Dewalt has officially recalled about 1,364,000 12″ sliding miter saws in the USA, and about 118,600 units sold in Canada.
This recall affects Dewalt DWS779, DWS780, and DHS790 12″ sliding miter saws that were sold from April 2019 thru May 2022.
According to the US CPSC recall notice, Dewalt has received 571 reports of the blade guard assembly breaking or detaching. There were 9 reports of laceration injuries.
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Dewalt’s notice says:
The plastic rear guard assembly can break/shatter when struck, exposing the saw blade and posing a laceration hazard.
Consumers are advised to immediately stop using the recalled miter saws and contact Dewalt for a free repair kit. Alternatively, you can take affected saws to a Dewalt service center for a free repair.
To determine whether your saw is affected, refer to the date code, which is located on the nameplate (DWS779, DWS780) or battery mount (DHS790).
Dewalt date code format is 20XX YY-ZZ, with 20XX being the year, YY being the week of manufacture, and ZZ being a plant code (CJ or 49).
Affected date codes are numbered 2019 04 through 2022 04.
If your saw has a green or black dot next to the serial number or on its frame in the designated location, it has already been inspected and is not affected by the recall.
Recall Number: 22-196
Contact Dewalt at 800-990-6421 from 8am to 6pm ET Monday thru Friday.
Dewalt’s recall notice also has a web form for repair kit requests.
Dewalt issued a stop sale for the same miter saws in June, and so this recall has been anticipated.
Thank you to Pete for bringing this to our attention!
Leo B.
Thanks for the heads-up! My saw was affected. Hopefully the retro-fit guard is a pretty straightforward install. Thanks!
Pete
It is. You have to remove the blade though. The new rear guard that DeWalt sent me a few weeks ago is metal and not plastic.
Jim Felt
Sounds like a nice upgrade regardless. Unless, of course, it adds too much weight?
Bill L.
On my saw the piece has already broken off and dropped off from the saw, and I have been using the saw without that piece. I wonder what if I just continue using the without having the new replacement piece installed, because right now without that piece on, the saw works just fine, and I have been careful not getting anywhere close to the rear of the saw. Is there any risk of that piece not being there?
Stuart
There is always the risk of injury when using power tools, and far greater risk when safety guarding is compromised or defeated.
I will always encourage the proper use of safety guards.
Josh
I’m considering removing mine so that I can use it without worry as I’m in the middle of a job. I’m having troubles figuring out where the big safety risk is of running it without that piece. But this is coming from a guy who used his hitachi mitersaw without any blade guard for the past 4 years or so haha
John G
Bill, Bill, Bill,
a forum is not the place to ask, “Is there any risk of…”
Of course there is! That is why the manufacturer is recalling/replacing it.
Stuart
It’s good then, that this isn’t a forum.
Stacey Jones
Chinese Junk. May as well buy Harbor Freight.
Stuart
According to the CPSC notice, the affected saws were made in Taiwan and Mexico.
Ben
But doesn’t Taiwan = China?? 🙂
Pete
Not yet. Maybe soon 🙂
Jackson
]parts made in China shipped to Taiwan and Mexico then assembled
Allen Maury
There appears to be no shops in Albuquerque that repair Dewalt mitre or table saws. I almost a finger when a Dewalt table saw engaged in kickback that threw a piece of wood and my hand toward the blade. I am not willing to use the saw blade or guide is adjusted to prevent kickbacks.
MichaelT
So I checked mine even though I knew it was too old (bought in 2017). That part is originally metal, at least on the 2017 models. Looks like this is one of those cases where cost cutting crept into the equation and backfired.
Jack
Thank you, Stuart – request submitted to Dewalt for the repair kit. Doubtful that I would have become aware of this w/o your announcement.
Stuart
You’re welcome!
Jack
Dewalt Support sent this link to the video showing how to retrofit the part: https://sbd.hubs.vidyard.com/watch/MYw9nGSbNJ6DZZcJoPebWv
Ron
I got one too on the way they say repair kit
J. Newell
Wasn’t there a “soft” recall on this already? I could be mis-remembering. If that’s right, I wonder what changed? Bureaucratic process working slowly? More injuries?
Jay Dee
Dewalt quietly removed all stock from the major retailers about two months ago (it was covered here at the time)
Kent
1.5 million mitre saws in North America in the past 3 years, not shabby numbers at all.
Bob
And that’s only the ones that got the bad plastic during certain dates….
MFC
So some tools get a retrofit kit, but others have to be returned and I’ve wondered how recalls like this affect the bottomline of manufacturers. I can’t imagine the scale of a recall this large if the tool had to be returned. You’d have to have a huge warehouse just to process them, let alone the laborers and everyone in between. Do these get retrofitted and resold or donated, trashed, or turned into parts? Or do only a small portion of buyers ever follow through with returning them?
My brother had a tablesaw from porter cable or someone that got recalled and they had him chop off the extension plug and send a picture to verify he had “destroyed” the faulty tool. Then they mailed him a check for the price he paid.
Brian Wilkerson
Purchased my saw from Lowe’s and was using it laying some unfinished red oak hardwood. About the 3rd cut or so with it and the plastic piece shattered with pieces thrown into my hand. I’m sure there isn’t any compensation since I didn’t save the pieces and who has time in the real world to run to the doctor everytime something happens. Just had to wrap it up and deal with it hurting.
Craig
I see a very very small black dot on my saw, but then again I lift the guard just before I start to cut then release when it touches the material. Idk. My guide light went out 2 weeks after I purchased it which was dumb, but never had one before so I called for a replacement and they said it would be 2 months before I would get a new one so I just forgot about it haha…
Jeff
People who don’t know how to use power tools shouldn’t use them at all anyway, guards and such just get in the way of making precise cuts, leave the carpentry to carpenters!
Stuart
You wouldn’t say that if you read even a fraction of the professional and jobsite injury reports I have.
People who know – or should know – how to safely use power tools injure themselves all the time.
Greg
Thanks for this. My saw is in that recall.
Bob Adkins
CPSC is a hammer looking for a nail. If they don’t like the cut of your jib, expect repercussions.
Blade guards can give you a false sense of security, never rely on them. When you stop being careful, you’re going to get hurt no matter how many safety features are piled on your tools. Saws and angle grinders are so violent you should only use them when you have to. The best safety feature of all is to always get in the right frame of mind before using them.
My crystal ball just notified me, the message says “Buy DeWalt tools before the price increase”.