Anti-kickback pawls

[auspete]

I did the 'safe' thing the other day after a small piece of pine off-cut went wizzing past me, and installed the blade guard, riving knives and anti-kickback pawls onto my BT3.
However,confused could someone please tell me what i'm doing wrong.
Every time I adjust the blade height I have to reach back and lift the anti-kickback pawls so their teeth do not dig into the plastic zero clearance insert.
Surely this is not the norm ... so what am I doing incorrectly?

[Ken Weaver]

The pawls are the worst designed piece on the BT. Those who keep them, as opposed to getting a Shark Guard which is the best solution, many will dull them a little to ease the digging in. You don't want to do that too much though. The riving knife is the most important part of the system though.

You really ought to check out the Shark, its saved my butt and will be the best money you spend.

[Pappy]

You're not doing anything wrong. The way the knife/pawls are designed this is normal. This is the reason so many folks have either removed the pawls from the stock set up or switched to the Shark guard.

[auspete]

Thanks for your help guys, valuable, as usual

[jhart]

Before I got my Sharkguard, I put some of that liquid tape on the ends of the prawls and that worked pretty well.

[auspete]

Liquid tape?

[LCHIEN]

The pawls are overdesigned in that they dig into the plate and wood items alike. The wood being damaged (scratched) is bad.
Some people as a temporary sol'n have put masking tape over the teeth.

Good luck.

[LinuxRandal]

Liquid tape?

It is liquid electrical tape. You'll find it with wire and crimp on ends and such. Good for those area's you cant pull the wires out, or get your hands in far enough to wrap (like under dashes, PITA).

Can you tell, I have had experience with it.

[Garasaki]

Good discussion...although I imagine a topic that's been talked to death here in the past.

I noticed that the prawls were making marks on the pieces I was cutting. I'll have to do the masking tape trick.

[mikeg]

This is a good discussion, I was cussing them the other day as I was sanding the scratches out of several pieces of wood. I think the masking tape may be the way to go until I get a Shark Guard.

mikeg

[gimpy]

Hope you don't mind the hijack. When ordering the Shark Guard, is it advisable to also order the pawls (sold separately). Do the S.G. pawls also stick as the ones mentioned above do?

The BT's pawls stick into my insert, also.

Frank

[LCHIEN]

Hope you don't mind the hijack. When ordering the Shark Guard, is it advisable to also order the pawls (sold separately). Do the S.G. pawls also stick as the ones mentioned above do?

The BT's pawls stick into my insert, also.

Frank

i don't have pawls in my shark guard.
Its a personal thing, I feel between experience and the riving knife, I have sufficient protection.

[drumpriest]

Shark guard, the way to go. I like Loring don't have pawls on my shark. The two most important things are that the rip fence be properly aligned, and there is the riving knife.

[steve-norrell]

I used the Ryobi pawls until I got the SG and suffered the usual scratched wood, scratched throat plate, and cut fingers until I ground down the points on the pawls. The best thing I did was to invest in a Shark Guard.

I have had my Shark Guard (without pawls) for about two months and I can't imagine being without it. I would not consider using the saw without the riving knife. The SG does a pretty good job of preventing kickback but it is also important to follow the safety rules and to carefully align the rip fence.

Good luck.

[Stytooner]

Thanks, Guys.
The pawls do serve a real function, especially on saws that only use splitters. As Loring mentioned, they probably are over designed on the BT. These , while functional, can create other problems or moments of inattention or frustration. I don't think it's the sharpness that causes this, but rather the spring loading. This coupled with the fact that you can't easily remove the guard to operate or lift the pawls is the cause of this frustration.
The Shark's pawls were actually designed to work on my splitter only models. They do, however, also fit the RK models just as well. The pawls have been redesigned from those you see on the site right now. They have sort of a lever protruding forward to help lift them. There are no springs on the shark pawls so they can actually be rotated fully forward if needed for raising and lowering the blade.
On the shark with a RK, I think the top clamp is much more useful as an aid to prevent lift and subsequent kickback. The RK is also helping with this. The pawls don't actually help to prevent lifting, but help to prevent stock from coming back out the way it came. They do control the feed direction. At this point it's a personal choice. I like to be able to pull the stock back out of a cut if I change my mind or I am doing a stop cut or cutting a quick thin piece from each end. Probably a left over habit from the days when I used no guard at all.
If I was just starting in the WW hobby, I think I would want the pawls. They can help save your hide. On the shark, they are easily removed or installed.
As stated above, the stock pawls can be rendered less prickly in several ways. In some ways, they become less effective. It also has to do with the hardness of material being cut.
These are considered by many as a third line of defense.