Glossary

• A

  • alternate top bevel (ATB): A circular saw blade configuration where the teeth are angled (beveled), with the direction of the bevel alternating between each tooth; this produces a slicing action for cleaner cuts. The bevel on regular ATB teeth ranges from about 10 to 20 degrees, and on Hi-ATB teeth from about 25 to 40 degrees.
  • arbor: The shaft on which a saw blade is mounted on a table saw or circular saw. In the U.S., almost all table saws and many circular saws have a 5/8" diameter arbor.
  • arbor hole: The hole in the center of a saw blade which allows it to be mounted on the arbor (shaft) of a table saw or circular saw. In the U.S., the most common arbor hole size is a 5/8" diameter.

• B

  • brushed motor: An electric motor that uses carbon brushes to ensure electrical contact with electromagnets mounted on the motor's spinning rotor. (Read more)
  • brushless motor: An electric motor that doesn't use carbon brushes to provide electricity to its electromagnets. (Read more)

• C

  • crosscut: A cut made in wood that goes primarily across the grain (generally in the short direction on a piece of lumber), in contrast with a rip cut, which goes along the grain.

• D

  • dado blade: A table saw blade meant for cutting dados (wide grooves) in wood. Two varieties are dado stacks, which stacks multiple blades together, or wobble blades, which is a single blade shaped to cut back and forth as it spins.

• I

  • infeed: The side of a saw or other tool from which the workpiece enters the tool. Commonly used to refer to the front of a table saw, where the operator feeds material in towards the blade.

• K

  • kerf: The cut made by a saw, or the width of such a cut.

• O

  • outfeed: The side of a saw or other tool at which the workpiece leaves the tool. Commonly used to refer to the back of a table saw, where material exits past the saw blade.

• R

  • rip capacity: The maximum distance the rip fence on a table saw can be moved away from the blade, which often differs on the left and right sides of the blade. This determines how wide a strip of material can be ripped using the rip fence. (Read more)
  • rip cut: A cut made in wood that goes primarily in the same direction as the grain (generally lengthwise on a piece of lumber), in contrast with a crosscut, which goes across the grain.
  • riving knife: A stationary blade on a table saw, mounted behind the cutting blade, that keeps the two halves of the workpiece from pinching together and possibly causing kickback. (Read more)

• T

  • triple chip grind (TCG): A circular saw blade configuration which alternates flat-topped teeth with chamfered teeth (resembling the top half of a stop sign). This tooth configuration makes cleaner cuts in materials prone to chipping, like laminates.
  • trunnion: A cylindrical pin or protrusion that lets an object pivot within brackets. On a table saw, two trunnions support the blade assembly and allow it to be tilted for bevel cuts. A table saw trunnion may be mounted to the saw cabinet (on cabinet saws) or the table top (on contractor or portable saws).

• W

  • workpiece: Any piece of material you are transforming somehow through the use of tools. For instance, a block of wood being sawn on a table saw, or a metal bar being drilled on a drill press.