Leather stamp cramp

[badger]

Hi Everyone,

I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I suffer hand cramping when using leather stamping tools.

Is anyone aware of a commercially available grip or holder for stamping tools?

I know there are various methods like sliding tubing over the stem, but is there anything out there which will hold a standard sized tool and make working with them more comfortable?

Cheers,

Karl

Edited October 14, 2008 by badger

[King's X]

Due to an accident several years back, I have limited use of both of my hands. I have lost considerable grip strength and suffer from frequent cramps to the point that I had to give up golf. I am relatively knew to carving/stamping, but not to leather work. I too suffer from cramps when working with my stamp. I have tried everything, from tape build up to waterhose pieces to now fuel line hose "doublewide." I got this idea from a older friend of mine who was a golfer, but he suffered from arthritis in both hands and had to have his grips built up. I took the same idea and use the fuel hose to build my stamps up.

I find myself having to take a lot of breaks and keep one of those squeeze balls at my table to stretch the hands, but then again, I also suffer from neck pain due to the same injury and haven't found a way to deal with this issue.

Good luck and happy carving!

ATX

[Jordan]

A taller bench to move your work a little closer to your eyes may help with the neck pain as you would not have to lean your head towards the work so much. I was reading about ergonomics the other day and that was one of the suggestions. Also Surgical rubber tubing on the stamp shaft may help. I have found very frequent coffee breaks cuts down my aches and pains(the hot tub doesn't hurt either)

[JRedding]

I sometimes use the foam pencil grippers like you find with the office supplies. Usually you have to tape them at the top or bottom to keep them in place with all the pounding but they work to increase the size of small shafts.

[Rayban]

Two things...your hands are telling you that they are not used to doing what they're doing.....just gotta get used to it...

Secondly....why are you gripoping the tool so tightly?? All you have to do is hold it at the angle...straight up and down takes no strength at all...loosen up some...the tool ain't going no wherez...

[badger]

I have a tendon condition. It isn't gripping too hard that's the issue, it's the size of the shaft of the tool. Larger diameter means less pain. I'm sure other people have similar issues, almost certainly among our older friends.

Cheers,

Karl

[gtwister09]

Karl,

As far as ergonomics and tendon problems, I would suggest a doctor if it is severe. They generally give regimens like ibuprofen for swelling and a lot of times immobilization of the affected area. They will also prescribe complete rest or giving yourself longer rest periods as has already been mentioned.

I will try to give you some things to look at and consider. It could be any number of things and without watching you it is just supposition on my part. It could be any number of contributing factors like glasses, over extension, surface heights, poor or rigid posture, weight (sorry but this can impact us as well), tools (not just your stamping tools but maybe your maul, mallet or whatever else you use). Each of these and many other factors could have an impact. I will try to keep it to some of the most likely contributors.

Ergonomics is generally not about eliminating the issue. Generally the only way to do that would be to STOP doing what you are doing. For the most part it is about understanding the biomechanics of the human body and reducing the impact of the work (work is assumed here as expending energy whether for work or fun) that we are doing. It is a holistic approach that considers many contributing factors such as biomechanics, past injuries, work habits, posture tendencies and many many other external factors even something as minor as temperature. It is also about listening to and watching the problem (not just the immediate but also the underlying issues as well) and aiding the person. Many times it can be other things that you do during the day that could aggravate the issue. Sometimes it is a major issue that can't be fixed by changing our work habits. It is a constant refining of techniques because not every technique works for every person. That is the reason for the next point.

Neutral Position & Recording Pertinent Information

You must try to have the body in the most neutral position as much as possible. Especially with repetitive motions. One of the things you need to also do is to approach it from a scientific standpoint. I know that it hurts is subjective but you can record time periods until it starts, time of rest periods, weight of objects, size of objects, excessive bending or extending and the list could go on on on but I think that makes the point. The reason for this is so that we can test a particular change and see if it has any impact on the issue over time.

