THUMBS

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**LINK**

MichaelG.

I have acute arthritus in my thumbs, I can sympathise with you as I have difficulty in turning my rotary table and had to make a 4" hand wheel to relieve the pain.Picking up small items and hand tapping is also a problem,turning feed screws is also painful.I love this hobby,if I did not I would give it up but I will not be beat.All the best to every one and stay safe.

Frank

Frank,

Power feeds, wherever possible, would help to keep you going that bit longer. Slowly, slowly is better than not at all.

Working with mild/carbon steel, rather than non-magnetic materials might help for picking up small items, by using a magnet? I always picked up dropped wood screws with the magnetic tip of the electric screwdriver - it saved my back, by reducing bending, during times of back pain. At one point I even used an extended tip-holder for that very reason.

If you can manage using a leccy screwdriver, tapping and driving hand-wheels can be made easier.

I have a friend who always moves items with his teleporter, whenever possible, even though they may not be that heavy. It saves his hip and knee joints which would limit his mobility.

The pain means you're still alive is how I look at it

Most of my stuff has easy use handles now, but at the end of some days you sit in front of the telly with pretty knackered hands

edit I've found a circular handle useful for the biggie on the drummond, you can grip it with your entire hand

It's the sort of system they use on big game fishing reels and fits in the palm of your hand

Edited By Ady1 on 24/01/2021 11:10:24

Teleporter NDIY ?
I investigated with DuckDuckGo but was 'teleported' into a world of Minecraft, etc.
Please expand for the interested, Thanks
DaveD

I don't know if it is athritis i have as never had a problem with swollen joints,,, but lately when turning the hand wheels my hands seize up. It's like a finger or my thumb just lock up. Aweful pain. Sometimes i have to literaly get hold of the digit & pull it around. Once done all seems good again for a while.

I am sure there will be a medical word for it, but don't know what. Probably old farts syndrome.

Steve.

I think what you have is tendonitis, I have had it intermittently for many years and simple finger exercises/stretches help me considerably.

Guy

Meunier,

Perhaps farmers in France don’t use telescopic transporters?🙂

Very common in the UK.

I don't know if it is athritis i have as never had a problem with swollen joints

There are two types of arthritis - as far as I know swollen joints is rheumatoid arthritis, which is the immune system attacking and causing inflamation of the joint. This can be tested for with a blood test. The other is osteoarthritis, which is mechanical wear of the joints - in the case of my thumbs, some finger joints & wrists, no swelling just pain, lack of grip & restricted movement. X-rays of the affected area required to see the extent of the damage.

Had we not been suffering the current virus situation, I should be a couple of months into the 3-6 month recovery period of a trapeziectomy - removal of the badly worn trapezium bone at the base of my right thumb to alleviate the joint pain. This procedure has now been pushed on to next autumn - maybe !

First option proposed by my doctor was a steroid injection into the joint space - could give up to several months pain relief, but no guarantees. She tried to do this at the surgery, but declined before inserting the needle as she could not feel any joint space to inject into ! So off to the hospital, where the consultant used X-rays to guide the needle & had her willing assistant pull on my thumb hard to separate the joint to make a space to inject in to - that was fun ! Probably the most pain I have encountered up to date, two days off work and no longer term pain relief benefit. Like she said - no guarantee it would have any effect, but worth a shot. I will not be queing up for another steroid injection, though.

I have used elasticated supports to good advantage. The ones I use are an elasticated half glove with a gel pad sewn in that puts light pressure on the bottom thumb joint - £3 or £4 from Ebay. The hospital gave me one that velcros on, but that is more intrusive to wear. Otherwise, industrial quantities of Ibuprofen gel applied to the affected area can also help a bit.

Tendonitis is another can of worms - all the doctor could suggest was "stop doing what brings it on". So, sadly, exit my Ducati ST2.

Nigel B.

It is not quite so black and white. Osteoarthritis can have swollen inflamed joints with Herberden's Nodes. Rheumatoid is an autoimmune process. The blood test for Rheumatoid factor is diagnostic, but not all sufferers are positive, so it can be tricky to diagnose.

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It might be worth contacting Remap - they specialise in adaptations and gadgets to help "disabled" people manage everyday tasks and cope with household items like taps and suchlike - so why not machine tools? Much of the work is done by volunteers of which many I believe are model engineers - Remap often have stands at our exhibitions. Apart from possibly usable idea they would probably welcome extra inputs and resource.

Of course an engineering solution to the problem would be to get a stepper motor to turn the wheels....

Tele porters have you seen how much they cost, even the used ones are expensive.

Would it be possible to send a link/photo or anything visual of the product you found? I've been looking, having rejected the NHS ones for the same reason. There are so many types available and it would be good to have a recommended one. Thank you

If you have an engine crane there is potential for adapting it as some kind of lift with much shorter front extensions and perhaps a small electric winch.

Interested to see Ady's clover leaf handle as opposed to a longer fatter stick handle. Is that better?
A human CNC conversion seems a possiblilty ie fit the steppers but just have a button to press to apply steps.

It is for my thumb, we're all different with various issues

Means I can crank the leadscrew with palm of hand and fingers

Just a case of holding a disc of thick metal with a hole in it in your hand and figuring out if it works for you

Used to see quite a few Manitou in UK, seen some here too, farming and construction but sadly they wouldn't fit in my workshop !
On a more serious note, the web reveals things like telescoping luggage carts, is that what your friend is using, can they be motorised for workshop use ? Thanks

DaveD

Although the use of the word ‘dextrous’ might raise a quizzical eyebrow ...

This is an interesting read : **LINK**

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-dexterous-thumbs-may-have-helped-shape-evolution-two-million-years-ago-180976870/

MichaelG.

I've not been workshopping much for a few months because of other things and took advantage of the break to do some physio type exercises with my thumbs, especially the right hand one which had reached the point where even lifting a pint of beer was a painful risky manoeuver (so it was really serious!)

So far I'm back to 80%+ of normal and the pain is almost gone with simple stretching exercises

My hand is facing away from me when I do it, so gravity can help spread the joint juice

As mentioned by a previous poster, it seems to be the joint right at the bottom of the thumb inside the hand, down by the wrist joint

I really thought it was a goner a couple of months ago, I had to go to sleep with my fists clenched around my thumb to stop the pain

So don't give up if you have problems, things CAN improve