Kickback

OPERATING

Risk area

No persons that do not have the protective equipment described above shall be allowed inside the risk area for thrown material.

20 m (66 ft)

Blade speed

Apply the cutting blade gently with high rotating speed (full throttle) Maintain full speed until cutting is complete. Low blade speed, especially in hard and thin materials can result in jamming and the breaking-off of the carbide tips.

Thin material

Cutting thin and hard material (i.e. a sheet metal covered roof) should be conducted in a forward direction for best control.

Pinching or jamming

Make a careful evaluation of how the object will move during the ﬁnal stage of the cutting to avoid pinching or jamming. The cut must open during the cut. If the object sags and the cut begins to close the blade may pinch, possibly resulting in a kick-back or damage to the blade.

Cutting in line

Skewing or twisting in the line of cut will reduce cutting efﬁciency and damage the blade.

Before each rescue operation

Check that the blade and the blade guard is not damaged or cracked. Replace the blade or the blade guard if it has been exposed to impact or is cracked.

•Check that no carbide tips have loosened from the cutting blade.

•Check that the blade is not skew or shows signs of cracking or other defects.

When cutting in hard materials carbide tipped blades will rapidly lose its sharpness. For best performance during rescue operations we recommend that a new blade be installed.

WARNING! Kickbacks are sudden and

! can be very violent. The power cutter can be thrown up and back towards the user in a rotating motion causing serious or even fatal injury. It is vital to understand what causes kickback and how to avoid it before using the machine.

Kickback is the sudden upward motion that can occur if the blade is pinched or stalled in the kickback zone. Most kickbacks are small and pose little danger. However a kickback can also be very violent and throw the power cutter up and back towards the user in a rotating motion causing serious or even fatal injury.

Reactive force

A reactive force is always present when cutting. The force pulls the machine in the opposite direction to the blade rotation. Most of the time this force is insigniﬁcant. If the blade is pinched or stalled the reactive force will be strong and you might not be able to control the power cutter.

Never move the machine when the cutting equipment is rotating. Gyroscopic forces can obstruct the intended movement.

English – 19