Sharpening for people with bad backs

[EdipisReks]

I have been putting off sharpening, for a long while, due to my back, but my personal knives were at the point where stropping on a finishing stone wasn't doing it anymore, and I had sold a knife that needed sharpening, and had to get it out. I have 4 bulged discs, and after sharpening, I feel every one of them. I sharpen on a tall counter with wooden blocks that raise the station as high as possible, so that I don't have to move that much, but I would love suggestions from other people that have lumbar spine issues. For the last year and a half, since my thumb started acting up, I've been practicing edge longevity, with aggressive edges that can be touched up, but sometimes you just have to do a full sharpening, and I'd like to continue being able to do it. I have trained myself in the school of move the torso, not the arm, and I think that this is a problem for my back, but moving arms instead of torso is a less repeatable movement. This has been a big part of why I haven't been around on knife forums much, if anybody was wondering.

Thanks!

 

[glestain]

I have lower back problem too, bulge at two lower disc. Have to stretch every day. When noticing some tinkering on my leg, I wear the support belt right away, not to wait last minute. Pelvic tilt kind of stretching work for me. The belt is not a solution and if you too rely on it it will weaken your back.

 

[EdipisReks]

I do physical therapy. I'm not looking for things to do that help me sharpen, but things to change while sharpening.

 

[Von blewitt]

I don't have back problems, but I think a setup where you can sit will help to restrict the movement of your torso and shoulders. Also shortening the length of your strokes may help, although less efficient.

 

[larrybard]

When you say that moving your arms rather than torso is "less repeatable" it sounds as if inasmuch as you're unaccustomed to using primarily your arms for sharpening it would be a less precise motion than what you've become used to. But I assume that many people have mastered the arm motions (i.e., keeping the angle relatively fixed as the arms move back and forth) -- and maybe, if that might be less of a strain on your back, it's worth considering learning?

 

[gic]

Put a little riser on the floor and keep one foot on it and one foot off it and see if that helps - start with something maybe 4-6 inches high and adjust up or down until you find a height that seem to relieve tension on the back???? Also don't wear a belt - belts are terrible for your back...

 

[apicius9]

I don't have chronic pain issues, but sharpening is one of the occasions when I get back pain - others are washing dishes etc, all activities where I need to pay more attention to the optimal work height. For me it works best to support myself with a bar stool so that I am not standing but also not slouching in a chair. Then I pile up cutting boards and whatever else for a safe base at the right hight. But it is a nuisance, and my knives are also in pitiful shape because I procrastinate with it...

Stefan

 

[EdipisReks]

Thanks, guys.

 

[Marcelo Amaral]

It helped me when i changed the sharpening from a standing position to a sitting position adjusting the stones to a height that was comfortable.

 

[Asteger]

Definitely. Set up a sharpening desk of some sort. Just need a bowl of water and a towel, plus the usual.

 

[CutFingers]

Okay here's a thought. Get four pieces of all thread bar and make a table using mdf or birchply. Mount a square stainless sink to the table. Using the threads of the nuts with the washers you can essentially have infinite adjustments to your comfort zone. Do a search for all thread table, or DIY all thread audio rack. It doesn't have to be a complicated build, it should be simple and rugged because it's going to be saturated in mud and grit after a marathon sharpening session.

 

[psfred]

Hard to say what would help. My mother can no longer cook or do dishes very well for the same reasons (back pain) but she's 90, not a young pup like us.

Is sitting better? You should be able to set up something to get things a the right height if it is. Otherwise, I find that I like to work standing but do not move my back, just my arms. It takes a while to learn pivot your shoulder while moving your elbow correctly to get very little angle change at your hands, but it's easily doable and should greatly reduce the strain on your disks as you won't be rocking them back and forth. You might try bracing yourself against a table, too, to give yourself a steadier stance.

The real key, I think, is to get your stones at the proper height to allow you to pivot your shoulder without raising and lowering your elbow, maybe 20 degrees of rotation from 10 degrees back from vertical on the upper arm to 10 degrees forward. With your arm held out from your side a bit, you get almost no rotation at your hands, so it's easy to hold a bevel angle. Might take a bit of 'body training" to quite rocking your torso, but that is how I have begun to sharpen things. With waterstones very little pressure is required, so it's easy if you are a bit patient and allow the stones to do the work (which will also put less stress on your back, I think).

Dull knives are very annoying, but so is severe back pain. I've had enough of that to know, I'm prone to muscle spasms and bulged disks are probably worse.

Peter