Riving knife vs. splitter – 4 key differences

A riving knife and splitter perform essentially the same function - to keep the wood from turning into the rear of the blade and the wood becoming a projectile. The 4 key differences and advantages that a riving knife has over a splitter area:

1. A riving knife does not need to be removed from the saw when doing a crosscut or a non-through cut. 
2. A riving knife sits very close to the blade, thus reducing the risk of wood encroaching on the rear of the blade. 
3. A riving knife is often designed with cutouts or insertion points for a blade guard and anti-kickback pawls. 
4. A riving knife often has greater coverage area than a splitter and can extend over the top of the blade for additional protection.

All modern table saws will have a riving knife. In 2005, the Underwriters Laboratories revised the standard to require all table saws put on market after 2008 would need to have a riving knife installed. Models put to market prior to 2008 could be sold without a riving knife until 2014.  

Advantages of a riving knife

Walk into any home improvement store or browse online and every single table saw will have a riving knife. The riving knife is a simple and effective component that costs little to produce. It’s no surprise the Underwriter’s Laboratory mandated their use not even 20 years ago. 

Give how simple and effective this little piece of metal is. What are the benefits to you, the woodworker? 

A riving knife does not need to be removed for crosscuts or non-through cuts

People are forgetful. If a splitter needs to be removed for a specific cut, there is the possibility that the user forgets to reinstall it. Naturally, this creates a safety hazard. The riving knives of today are all very similar in design. However, the splitters of yesteryear varied greatly in their size, thickness, distance from the blade, and their effectiveness. 

For some of those designs, performing a crosscut simply wasn’t possible. Any non-through cut was impossible to execute as well. For example, if you raise the blade to only half the thickness of the wood, some splitters will not allow you to make that cut. 

A riving knife only needs to be removed for special circumstances that aren’t super common for the new woodworker. For example, when using a dado stack, the stock riving knife has to be removed. For some specialty jigs or complex cuts on certain jigs, a riving knife is not feasible.

A riving knife sits closer to the blade

The advantage here is that the gap between the riving knife and the blade is significantly reduced. Any significant gap between the blade and splitter is an opportunity for a piece of wood to curl towards the blade and become a projectile.

As you’ll see when lowering or raising your table saw, the riving knife moves with the blade. It is always close to the rear of the blade by fractions of inch. Typically, splitters would sit farther back from the blade and not adjust to the height of the blade.  

A riving knife is designed with other safety features in mind

Many modern table saws have cut-outs built into the riving knife to hold or position a blade guard or anti-kickback pawls. Some have additional anchor points for dust collection systems or other accessories. 

A riving knife has a greater coverage area than a splitter

Because the riving knife extends over part of the rear of the blade, there’s additional coverage and protection for the user. For non-through cuts, this can be helpful if internal stresses in the wood are released as the riving knife will help to prevent the wood from binding the blade.