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How to fit a riving knife without drilling the plate

Updated: 24 October 2026

The correct plate is on the bench, and you want to know how to fit a riving knife so the kerf cannot close on the rising teeth. The job is isolation, a gap, a straight line, and the guard back on for a through cut. It is not a new hole. The [riving knife comparison](/hub/hand-tools/riving-knife) is where the six listings are, if the plate may not match the saw. Peter F. used HSE WIS16, the HSE rip-saw page and HSE poster POS01 for the figures below. He did not fit these amazon plates. Follow the clamp in your own manual. A purchase through our links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The correct plate is on the bench, and you want to know how to fit a riving knife so the kerf cannot close on the rising teeth. The job is isolation, a gap, a straight line, and the guard back on for a through cut.

Our top picks

Ohoho Ohoho N506855

Best overall

Ohoho Ohoho N506855
8.6/10about £22.03
View offer
ServiceNet ServiceNet A23013

Alternative

ServiceNet ServiceNet A23013
6.6/10about £45.46
View offer
RUB0B0SHOP RUB0B0SHOP N695948

Best value

RUB0B0SHOP RUB0B0SHOP N695948
7.1/10about £23.47
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On this page
  1. 1.Before you loosen anything
  2. 2.Set the gap and the line
  3. 3.Guard, push-stick, and the first cut
  4. 4.Grooves, and the knife that will not fit

Before you loosen anything

Unplug the saw, or remove the battery, and wait until the blade has stopped. Lock the blade height so it cannot drop while your hands are in the throat. Confirm the code on your diagram, and the thickness on the riving knife thickness page, before the plate goes near the blade. If the holes miss, put it back in the packet.

Set the gap and the line

HSE WIS16 and the rip-saw page ask for the knife within 8 mm of the blade at table level, rigid, in line, and chamfered on the leading edge. Eight millimetres is the maximum gap, not a target to aim past. Axminster’s manual uses 3 to 8 mm on that saw. Measure at table level, where the wood meets the blade. In line means the plate follows the blade body, not a tooth set to one side. Sight along the plate, tighten, then sight again, because the clamp can shift as the screw beds in. One review of the RUB0B0SHOP N695948 plate describes a knife that bent left and jammed in hardwood. If the plate is already bent, return it. On a saw bench, for a blade under 600 mm, HSE poster POS01 and L114 put the top of the knife no more than 25 mm above the top of the blade. Use the through-cut position your own manual shows.
Ohoho Ohoho N506855

Testsieger

Ohoho Ohoho N506855
8.6/10about £22.03
View offer

Guard, push-stick, and the first cut

Put the crown guard back before a normal rip. The knife keeps the kerf open behind the blade. The guard covers the teeth. HSE’s rip-saw page keeps both. DeWalt’s UK DWE7492 manual, which is not the DWE7485 or the DWE7491RS on these amazon titles, requires the guard and the knife for every through cut on that model. Use a push-stick at least 450 mm long for the last 300 mm of the rip. A piece too short to reach the knife can still kick. On the first cut, kissing means the line is out, and stalling means the plate is too thick.

Grooves, and the knife that will not fit

A groove may need the guard and the knife off, because they stand above the blade. DeWalt’s DWE7492 manual tells you to restore both as soon as that cut is finished. A power feed does not replace the knife. WIS16 says the feed does not keep the kerf from closing on the back teeth. Stop if the plate will not sit parallel, if you cannot get the gap under 8 mm, or if the only way to make the holes meet is to drill. On a saw used at work, a bent or ground plate is a reason to call someone who can set the machine to WIS16. That limit belongs on the replacement riving knife page.

Common questions

How close should the riving knife be to the blade?
HSE WIS16 and the rip-saw page say within 8 mm at table level, in line with the blade, and chamfered on the leading edge. Eight millimetres is the maximum, measured where the wood runs. Axminster’s 3 to 8 mm on one cabinet saw is the same kind of close setting, not a second UK limit.
Do I unplug the saw first?
Yes. Isolate the saw and wait until the blade has stopped before the throat plate or the knife clamp is loosened. A battery saw needs the pack off, not only the switch released. Keep the blade locked at a height where you can see the gap at table level.
How do I know the plate is in line?
Sight along the blade body, not along a tooth that is set to one side. The plate should run with the disc, so it does not rub one wall of the kerf. Tighten the clamp and sight again. If the plate is bent, alignment will not straighten it. Return a bent plate.
Do I put the guard back for a normal rip?
Yes. A through cut uses the crown guard and the riving knife. The knife holds the kerf open. The guard covers the teeth. DeWalt’s UK DWE7492 manual requires both for every through cut on that saw, and HSE’s rip-saw page keeps the guard as well as the knife.
Can I leave the knife off for a groove?
Only for the cut that cannot use it, and only as your manual describes. Refit the knife and the guard before the next through cut. A piece that never reaches the knife can still kick. A power feed does not stand in for the plate.
What if the holes do not match?
Stop. The plate is not the part for that mount. Drilling a new hole, or elongating the old one, is a modification, and reviews that describe it are warnings rather than instructions. Pack the plate so you can return it. A listing will not create a mount the saw never had.
When should I stop and call someone?
Stop if you cannot get the gap under 8 mm, if the plate will not sit parallel with the blade, or if the steel is already bent or ground. Stop if the saw is work equipment and nobody on site can set it to WIS16. A drilled plate does not put that machine right.

Related pages

Riving knife vs splitter

Riving knife

Best riving knife: one saw, one code, then a listing

Replacement riving knife: match the code before the stars

Riving knife thickness: body, plate, then the kerf

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, last checked on 22 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures in the display file.

  1. HSE WIS16, Circular saw benches (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. HSE, Circular saw benches — rip saws (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. HSE L114, Safe use of woodworking machinery (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. HSE, PUWER overview (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. DeWalt UK, DWE7492 instruction manual (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. Spare Parts World, N791854 for DWE7485 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Spare Parts World, riving knife 1004695-77 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 11 (retrieved 22 October 2026)