Change Positions Frequently

One of the things that can't be over-stressed is to change positions frequently. Don't sit up straight and rigid the whole time. Lean forward some portion of time and then sit up straight. Change back and forth on a regular basis. In this instance of tooling I would assume that you wouldn't want to lean back because it would place you farther away from the tooling.

Work Surface Height - Including Chair/Stool

As Jordon mentioned the height of your tooling surface can be a factor. A good starting point for the height or neutral position for your work surface is to take where you normally sit (assume sitting up semi-straight in the chair that you use - or if you lean forward that position). Take your elbow and rotate it across your body and make sure that the upper arm and forearm make a 90 degree angle. Now have someone take the measurement from the floor to the bottom of the elbow. This bottom of the elbow measurement minus 1/2 of an inch or 12-13 mm for our metric friends is your starting point for a work surface.

I have found this to be generally the best height in almost 99% of the time especially when you mix in changing positions and a mixture of tools. However, if you want to really refine your work surface height before you commit to something you can use varying thicknesses of plywood to raise the height to see what impact that has on you. Or you can use this method if your work surface and chair are both stationary. MAKE SURE that your plywood is large enough in area not to restrict your natural work flow and that the edges are rounded or deburred so that you don't get splinters in you or have sharp edges that cut into your arms as you rest on the work surface.

An adjustable chair can also be utilized to get you into this position if your work surface is stationary. If you have a sit/stand tooling surface like mine (This allows me more position changes obviously between sitting, standing, up straight and slightly leaning forward), then you can also use an adjustable chair or stool like draftsmen use. My tooling bench has a bar or cross member on it that allows me to rest my foot while I am standing and tooling so I don't use the rings on a drafstman's chair. My legs are long enough to reach this bar on the bench when seated. Whereas my son as he was growing up had to utilize one with rings because his legs were to short. Dangling your legs off the edge of a chair is a bad thing.

The measuring for the starting point for a standing work surface is accomplished in the same fashion as sitting with the foream at 90 degrees to the upper arm and someone measuring the bottom of the elbow.

Lighting & Visual Enhancements

Do you have enough lighting? If you don't have great lighting you can strain your eyes which quickly translates into tension in the neck, shoulders and down into your arms and hands. Natural lighting is the best and then follow up with full spectrum if you can. Old time ballast florescent bulbs have been know with their cyclic pulses (remember the hum) to strain peoples' eyes but they are better than low lighting. Here's a little tidbit also... People with blue eyes tend to be more sensitive to the cycles and flickering of flourescent bulbs than other eye colors. One of the greatest reasons for those who use computers to get their monitor (if at all possible) off of the default 60 Hertz mode. It can cause eye strain with the flickering and yes there are quite a few people that can notice the 60 Hertz flicker of a monitor.

Do you have glasses? Do you have bi or trifocals? If you do and you are raising your head up to look down through the bottom of your glasses you could be straining your neck and once again translating that down through your shoulders, hands and arms and even into your back.

I have had many people get a second pair of glasses for their computer work that puts the bifocal part in a different position. For instance the engineers who were doing CAD/CAM all day long work didn't have to look up and strain their necks all the time. They looked straight ahead. Funny how it changed their productivity in a matter of a week (actually in two days for most of them). You can do the same if you use them. There is a lot more strain placed on your neck when you look up versus when you look down. However like everything else there is a neutral area for this as well. Any time you strain your eyes or neck muscles past a neutral position then you are creating strain. Looking down to the point of tucking your chin is a strain as well as looking up to the point of straining.

Another thing that would most likely work for a tooling bench would be something that we tried for precision deburring. If you bend over and get closer and closer to your work then you most likely need magnification. Bending your upper body over past the neutral position is also a strain that needs to be avoided. Some would call this hunching your shoulders forward. You know when you start to feel a strain. The reason that I mention this is that I have seen so many people in this position hunched over their work concentrating on the task at hand. Little kids are notorious for this. In the past when I had some free time, I would teach some kids leatherwork and I noticed that almost without fail when they would use the swivel knife or stamp. I almost always made each of them a small (12 oz..some 16 oz) angular maul. I let them use some that I already had and they would choose their exotic wood and I would make them one on the lathe. I digress.

