I am thinking about making a friend a custom set of crutches. I was planing on just making curved laminates of various woods. Has anyone ever done this, or does anyone see a flaw with doing it this way. The glued up legs should be plenty strong i would think.
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Replies
wisky,
is your friend more or less permanently be-crutched? i think of crutches as being a temporary thing, is why i ask. i have, of course, never made them. i'm thinking: bend like a big snowshoe or an even bigger tennis racket. bent laminations are certainly very strong. perhaps laminating various contrasting colored woods...
eef
What a cool idea! Traditional "underarm crutches" would be easy to build and you could eliminate weight for the user because of the extra material included in "off-the-shelf" crutches to make them adjustable. Weight is a big deal if you use adaptive devices daily! Weight saved = the user's energy saved. You'll need to maintain the "geometry" for pads and tips, since these must be replaced over time.
I use forearm crutches, sometimes referred to as "Canadian" crutches. The darned things are "EXPENSIVE" and like many consumer products over the last few years production has gone "off shore" so the quality has dropped, IE; plastic parts which used to be solid aluminum parts.
I think I'll get busy in the shop!
RexJ
Yeah im talking about just normal old crutches, but the guy (a friend of a friend) is permanently handicapped. So they would not need to be adjustable making it a considerably lighter and easer project. I am thinking contrasting laminated woods. For the form we might just be able to use an old set of crutches and bend the wood right to those,
Hi wt
Just check with a medical person before you invest too much time in your project. My wife recently broke her ankle and was issued with the forearm crutches. I inquired about the underarm ones and they said they weren't used anymore because of some problems they caused.
Regards
wot
I think you idea is great - especially the alternating-wood laminations.
I would recommend building a form - high enough to enable you to bend two, or preferably four half-sections. When sawed apart and jointed you would be assured of identical shapes: Both for the two individual crutches. but for both half's of a single crutch.
As to the issue of unfavorable results for full crutches, I offer this: I suffered an ankle injury requiring surgery. (Playing tennis to stay healthy. Who can figure?)
I was on crutches for 6 weeks. During that time I (a) learned to appreciate those push button door openers and (b)could not imagine how the grossly obese could handle regular crutches. I never had any arm-pit problem as I had more than adequate upper body strength to use my arms to support myself. Evaluate your friend with this in mind.
Hi Frosty
>Playing tennis to stay healthy. Who can figure?<
I'll stick to weight lifting, a couple of fluid ounces at a time.
About arm-pit problems, how do you manage?, my wife always says I have arm-pit problems after a day in the shop.
I have attached a shot of your Sahara Desert. (I hope. This my first attempt to post a shot)
regards
wot
Sahara Desert
Didn't work - well back to the drawing board
Check out Roy Underhill's
Check out Roy Underhill's episode 2909 "A Crutch in Time". He shows how to make a traditional crutch. You can watch the episode online:
http://www.pbs.org/woodwrightsshop/schedule/29season_video.html
What I wanted to Say on this post! I agree// With a real user.. I think laminations are way STRONGER!
Bring the user to your shop if possibLe and hand fit to him/her... Even drive to them and take them back to your home for fitting.
I would suggest using standard wood crutches as a pattern. Crutches have gone through centuries of evolution to arrive at a good configuration. I have fitted many patients with crutches, and would point out that the upper cross-bars, even though curved as though to fit arm-pits should never be hung on by the user. The weight is to be born by the hands and arms! Thus, both over-all length, and distance from handle to floor are critical. There are also several different crutch-gaits depending on the type of dissability, and affecting the type of crutch needed.
Tom, M.D.
Tom,
When I was on crutches, man, I thought of lots of ergonomic improvements. For instance, the front and back part of the armpit aren't the same level. Seems like a minor design tweak would make a big difference in comfort.
Also, what would happen if the bottoms of the crutches were flared out just a bit? Not much, just enough to keep one from getting tangled up in them so easily. Flaring the bottoms would also seem to make a wider base for more stability.
These things could be addressed in custom-built crutches, but it seems they should already be available. Does one need to custom make crutches to get improvements such as these, or are they already available?
As an aside, I was heavily medicated at the time I was dreaming these up, so I'm not sure if these ideas carry over to a rational mind.
--jonnieboy
Over active life style has led to a couple of sessions with crutches. The forearm or Canadian style are much superior. It is much easier to maneuver in tight spaces (typical office or cubicle), they are easier to hold in one hand when going up stairs, when in a theater or sitting at a large table or in a car their smaller size makes them easier to stow.
john,
...but were they made of wood?
eef
Over active life style has led to a couple of sessions with crutches. The forearm or Canadian style are much superior. It is much easier to maneuver in tight spaces (typical office or cubicle), they are easier to hold in one hand when going up stairs, when in a theater or sitting at a large table or in a car their smaller size makes them easier to stow.
Good call on the Titebond 3. FWW rated it the strongest in lab tests a while back.
(Though I think regular Titebond would be strong enough in a lamination)
I think Tightbond III is great stuff, Maybe a Tightbond III/one half wiht a bit more open time would be better.
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