| Production > Shapers
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 Woodworking shapers are machines that are most commonly used to
shape the edges of stock. Cutting occurs by hand feeding stock
against a vertical rotating cutter mounted on a spindle. Some
machines have multiple spindles. The cutter has multiple cutting
edges and rotates at 7200 to 10,000 RPM. Stock may be fed
from any direction. Guide pins hold the stock for curved shaping
and fences hold it for straight line shaping.
Operator Involvement
The operator is required to hand-feed and manipulate the stock
against the cutter and to keep the stock flat on the table. The
type of work being done is better described as hand crafting
rather high-speed cutting.
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Potential Hazards:
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Point of operation - Contact with the cutter head may
occur, particularly if holding devices are not used.
Possible Solutions:
Engineering Controls
- As shown in Fig. 1, enclose the spindle with an adjustable guard or
cage [29
CFR 1910.213(m)(1)]. For straight-line shaping, the fence
frame should include the guard. The fence should contain as small an
opening as possible for the knives, and should extend at least 18
inches on either side of the spindle. Split adjustable fences are useful
for guarding when the entire edge of the stock is to be shaped.
- Mount a ring guard around the cutting bit to reduce
contact with the bit.
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Fig 1 - Shaper with adjustable guard.
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Work Practices
- Use templates, jigs, and fixtures to distance the
operator's hands from the point of operation.
Featherboards may be clamped to the fence for straight
line shaping.
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Potential Hazard:
Possible Solutions:
Engineering Controls
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Use a safety collar to minimize the potential for tool
projection.
Work Practices
- Maintain the knives. Make sure they are
precision-ground to apply uniform pressure. Make sure
the knives are balanced and fit properly [29
CFR 1910.213(s)(2)].
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Train operators to listen for "chatter,"
which indicates that knives are out of balance. To start
the machine, operators should apply the power in a
series of short starts and stops to slowly bring the
spindle to operating speed.
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Potential Hazards:
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Kickbacks - Stock may be thrown back at the operator
after being caught by the cutter head.
Possible Solutions:
Engineering Controls
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Ensure that double-spindle shapers have a starting and
stopping device for each spindle [29
CFR 1910.213(m)(3)].
Work Practices
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Cut in the opposite direction of the spindle's
rotations.
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Potential Hazard:
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Flying chips - Wood chips and splinters may be thrown
by the cutting action of the knives.
Possible Solutions:
Work Practices
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Maintain the knives. Make sure they are
precision-ground to apply uniform pressure. Make sure
the knives are balanced and fit properly [29
CFR 1910.213(s)(2)].
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Potential Hazards:
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In-running nip points - Clothing, hair, or hands may
be caught by and pulled into the in-running rolls of the
automatic feed.
Possible Solutions:
Engineering Controls
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Potential Hazard:
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Operating controls are mounted on the front of the
machine about waist high. This could allow incidental starting.
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