Back to magnification.... There are a number of ways that I have found to assist in this realm. As already mentioned changing glasses. Another is to wear the magnifying binoculars like an Opti Visor or such. Yet another is to have a large magnifying plate placed on the bench above the work surface. A few people get dizzy and/or sick when using the binoculars so we utilized the magnifying plate. However with tooling I think that the plate would be very problematic especially if you use a mallet. It could be struck and these are quite expensive.

Tools

You didn't mention whether you use a mallet, maul or striking stick. This could be another area of You could be placing undue strain on your shoulders and such if you are using a mallet. I changed off of a mallet in 1989 when I first started doing ergonomics due to the biomechnical understanding. I have found that I can work A LOT longer and with less tension in my neck and shoulders when I use a maul. The ones that I generally use are angled mauls. Some people feel as though the poly heads glance off of the maul as they are struck. I generally don't have this problem but I did notice it with the little kids. When I gave them the sets of Ken Rich tools along with the maul I roughed the top of each of the stamping tools so that they would have a little bite to them. I also don't finish my poly heads on the lathe smooth either. I leave a slight ridge almost like a thread all the way down the angled maul.

Grip as mentioned could be a factor but you have stated that you don't think so. FYI. Double check this even after you add the foam. You would be surprised about grip. The reason I state this is that we performed some tests and added small pressure gauges to measure the amount of pressure after build-up. It was eye-opening to say the least even with those who swore they weren't gripping hard. Essentially their grip didn't change with the diameter of the tool except in 1 out of 27 cases. If I remember correctly the change for her was about 12-15% MORE with the larger diameter.

As you noticed I didn't answer your initial question because I wanted you to consider a lot of other factors along the way that may or may not contribute to your problem. This is part of the holistic approach that you go through. I would suggest that anything that you do that you measure it as effectively as you can and see if it has an impact on you in a short amount of time.

Now to your tool issue..... There are a number of ways that you can build them up. I have made some from leather and turned them on the lathe but THAT IS A LOT of work. Some others that have already been mentioned are the surgical tubing and foam pencil ones. If you need larger than the surgical tubing or foam pencil ones then there are some rather large RTV looking (silicone) triangular ones that can be added to pens. If I am not mistaken these are about 3/4 - 7/8" of an inch. If you need larger than that then I would consider taking some of the packing foam and wrapping it around your tools until you get the desired size. I would not use duct tape due to the adhesive coming through. I have seen that issue over time with one of my friends that I helped out. We removed all the duct tape and used the foam to create one rolled up to the size that he required. We initially laced some very thin buckskin around it. He has since braided around this foam and has a nice looking knot around the foam. I believe that his is a little over 1" in size. You might also check at an insulation store for a round foam for a 1/4" line. If you have access to someone that can make RTV ones, you could create the size you need. Have a mold made and shoot the RTV in but that would be an expensive proposition. The rolled up foam or such would be the most cost effective.

I hope that this helps you with your problem and that you also look at other contributing factors as well. Remember keep notes so you can determine if the change has any impact. Likewise a small change here and a small change there can add up over time. Don't underestimate the cumulative impact of reducing problems in other areas as well.

Good luck!

Please forgive any spelling and grammar errors as I was writing this quickly.

Regards,

Ben

[badger]

Hi Ben,

Many thanks for your thorough reply.

The information is very interesting.

There certainly are a lot of factors to consider. I'll look into them.

Hopefully this will help others with the similar problems.

Cheers,

Karl

[Jordan]

Ben, very informative write up. I think everyone could benefit from this info. Judging from the writing style I would guess you are a physical therapist or a ergonomic engineer? Jordan

[gtwister09]

Jordon,

Thanks! Had to chuckle on the either or job reference. I am actually more of a jack of all trades. Style to me is subjective to the task at hand. Business proposals and such are a completely different approach than ergonomics and engineering.

