a Bosch or DeWalt? Well, we were reading the latest Fine Homebuilding and we see the answer in the future.

Carpenter Gary Katz wrote in the magazine that Bosch, DeWalt, Makita, and Porter-Cable are creating a new blade guard and that they are doing it somewhat in conjunction. Apparently, the Bosch blade guard is already available and the DeWalt will be out sometime next year. Katz has a full review of the Bosch version on his site. From the review (and the great accompanying photos), it looks like just about all of the traditional guard problems are solved.

It looks like the guard is being sold with some of the new Bosch table saws but we couldn't find it as a stand alone item, which makes us worry that it might not be able to be retrofitted to older saws.

Read the review here.

September 25, 2007

New Bosch/DeWalt Table Saw Guards