On Wednesday, June 20, 2018 at 2:49:57 PM UTC+1, John Rumm wrote:
On 20/06/2018 12:17, jkn wrote:
Hi All
I am thinking of getting a circular saw (185mm) for a few jobs around the
place. I am plenty 'handy' enough but for woodworking have tended to stick to
hand tools for most of the things I need to do.

Apart from the fact that they are scary things, one other consideration for me
is that I am left handed, and have a small and somewhat 'malformed' right hand
(Poland's Syndrome, if anyone is interested).

This normally causes me no problems, but I am aware that tools like this are
increasingly ergonomically designed for the majority right-handed folk. My right
hand has less strength than my left and sometimes it is awkward for me to
'hold a handle and press a button' with it at the same time - stuff like that.

Are there any left-handers here who can offer opinions about designs that are
better suited (or less ill-suited) to the sinister amongst us?

FWIW I was thinking of the Evolution Rage saw, which I have seen get good press
here.

Circular saws are not especially "handed" as such since the handles are
designed to work with either hand.

They have to chose which side the blade is on with respect to the body,
Oddly most cordless circular saws opt for the other orientation...


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Gosh, what a lot of replies to my posting ... some almost on-topic! ;-)

In answer to a couple of questions raised:

- Yes, Poland's Syndrome like I understand Jeremy Beadle had. I have never seen
a close-up of his hand so don't know how similar mine it - there is a lot of
variation in the effect, and in fact the main diagnostic feature is not the
'dactyl' (claw-like) hand, but a loss of the pectoral muscle and change in
the rib shape on the same side. However that is not so noticeable, at least
with my clothes on ;-o

- would I have been right-handed otherwise? Who knows. My parents did not
pressure me, thank Bob, which I think in part accounts for my general skill
with my hands. I can type, drive, hang-glide, play the guitar and several
other instruments, ect. ect. No-one else in my family is left-handed. I don't
feel in any sense that I 'might have been' right handed, but I think it very
possible.that without having the Syndrome that I would have been.

- I play the guitar right-handed, and use a mouse mat right handed.

As for the actual question ... Seems like I might have to go into a shop and
have a go at man-handling a saw. I am sure I can use it by standing askance if
necessary, I just wondered if there were some that were less 'handed' than
others. It's a bit like cameras, which are getting incredibly ergonomic ...
as long as your hands fit the makers' idea of what shape a hand should be...

Cheers
J^n