13 Comments

These both look great Chris, and they gave me an idea for one of my own design too, which I will post later if it works out well. Thanks for the inspiration!

I really don’t like the “stick” style and consider them dangerous but I do like the other one. I refer to it as a “shoe” rather than a stick and have used a disposable (consumable ) version for many years. I’ll post a pic of mine later.

Here’s mine:

https://woodworkingweb.com/entries/98-a-few-push-sticks

Since my table saw attack me, I am gun shy. If I cannot use my Grrr-Rippers, I find another way to cut it.

I always use this style of push shoe.
I always make them from leftover plywood.
It takes about 10 minutes per to make: bandsaw, pattern routing and roundover.

I got the template from my first woodworking class and make a dozen every time I am on my last one.
Very ergonomic, it feels really good in the hand. The handle angling forward allow for smooth pushing.
All rounded over besides the sole just in case it hits me.

I made on for each thikness of laminate but i keep using the wrong one so They get chewed.

OK, here’s a pic of the kind I’ve been using for many years. It’s main features are that it is very easy to make, consumable, and very safe to use. It is my personal preference to hold it by the body and not have a handle as I like to control the material from as close as safely possible to the blade. It is also important to me to have a couple of fingers hooked over the fence. I can’t do that with a handle.
In the second picture I’m cutting 1/16" wide strips.

Abbas, I like yours but I have never understood why people make thin ones rather than just intentionally letting the saw run through them. I feel it is safer to have the blade imbedded in the pusher than exposed beside it. I am always more comfortable with a cut like that than one that leaves the blade exposed beside the shoe.

I don’t like thin ones Paul. They scares the hell out of me. I like to have my hands where I can see them far from the blade.Yes I am a chicken:)

With a thin one you have to stabilize the pusher with lateral pressure. A slight move at an angle towards the fence with a 1/8 tong, the stick is history.

Usually with your shoe style and mine the blade is embedded in when thin strips are cut. I am of the same opinion as you Paul. let the blade sink in. Much safer in my opinion than having a thin flimsy one.

If I where to pay attention to which one I am using while cutting laminate, they last quite a bit.

I don’t like to run mine through the blade for the reasons Abbas have for thin ones. I prefer to use a thin one and push out against the fence. However, after looking at your picture, Paul, it seems to make a lot more sense when the “stick” is actually shaped like a sanding block. I could not cut anything 1/16 using my method. I think I’ll make a block just for thin strips.

The point of mine being low profile is for exactly the reason Abbas points out about slight wiggle of the shoe causing loss of control. With a low profile one my hand can grip both the shoe and the fence so no wiggle can happen.
It’s the same safety /control strategy I use on wider cuts where I don’t need a pusher. This may not be for everyone but it illustrates the point of hooking fingers over the fence when cutting.

it’s good to see safety first , very important with the tools that we use.

Looks like we all have our own design we like,your look fine

Looks like we all have our own design we like,yours looks fine