I am going to "dredge up an old thread" because it's so difficult to find good information about radial arm saws. A great deal of information is wrong, or misleading. Even the wood working forums have very dogmatic posts about them, which stick to the old narratives, and aren't based on facts. I own 7 radial arm saws, and I have been studying them daily for 6 months. I bought 7 radial arm saws, to try to get to the bottom of all "rumors" and "myths" about radial arm saws. The biggest myth of all, one that is totally wrong, is that "you should not rip boards" on a RAS because it's "more dangerous than crosscutting." In fact, the opposite is true! I am now using my 1978 Craftsman aluminum radial arm saw for daily use. It's a 10" blade, 10 amp 120 volt saw, model 113-1977. The saw cuts so accurately, it's astonishing. This is considered a "cheap" saw. But in reality it's an extremely good design with almost no flaws. These saws are far better than their reputation would suggest. Some things I've learned about Radial Arm Saws: -The bad reputation of radial arm saws is due to user error, and myths being spread about them on the internet. -Radial arm saws require advanced machine and tool knowledge. They are not a "plug and play" fixed tool, with fixed settings. -Once a radial arm saw is adjusted they are absolutely dead accurate in both crosscuts and rip cuts. -They are not dangerous to use for rip cutting, if done properly. The stories you hear about "bad kickbacks" are likely always the result of improper operation. -In actuality, cross cutting is by far the most dangerous operation on a radial arm saw. Because the blade carriage moves freely on ball bearings, and you can pull the spinning blade towards you at any time, with barely any force required. -I've never found any stories of anyone losing a finger from rip cutting on a RAS. However, there are many stories of people losing a finger while doing a crosscut, while pulling the blade towards their body. These stories were people who had limited experience. -Obviously, pulling a spinning blade towards you, while doing a crosscut, is extremely dangerous. Ripping a board does not require moving the blade, and so the blade cannot "accidentally" come towards your body. This makes rip cutting inherently safer. -A table saw is more dangerous than a radial arm saw, for ripping boards. Because most table saws are used with the blade entirely exposed, with no blade guard and no anti-kickback pawls. A radial arm saw is always used with the blade guard and anti-kickback pawls installed. -My "cheap" 1978 Craftsman saw does beautiful rip cuts. The cuts are dead accurate, without a single blade mark, and no burning. -Using a push stick, and a push block for rip cuts and for holding small parts during crosscutting. Never put your hand near the blade, or in the path of the blade. -You can just as easily "push" a radial arm saw into the wood. The wood will not go flying, unless you are cutting unsafe, round shaped or warped material. Hold the wood down firmly or clamp it down. -A radial arm saw is so quiet, you can run it all day without hearing protection. It's literally half as loud as a Skillsaw! This is because there is no gearbox (worm gears) in a radial arm saw. They have a direct drive motor, and so they are extremely quiet. The dogmatic rumors about radial arm saws have ruined some of the public perception of them. The stories of them being dangerous for "rip cutting" are entirely unfounded, because most of the stories of bad amputations on radial arm saws are from "crosscutting" not ripping. Yes, rip cutting can be extremely dangerous, but not more dangerous than using a table saw. A table saw is the most dangerous saw in existence, and causes more amputations than any other saw (in my opinion). Table saws are used without a blade guard, and one wrong move or a slip, can allow your hand to go straight into the blade. The blade also tries to "twist" the wood out of your hand, which inadvertently draws your hand straight into the spinning blade. A properly set radial arm saw cannot "twist" the wood during a kickback, because the wood cannot "climb" up onto the outside edge of the blade. The design of a table saw is extremely dangerous, although people rarely talk about how you shouldn't use one. I'm posting this to try to dispel some of the incorrect dogma which is focused on the radial arm saw, for no good reason. In reality, all circular saws are extremely dangerous. As a result of all the misinformation and vague rumors about radial arm saws, I fully believe that radial arm saws are due for a resurgence in popularity. I am writing this post on March 5, 2022. At the time of this posting, you can purchase a good used radial arm saw for $40 to $75. Many good clean radial arm saws are being left out in the rain, and so in the future, a good clean saw will be impossible to find. At the time of this writing, there is an incorrect belief that a sliding miter saw is the "same" as a radial arm saw, but better. But in reality a radial arm saw has a universal motor that can be used as a grinder, a buffer, a sander, a metal cutter, a wood cutter, a dado cutter, a wire brush tool, a drill, a mill, and a planer. Anything you can "imagine," you can probably do with a radial arm saw. That's why they are due for a huge renaissance in popularity. If you buy a radial arm saw, forget all the negative stuff that is said about them. Read the owners manual, follow the instructions and make the correct adjustments. Then you'll have an amazing tool that can be used for hundreds of wood working operations. My favorite tool is the radial arm saw, which is why I now own 7 of them. This post is only my non-expert opinion. Please do your own research, use your own discretion and caution. Read the owners manual on your saw. Always follow the proper safety guidelines in your owner's manual. My 1978 Craftsman 10" RAS.

My total packet bet is 7979.43 by the law of average, should be right on the button. Now while we wait can we talk about my poor pumpkin seeds that were so fresh when I sent them, I mean I was still turning them every hour in the sun coming thru my french doors,before bagging them. Anyway, today, to my horror, the Musque de Provence seeds were moldy green!!!!I did not figure tha tthe time from when I packed them and the time we will get our seeds back would be enough to mold them, as I din't want to treat them with chemicals or bleach but maybe I should have!!! Looked on line for answers , someone mentioned rinsing the seeds in hydrogen peroxide before drying them. I panicked and use what was close at hand , put some bleach in water and filled the little baggie with it and slooshed them around until they cleaned up a bit, then i rinsed them further with my fingers, and planted them in a peat pot to see about germination. I don't know what to tell you. It's really sad to loose these, they were beautiful pumpkins, of the brightest orange flesh. If they are really lost then I will have to make sure mine grows and distribute the seeds again thru another swap.I am so sorry about that, thought i was doing the seeds a favor by not using bleach or other chemicals...and look what happened. Chris

You want spoiled....read this. Our department provides laptops for our students to borrow for a week at a time. They come with a wireless mouse and a flashdrive. I have a student who borrowed the laptop and left the flashdrive in the library. The library called to let me know and I retrieved it. She came in and didn't apologize for losing it. Well, I let her borrow the laptop for another week and she again left the flashdrive in our computer lab. But this time some one walked off with it. She called and told me the day before the laptop was due back. I told her she would have to pay for the flashdrive and replace it. After being quite snotty (again with no apologies) she replaced the flashdrive. I then told her that her privilages were suspended for a month and she again got snotty. My boss finally told her that borrowing a laptop was a PRIVILAGE and not a RIGHT! My point is that she didn't care that she lost the flashdrive twice and she feels she is entitled to borrow the laptop. SamKaren your resident DJ

The phone company installed the NID when there was no floor and the ground went to a pipe that once presumably went to the water heater in the former garage that is now a den. The den had a "closet" with no floor; they just walled off the corner instead of dealing with this. The plumber cut and capped the water and gas pipes and left the electric and phone grounds connected to the detached nozzle above floor level and told me to have an electrician and the phone company do their thing. Now I have a great pantry with a floor, just need to fix this. I guess the phone ground wire can go underneath the den floor and into the crawlspace.