[dyauspitr]

That’s terrible though. You can’t make knife manufacturers responsible for everything a knife does.

[bsder]

The difference between the accidental damage a knife can do versus what a circular saw can do is night and day. And I say this as someone who needed surgery after cutting through a tendon with a knife. :(

Old school radial saws, for example, basically don't exist anymore at the consumer level. They were simply too dangerous. Slider-type miter saws have almost completely replaced them.

Personally, I would even go so far as to suggest that weekend woodworkers should avoid even having a table saw, period.

The main problem with table saws is that they become a "do all" machine even for those kinds of actions that really shouldn't be done on it. You're already at the table saw, and it's often really convenient to just "sorta kinda" bodge something up on the table saw rather than doing the safe thing and changing the blade, putting together a real jig or using a completely different tool.

If you have a track saw or a cheap CNC instead, the danger level is way, way lower, and the result is probably a lot better.

[dsunds]

Radial arm saws vanished because they were a compromise solution that slider miters made inferior. They are pretty safe as the blade is constrained to travel along the arm for cross cuts and for rips is locked in place. The usual problem is simply stalling the saw. Rip cuts can definitely kick back if you don’t take the time to set them up right including the guard and anti kickback device. They can do it all, cross cut, compound miter, rip, dado. There were some sketchy shaping attachments I’d be hesitant to use. But the main problem is they are large as a big table saw and the changeover time. A table saw and sliding miter is the way to go now. But I still own a radial and if I had the space in my shop would set it up Norm Abram style.

[WillAdams]

Have you checked recent legal cases against gun manufacturers? Some are not too far removed from suing a battery manufacturer because someone took the acid from a battery and used it in an attack?

Traveled to New York City or the U.K. recently? Check your pocket for a locking blade, or an assisted opening knife before-hand.

[Spooky23]

The difference there is they funneled a lot of marketing dollars into pseudo education and astroturfing campaigns to create a sense of hysteria that the boogeyman was coming for the guns, specifically the now dizzying array of AR-15 derivatives and pistols.

That essentially contributed to a gun buying bubble and solider cosplay.

This

[bawolff]

I think the idea is that if someone advertizes their saw as safe, but it isn't, then there should be some liability. Like if you make a fake safety saw or imply its much more safe than it actually is you should get in trouble.

But surely there must be some middle ground between a company making a fake safety saw, and a good faith effort that isn't quite perfect.

[dyauspitr]

I don’t think any saw manufacturer says anything about their safety besides warning you about not using the riving knife and blade guard.

[krisoft]

We are getting confused here.

The claim was "The saw manufacturers all blew off SawStop because they were worried that they would now be liable for any injuries which still occurred."

Meaning that table saw manufacturers were worried if they implement SawStop like safety feature, and they advertise their saws as safer they become liable for times when the technology does not work.

So yes, you appear to be correct what saw manufacturers say about their safety now, but that's not the point we are discussing. The point is that if they add a SawStop like feature and advertise it then they would be talking about the safety of their saws.

[lazide]

People still try, and depending on the public’s mood sometimes it sticks.