If you are a hobbyist and work in your own shop alone, then you aren’t governed by OSHA mandates.
We are the leading aftermarket OSHA compliant table saw blade guard for both personal and business use — here’s why!
The rules and regulations as written by OSHA leave at least a little to interpretation, but to answer the question — yes, the SharkGuard can be OSHA compliant! If you’re a business, you must purchase the three main parts of our system to achieve this.
The three main parts of the system are the blade cover, the anti-kickback pawls and the splitter or riving knife. A business owner would have to have the pawls included in the package to comply with OSHA, whereas a hobbyist has a choice to include or omit them. It’s a personal choice for the hobbyist. They can be very beneficial on saws with splitters though and that is the reason they exist. They can be an aid to your safety in this case.
From the OSHA Site…
1910.213(c)(1)
https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.213
Each circular hand-fed ripsaw shall be guarded by a hood which shall completely enclose that portion of the saw above the table and that portion of the saw above the material being cut. The hood and mounting shall be arranged so that the hood will automatically adjust itself to the thickness of and remain in contact with the material being cut but it shall not offer any considerable resistance to insertion of material to saw or to passage of the material being sawed. The hood shall be made of adequate strength to resist blows and strains incidental to reasonable operation, adjusting, and handling, and shall be so designed as to protect the operator from flying splinters and broken saw teeth. It shall be made of material that is soft enough so that it will be unlikely to cause tooth breakage. The hood shall be so mounted as to insure that its operation will be positive, reliable, and in true alignment with the saw; and the mounting shall be adequate in strength to resist any reasonable side thrust or other force tending to throw it out of line.
1910.213(c)(2)
Each hand-fed circular ripsaw shall be furnished with a spreader to prevent material from squeezing the saw or being thrown back on the operator. The spreader shall be made of hard tempered steel, or its equivalent, and shall be thinner than the saw kerf. It shall be of sufficient width to provide adequate stiffness or rigidity to resist any reasonable side thrust or blow tending to bend or throw it out of position. The spreader shall be attached so that it will remain in true alignment with the saw even when either the saw or table is tilted. The provision of a spreader in connection with grooving, dadoing, or rabbeting is not required. On the completion of such operations, the spreader shall be immediately replaced.
1910.213(c)(3)
Each hand-fed circular ripsaw shall be provided with nonkickback fingers or dogs so located as to oppose the thrust or tendency of the saw to pick up the material or to throw it back toward the operator. They shall be designed to provide adequate holding power for all the thicknesses of materials being cut.
1910.213(d)
Hand-fed crosscut table saws.
1910.213(d)(1)
Each circular crosscut table saw shall be guarded by a hood which shall meet all the requirements of paragraph (c)(1) of this section for hoods for circular ripsaws.
1910.213(e)
Circular resaws.
1910.213(e)(1)
Each circular resaw shall be guarded by a hood or shield of metal above the saw. This hood or shield shall be so designed as to guard against danger from flying splinters or broken saw teeth.
1910.213(e)(2)
Each circular resaw (other than self-feed saws with a roller or wheel at back of the saw) shall be provided with a spreader fastened securely behind the saw. The spreader shall be slightly thinner than the saw kerf and slightly thicker than the saw disk.