Turning and back problems

[frugal]

I was out in the workshop last night and when I came in I realised that my back was killing me. The last time I went out my back was hurting the morning afterwards. I treated it with a hot pack, a cold pack and some pain killers, and I do not feel too bad this morning.

Obviously I would rather that I stopped it occuring rather than came up with an effective way of dealing with the after effects. Especially as I have a protruding lumbar vertebrae which has a tendency to press on the spinal nerves if I do things wrong.

My set up is that I have the baby ASWL axminster lathe which is currently mounted on top of some old kitchen cabinets. The cabinets are 900mm high, which puts the lathe axis slightly above elbow height. I have some anti-fatigue mats on the floor in front of the lathe and decent cusioned boots on my feet.

I know that one of the things I need to do is take shorter sessions (when SWMBO came out to tell me just how late it was, I had been stood at the lathe for about 3 hours).

I have my back strengthening exercises from the physio to try and build up the muscles to protect my back, but does anyone else have any hints or tricks for preventing back ache whilst turning?

 

[Paul.J]

This is where the swivel head comes in handy.
Stops you from leaning over the lathe and lets you stand more upright when hollowing for instance.
The height is also important but depends what you will be turning most.
I have mine above elbow height so i am not crouching so much.
John Jordan also recommends doing some stretching exercises before starting a turning session,which he illustrates in his book.

 

[wizer]

I can only echo Paul's comments. Ellsworth's book has specific 'warm up' exercises in it. But it's all standard stuff, any work out stretches will help. Again, the swivel head has helped tremendously. My lathe is currently too low for me and I need it raised by about 4inches, ideally. You could try wearing either a corset or weight lifters belt when turning. This does nothing to protect you except it reminds you when you are hunching over or slouching. You still have to make the effort to put yourself in the right position. It's really important to constantly remind yourself to stand right. Get your abdominals as strong as you possibly can and that will keep a wall of protection around your back. Sadly, sometimes you just can't prevent the pain. It's going to happen no matter what. As you say, shorter sessions will help. That can be hard if turning wet wood and even some dry wood will move on you after 24hrs. Last summer I was doing the outside of a bowl one day and the inside the next. It works well but is incredibly slow work. After my Roly course next month, I'm thinking of getting a hollowing rig sorted. This is 'cheating' to many. But I'd rather cheat than give up. Any short cuts you can take to take the pressure off your back is worth doing IMHO.

 

[SVB]

This is where the swivel head comes in handy.

Makes spindle work a bit more interesting as well!!!!!






Hat, coat - Bye! :lol: :lol: :lol:

S

 

[robo hippy]

I continually do small stretches while turning, but way more when sanding as I am just standing there. Bend your knees a bit, swivel your hips, shift your weight from one foot to the other. I took up Thai Chi which gave me a lot of small things I could do for balance and movement. Never could do yoga though. Mostly for me, I do have to remind myself to stand up straight. I tend to relax a bit and bend over. Sucking in your gut does help line up your back the way it is supposed to be. My 'turning muscle' is bigger than it should be.

Dunlaps disease: My belly done laps over my belt.

I knew I was a furniture maker when my chest went into my drawers.

robo hippy

 

[mikec]

Hi frugal

I had exactly the same problem 2 1/2 years ago, c7 vertebra went sideways and crushed the nerve. :shock: :? :? leading to a 3 month layup.

I have found that having my lathe higher than normal to remove any stooping helps a lot. I'm 5' 11". I also try not to stand twisted in any way for any length of time though it only takes a second for the whole shebang to go into spasms.

Keep moving and stretch regularly. Time does fly.

My missus says why do I do it if I get pains, silly question :wink: :wink:

Regards,

Mike C

 

[CHJ]

As Paul says a swivel head lathe so that you don't lean over to access bowls.
More importantly I think Relax; a lot of people tense up without realising it, try to improve your stance position and develope a method of swinging the body from the hips/legs rather than bending or twisting the back.

Edit: Try raising the lathe even further, anothe 70-80mm.

 

[frugal]

I need to build a stand of some description in the near future. In the mean time I might just build a pair of 80mm legs on top of a piece of MDF as a base to see how I go and to get the height right.

As to buying a swivel head lathe, I will have to start saving

 

[wizer]

Good idea. Try some temp stands to find out your ideal working heigh and then build something more substantial. That's another point. If you're having to contend with vibration, well that's going to make a bee-line for you spine. So you need to get the lathe as solid as possible.

As for swivel lathes... I've heard Woodfast are good.... 8) :lol:

 

[frugal]

As for swivel lathes... I've heard Woodfast are good.... 8) :lol:

If I had a spare £750, then I would have bitten Mark's arm off for his Hegner already

 

[Paul.J]

When you are hollowing or bowl turning have you tried standing at the end of the lathe,if possible and using like a short bed lathe.
This should also let you stand more upright and see into the piece better.