A radial arm saw is a machine intended for cutting materials to length. It is primarily a woodworking machine, although it is sometimes used for cutting metals, such as angle iron or aluminum extrusions. Before the advent of the radial arm saw, table saws and hand saws were most commonly used for crosscutting lumber. Tablesaws are ideal for ripping stock, but it is awkward to push a long piece of stock widthwise through a tablesaw blade. When a radial arm saw is used, the stock remains stationary on the saw's table and the blade is pulled through the stock.

Origins

Unlike most types of woodworking machinery, the radial arm saw has a clear genesis: it was invented by Raymond De Walt of Bridgeton, New Jersey. De Walt applied for patents in 1923, which were issued in 1925. De Walt and others subsequently patented many variations on the original, but De Walt's original design remained the most successful: a circular sawblade directly driven by a motor held in a yoke sliding along a horizontal arm that is some distance above a horizontal table surface.

Beginning about the late 1970s, the compound miter saw began to replace the radial arm saw. The radial arm saw is less safe, especially when used by an inexperienced or untrained operator.