Sacrificial Miter Saw Fence for Safety
Cutting small parts on a miter saw is dangerous. There’s typically a wide gap between the fence halves as well as in the throat plate. Without full support for the workpiece, offcuts can (and will) go airborne. Even worse, if the blade “grabs” the workpiece, pulling it into these gaps, it can take your fingers along with it. To solve this problem, I attach a sacrificial fence. I attach a piece of 1/4-in. plywood to a 1x board, screw the 1x board to the miter saw fence and cut a kerf into the assembly with the saw. This not only adds a great deal of safety, it also makes it super easy to make accurate cuts. Just mark the cut line on your workpiece and line it up with the kerf. – Brad Holden. These are the best sliding miter saws out there.
Safely Cut Thin Pieces with Your Miter Saw
When offcuts fall into the miter saw’s throat plate, they become projectiles. When the offcuts are actually the finished pieces – like these thin coasters – it’s not only dangerous it’s maddening! My solution is to place a couple layers of tape over the saw’s throatplate and cut a kerf. My parts no longer go airborne and it gives me a great place to mark cut lines. – Will Leighton
Exterior tape works best for this tip, here’s a link to our favorite tape!
