Workshop Safety

Push Stick

Keeps fingers a safe distance from a blade. The cheapest safety tool in the shop and the one most often improvised badly.

Maintain stage

Specification

Length	400 mm
Material	Beech or birch ply
Notch	15 mm deep, square
Handle	Birdsmouth grip
Batch	Make 4 at a time
Replace	At any sign of splitting

Power tool — read before useKeep at least 300 mm of stick between your hand and the blade. Never use a push stick that has been cut into or has a split handle.

What it is for

Keeps fingers a safe distance from a blade. The cheapest safety tool in the shop and the one most often improvised badly. This guide covers what the tool does, the specification points that actually change your results, and how to use it without damaging the work or yourself.

Where it fits in the build

This is a maintain stage tool in the Workshop Safety category. Protect eyes, ears and lungs on every job.

Maintain Workshop Safety

Using it well

Make three or four from an offcut so one is always within reach.
Shape the notch to match the stock thickness so it grips rather than pushes at an angle.
Retire a push stick as soon as the notch no longer sits squarely on the workpiece.

Compatible materials

Materials this tool handles without compromise. Where a material is not listed, check that the tool is rated for it before committing to a cut.

Softwood
Plywood

Reference sample in 3D

The model above is a real ash reference block rendered in the browser. It is simulated from a height field rather than photographed, so you can rotate it to see how light behaves across the grain, the end grain and the edges. Drag it, or use the view buttons to look at the top face or the end grain in isolation.

Why this matters

Reading how light falls across a board is the fastest way to judge whether a surface is flat. That is the same judgement you make with a hand plane or a sander, and it is much easier to see on a rotating model than on a static photo.

Educational content only. Settings, capacities and safety guidance here are general starting points, not instructions for your specific tool, material or situation. Always follow your tool manufacturer's manual and any material datasheet, and check your own measurements before cutting.

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