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7
5.0 Glossary
Arbor: Metal shaft that connects the drive
mechanism to the blade.
Bevel Edge Cut: Tilt of the saw arbor and blade
between 0° and 45° to perform an angled cutting
operation.
Blade Guard: Mechanism mounted over the
saw blade to prevent accidental contact with the
cutting edge.
Crosscut: Sawing operation in which the miter
gauge is used to cut across the grain of the
workpiece.
Dado Blade: Blade(s) used for cutting grooves
and rabbets. A stacked dado set can be used for
wider grooves.
Dado Cut: Flat bottomed groove in the face of
the workpiece made with a dado blade.
Featherboard: Device used to keep a board
against the rip fence or table that allows the
operator to keep hands away from saw blade.
Freehand: Moving the workpiece into the blade
using only the hands, without a fixed positioning
device. (This is a dangerous, unacceptable
procedure – always use appropriate devices to
feed the workpiece though the saw blade during
cutting operations.)
Kerf: The resulting cut or gap made by a saw
blade.
Kickback: An event in which the workpiece is
lifted up and thrown back toward an operator,
caused when a workpiece binds on the saw
blade or between the blade and rip fence (or
other fixed object). To minimize or prevent injury
from kickbacks, see the Operations section.
Miter Gauge: A component that controls the
workpiece movement while performing a
crosscut of various angles.
Non-Through Cut: A sawing operation that
requires the removal of the blade guard and
standard riving knife, resulting in a cut that does
not protrude through the top of the workpiece
(includes Dado and rabbet cuts).
The blade guard and riving knife must be re-
installed after performing a non-through cut to
avoid accidental contact with the saw blade
during operation.
Parallel: Position of the rip fence equal in
distance at every point to the side face of the
saw blade.
Perpendicular: 90° (right angle) intersection or
position of the vertical and horizontal planes
such as the position of the saw blade (vertical)
to the table surface (horizontal).
Push Board/Push Stick: An instrument used to
safely push the workpiece through the cutting
operation.
Rabbet: A cutting operation that creates an
L-shaped channel along the edge of the board.
Rip Cut: A cut made along the grain of the
workpiece.
Riving Knife: A metal plate fixed relative to the
blade, which moves with the blade as cutting
depth is adjusted. Thus, it maintains not only the
kerf opening in the workpiece, but also the knife-
to-blade distance. A low-profile riving knife is
used when performing a non-through cut
because it sits lower than the top edge of the
blade.
Splitter (Spreader): A stationary metal plate to
which the blade guard is attached that maintains
the kerf opening in the workpiece when
performing a cutting operation.
Standard Kerf: 1/8" gap made with a standard
blade.
Straightedge: A tool used to check that a
surface is flat or parallel.
Through Sawing: A sawing operation in which
the workpiece thickness is completely sawn
through. Proper blade height usually allows 1/8"
of the top of blade to extend above the wood
stock. Keep the blade guard down, the anti-
kickback pawls down, and the riving knife in
place over the blade.