I grew up on a ranch and farm where there was lots of work. Worked from 16-24 as a ranch hand and heavy equipment operator. Attended college for 4 years after that while I worked at a car wash, managed apartments and consulted for a weight equipment manufacturer (Samson Equipment). I helped them with process improvements with manufacturing and designs. I literally helped them go from a stick figure on napkins as a working drawing to full CAD drawings, persepctives and cut lists. I earned 3 associates , 2 Bachelors (1 in CAD/CAM and the 2nd in Mechanical Engineering), and also earned a Masters in Industrial Engineering/Business Administration during those 4 years. Hectic times to say the least but was GLAD to be out. Never to return to a learning institute except to teach for the first semester after I graduated. I started a computer consulting business at that time as well.

Worked as an Industrial Engineer for the next 8 years in a machine shop for a large defense company where I spent time doing CAD/CAM work, plant layouts, work measurement, ergonomics and Reengineering. During that time I continued my mixed consulting business which created Adobe/Truetype fonts, built computer systems, repaired systems, desktop publishing and other odds and ends with work measurement, drafting and some process improvements around manufacturing.

For the last 12 years, I have been doing computer consulting exclusively as an independent consultant. Starting out doing some reengineering/automation of some IT processes. I then moved into database and systems administration and then into architecture and executive consulting for several telecommunications companies, a couple of software companies, a financial firm and various small businesses like doctors, lawyers and such.

So you can see why I list myself as a jack of all trades.

Thanks again for the complements and I hope that someone can use the information as a starting point.

Regards,

Ben

[King's X]

Mr. Ben

I appreciate your thorough response and I will take a look at it and compare it to my current relationship with my workstation. Thanks again.

ATX

[Hilly]

I too, have tendon problems. I find that stretching exercises help immensely! A visit with an occupational or physical therapist can help a lot, too. They can show you different ways of using your hands to lessen or avoid the pain.

[gtwister09]

Karl,

Stretching exercises - Rest Periods

Hilly is correct that stretching should always be included as part of the regimen. We can never underestimate something as simple as stretching. Bad on me for overlooking the obvious that generally comes from your doctor. Make sure and don't stretch too far into a point where there is pain. Only you can tell where the stretch and burn positions are because they are different for people. Don't overdo it. Likewise I have to reiterate the rest periods as well. Make sure you take them when you start to feel the burn.

Heating Aids

Likewise some people use cloth gloves to hold heat in order to keep the affected areas warmer. With leather these cloth gloves would always have to be clean if you did use them. I do know of an older lady with arthritis that does this for her leather work. In fact she has went so far as to get some gloves that are thicker and heat them in her stove as she works. Last time I checked she had 6 pair that she swaps out about every 20-30 minutes. She swears by them. I also know of some deburr workers that did this as well with some benefit.

Holding Work

Another item that I thought of last night that could be a contributing factor is holding down your work. Several people have complained of hand cramps because they are trying too hard with downward pressure by the hand to hold their leather down to keep it from walking around and gripping the tool at the same time. Quick fixes for this could either be gluing it down (some use glass or plexiglass) or making some shot bags to hold the leather project stationary. An added benefit of the glue/glass method is that it can help prevent stretch.

Sorry that I didn't mention these earlier. As mentioned before when you try one of these make sure and determine if they had a positive impact. If I think of others I will try to add them in.

Good luck!

Regards,

Ben

[TomSwede]

If you are like me you could probably learn how to stamp both right and left handed to relieve the normal hand a bit. I have to admit I never tried it on leather but I used to play the drums alot when I was younger and even tough it slowed pace down a bit I did manage to drum like a left handed person aswell as playing basic comps with one hand. I also played two bass drums and could switch freely in between them.

Just a thought that struck me.

And just for the fun of it while we're at subject, check out this guy. Michael Angelo Batio and his double guitar action. This dude plays anyway, anyhow and just because.

No fake, dude does this live.

Tom