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Radial-arm saw guards versus sawmill guidance

Summary A saw owner asked whether an OSHA sawmill memorandum applied to radial-arm saw guards. OSHA said the memorandum concerned large saws in sawmills under section 1910.265 and did not classify them as radial table saws. OSHA archives the letter.
Document
Federal opinion letter
Agency
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Document number
1976-06-30-1
Date issued
June 30, 1976
Status
Archived by the agency
OSHA labels this an archive document and warns that it may no longer represent OSHA policy.
Status last verified October 10, 2026
Topics
Workplace Safety OSHA 1910 Machine Guarding Saws
Source
View the official document

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OSHA labels this an archive document and warns that it may no longer represent OSHA policy. It may no longer reflect the agency's current position. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance, and verify current law before relying on anything here.
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NOTICE: This is an OSHA Archive Document, and may no longer represent OSHA Policy. It is presented here as historical content, for research and review purposes only.

June 30, 1976
Ms. Mary L. McMurray
Owner Peerless Products
[Recipient address omitted]
Dear Ms. McMurray:
This is in response to your letter dated June 3, 1976, which discusses information on radial arm saw guards.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reviewed the information provided by your office. The material referenced refers to OSHA Field Information Memorandum #75-49A dated November 3, 1975, which addresses problem areas in saw mill operations specific to operations covered in 29 CFR 1910.265. These specific saws are 6-12 feet in size and are not classified as radial table saw operations.
Should you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for your interest in Occupational Safety and Health.
Sincerely,
John K. Barto, Chief
Division of Occupational Safety Programming

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