Hello, folks!

Anyone out there ever have to contend with a case of carpenter's elbow (otherwise known as tennis elbow)? I just started timberframing this year at Dreaming Creek in Virginia. I seem to have developed a mild-to-moderate case of this dreaded malady after a nine-week stint of overtime, and would gratefully welcome any advice, testimonials, stories of recovery and return to work, etc. I love my job and really don't want to lose it. The pain hasn't yet gotten to the point of keeping me from working altogether, but lifting heavy tools like the 16-inch circular saws and the planers is getting difficult. I want to nip this in the bud if I can.

Many thanks for any advice and encouragement.

Nina Cohen
Floyd, VA

Hi Nina:
I suspect that the old carpenters elbow is probably combined with the dreaded "trigger finger" malady. There are many places to look for help. Your employer should assist you before it becomes a Worker's compensation issue.
The injury you have in place is common. A closer look at the causes would include a discussion of mallet weight and style, technique for using same (I learned too late that a tight grip on a hammer is incorrect), and height of work surface (too high or low changes the swing and tool placement geometry). One of the fellows I work with has a cool gryoscope type of physical therapy device that he uses and there are free market accupressure solutions.
In fact: I get the same pains from this machine if I am in poor posture and position. Let me know what else you find, but discuss the issue with your supervisor first.
Curtis

We have seen this occur with a number of new timber framers. We actually have a name for it: "Benson's Elbow".

I personally think it is a type of bursitis. Homeopathic ointments containing arnica seem to help a lot. So does not agrivating it by continuing to pound on the chisel when the pain flares up.

Sharpening your chisel doesn't hurt either.

Hi all:
My esteemed associated is right, you can not be sharp enough. In fact a sharp chisel and quality saw work will allow one to chisel very little. I do think the trigger finger issue is overlooked. Regarding remedies: a traditional ointment of oil (olive works well)and St Johns wort, called red oil by the old timers, is awesome. Recipe available from your local herbalist I am sure.
Curtis

I am a long term carpenter and would like to pick up the point on saw horse height. Many factors compete on the right height for each job but I find it hard to make horses that are to short for timber framing. My current horses come to the hinge of my knee. Loading on 8 inch stock brings the working height to mid-thigh. At that height, I can step over or even straddle the stock without dumping my apron. I believe it is important that horses with stock loaded do not become a barrier to moving around or over.

For chisel work consider this. Stand erect, arms to your side, make a fist, wrist straight, the height from the floor to your second knuckle, in common experience, is called anvil height. Generations of furious whacking has established this ideal. Fortunately mallets are not as heavy as forging hammers nor is the shock as great. Somehow a balance of power, safety and personal abuse are encoded into the anvil height. I know all of us are striking chisels above that mid-thigh ideal. I think, for me, that striking at/or above mid-forearm is annoying and elbow high as damaging. Horses that are to high can lock you into a very restricted range of motion. Since my background is stud framing, I prefer a mallet that is long handled and light headed, much like a rip-claw framing hammer, power stems from head speed.

Finally, when lifting heavy tools or timber above waist height, bad form power usually comes from back coiling , instead of the legs. I feel that I work best when I am free to move and not encumbered by the set- up. Good luck.

Dear folks:

Wow, thank you all for the good suggestions. Just yesterday a friend of mine also recommended St. John's Wort oil, and offered me some she made from plants she picked on her land.
I definitely must concur that a sharp chisel makes a huge difference in the amount of force needed to do a job. John Miller, Dreaming Creek's shop manager, showed me how to REALLY get a good edge on a tool, and I can hardly believe how much easier hand tool work is! I also found that a heavier mallet and more relaxed grip greatly reduce the work my arm has to do. I've been experimenting with relaxing my wrist to allow the mallet head to pick up more speed, and allowing the weight of the head to do most of the work. However, I've decided to take a break completely for a few weeks from using the mallet for more than a few minutes at a time. According to my doctor, what my arms need most right now is a rest from anything that causes pain.
I also agree that the height at which one is working is crucial. I think a lot of my injury did indeed come from cleaning out mortises with my elbow well above chest height to get to the taller timbers. Of course, it occurred to me that it doesn't seem to make much sense to lower the sawhorses, as timbers that are too low would make things like layout awkward and difficult. Rather, I plan to build myself a little step stool/bench type thing with a carrying handle that I can take from timber to timber. Five or six inches seems to be a good height for me (I'm 5'7"). It's also a point well taken that the best way to get into the best working position can be to just climb up onto or straddle the timber.
I didn't mention that I actually have tendonitis in BOTH elbows, so it's not just the mallet use that's at fault (though the mallet arm is certainly worse than the other). I suspect that a lot of heavy lifting with my palms facing the floor has a lot to do with it. I'm trying to figure out how to lift the planer and other heavy tools without putting undue strain on the upper forearms. It also seems like the problem comes from having to lift the tools up from the ground over and over while doing the same job on successive timbers. I plan to suggest to John that maybe some way of being able to rest the tool on a moveable cart or on a nearby timber could reduce a lot of strain on all of us in the shop. The concern is that resting a very expensive tool on a timber puts it in jeopardy of falling and breaking, so we've been asked to rest the tools on the ground, but there has to be a better way.
Meanwhile, I'm also taking prescription anti-inflammatory medication, icing my elbows a lot, wesring braces, and not doing anything that hurts. My doctor says that tendons tend to heal slowly, and one can expect it to take six to twelve weeks after starting to deal with the problem before pain goes away. Sometimes longer. Sigh. I'm very grateful that Dreaming Creek is being really supportive, and allowing me to do what I need to do. They're great folks.
All this makes me think about how difficult it can be to use some of the tools in an ergonomically safe way. Most everyone I've talked to at work has had some sort of overuse injury or other at one time. For instance, has anyone figured out how to use Mafell's hand-held bandsaw without putting lots of strain on the lower back? If so, I'd love to hear about it.
Again, thank you all for the help. Wish me luck.

Nina Cohen

Take a look at the men at work in the Mafell catalogue. At what height do they work? A traditional practice other than clothing is in action. Save your back, work lower than your waist.

Dear Nina,

I too have been suffering from tennis elbow in my left arm and I have never played tennis ! This comes mainly from two fingered typing.

Apparently it helps if you stop using the index finger.

The bad news is that this condition does not cure itself quickly if at all. In my case now well over a year and still not back to normal.

I would suggest some lateral thinking that will both improve your arm and quality of carpentry.

Medieval carpenters could not have been immune to this condition and a tool was developed and used in both England (twybill) and France (besaigue) which is like a long (48") chisel equipped with a paring blade at one end and registered chisel at the other with a machine gun handle about half way between both ends. These were used for cleaning out mortice pockets and paring across tenons.

The major difference with the use of this tool is that the work piece is laid on the ground and not on a trestle and the carpenter stands above the work and uses body weight to make smooth cutting actions rather than repetitive nerve tingling mallet blows which both damage and inflame the nerve sheathings. I have noted that using this type of tool also has the beneficial effect of reducing grain squashing and pull out on brittle softwoods e.g douglas fir.

You can see an original Diderot illustration of one of these tools in action on page 195 in Jack Sobon's first book Timber frame construction.

You can buy one of these tools made to measure for your own height from Barr Quarton to a design supplied by Paul Russell from Sussex, England which was based on an original French tool which Paul uses in his everyday work.

I wish you well in your chosen career.

Regards

Ken Hume
Hampshire, England
ken.hume@pareuro.com