the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

In article , Tom wrote:

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

Have her check in with her rheumatologist, her physical therapist (if
she has one) or the local council on aging (in the US). They should have
information on assistive devices, if any.

--
People thought cybersex was a safe alternative,
until patients started presenting with sexually
acquired carpal tunnel syndrome.-Howard Berkowitz

On 6/30/2011 1:47 PM, Tom wrote:
the elderly lady who loves nearby

oops, "lives" before any jokes fly

my I and O keys are worn off, so much for Dell.

On 6/30/2011 2:13 PM, Kurt Ullman wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

Have her check in with her rheumatologist, her physical therapist (if
she has one) or the local council on aging (in the US). They should have
information on assistive devices, if any.


thank you, good idea. maybe I'll check the council on aging for her. I doubt
she will do any checking herself, so the other two are unfortunately out.

Tom wrote in :

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with
rheumatoid arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days
are made with triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and
so does the thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into
the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

I know you're trying to help, but go a step further, and "borrow" her hedge
clippers. Cut a little of your hedge, then all of hers ...

(Easily said, since I don't think I live close to you)
--
Best regards
Han
email address is invalid

In article , Tom wrote:

On 6/30/2011 2:13 PM, Kurt Ullman wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with
rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on'
position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

Have her check in with her rheumatologist, her physical therapist (if
she has one) or the local council on aging (in the US). They should have
information on assistive devices, if any.


thank you, good idea. maybe I'll check the council on aging for her. I doubt
she will do any checking herself, so the other two are unfortunately out.

Later I thought that there is likely a chapter of the Arthritis
Foundation nearby (arthritis.org) that might be able to help. Check in,
too, with the maker of the clippers.

--
People thought cybersex was a safe alternative,
until patients started presenting with sexually
acquired carpal tunnel syndrome.-Howard Berkowitz

Tom wrote:
the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with
rheumatoid arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days
are made with triggers that take a lot more force than years ago -
and so does the thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper
into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

Take the hedge clippers apart. There might be a way to defeat the safety
lock.

Of course if you're in California, there might be a law prohibiting the
defeating of safety locks.

Tom wrote:

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

The problem here is that if the person lacks the hand strength to
operate the safety device, they probably also lack the hand strength to
safely operate the device.

"Tom" wrote in message ...
On 6/30/2011 1:47 PM, Tom wrote:
the elderly lady who loves nearby

oops, "lives" before any jokes fly

my I and O keys are worn off, so much for Dell.

Marker pen??? Draw the I & O on the keys. WW

On 6/30/2011 2:47 PM, Han wrote:
Tom wrote in :

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with
rheumatoid arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days
are made with triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and
so does the thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into
the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

I know you're trying to help, but go a step further, and "borrow" her hedge
clippers. Cut a little of your hedge, then all of hers ...

(Easily said, since I don't think I live close to you)

But she loves doing it, almost as much as using her weed whacker - which she
uses twice a week or so. She also believes the activity is good for her
health, and is almost certainly right.

All these had nothing:
National Council on Aging
the local office
Lowes
retailers of assistance devices, like wrightstuff.biz & enablingdevices.com

(The senior-related ones don't have the irritating phone menu navigations.)

Black & Decker does have the menus, then played a recording about how they
strive for quality in customer service... then ironically disconnected me -
their system is broken since yesterday.

With the Arthritis Foundation, I ended up in India, then realized they were
the first one. (Maybe the tide has turned in outsourcing.) But also no help.

I'd thought of an inline power switch and rigging the trimmer's mechanical
triggers to be always on, but that wouldn't be safe. It's probably
theoretically possible to use levers on the triggers, but not practical to
fashion anything.

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear. Thanks for the replies.

In article , Tom wrote:


But she loves doing it, almost as much as using her weed whacker - which she
uses twice a week or so. She also believes the activity is good for her
health, and is almost certainly right.


One last suggestion and then I'll let you go. Yahoogroups and a
couple of other places have arthritis-related forums. You might try
there. This is where you might find the ingenious person with the same
problem that solved it with a small bit of chewing gum and bailing wire
(grin).

--
People thought cybersex was a safe alternative,
until patients started presenting with sexually
acquired carpal tunnel syndrome.-Howard Berkowitz

On Jun 30, 1:47*pm, Tom wrote:
the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

In article , Tom wrote:

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear.

There are several solutions, each of which take more than 5 minutes.

On Jun 30, 10:47*am, Tom wrote:
the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

On Jul 1, 12:18*pm, DD_BobK wrote:
On Jun 30, 10:47*am, Tom wrote:

the elderly lady who loves nearby has fingers that are gnarled with rheumatoid
arthritis. Meanwhile, electric hedge clippers these days are made with
triggers that take a lot more force than years ago - and so does the
thumb-operated catch that lets you lock the clipper into the 'on' position.

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

Tom-

How elderly? * Should she really be using a hedge clipper in her
condition?

Of course if she's an independent / determined person it will be very
difficult *to get her to give up these sorts of activities.

I "borrowed" my mom's 6' step ladder when she was in her early
80's.....
I always told her "I'm not done with it, what do you need me to get
down for you?" When she asked for it back.

Her solution, drive to Home Depot, buy a ladder, use it, return it.

Like I said, hard to stop some people.

Possible to make it easier to use the clipper but I'd be worried about
compromising the safety.

cheers
Bob

If yuou take it apart, youmaybe able to replace a srping with a
slightly weaker one. I too have a few appliances with hard to hold
switches, but have not had to take drastic action yet.

On 7/1/2011 12:59 PM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear.

There are several solutions, each of which take more than 5 minutes.

haha! There's always a dope what comes up with a dope answer.

In article , Tom wrote:

On 7/1/2011 12:59 PM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear.

There are several solutions, each of which take more than 5 minutes.

haha! There's always a dope what comes up with a dope answer.

Dopey? The "call the arthritis foundation" and answers of that ilk were
the dopey suggestions.

This is a DIY group. Many of us here could readily dismantle the switch
and lighten its action in some way. But without it sitting here in my
hands, how the hell could I field engineer a solution?

You basically need to lighten the action or extend the lever. (Hint:
"lever" is the root word of "leverage") There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

On 7/3/2011 11:27 AM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

On 7/1/2011 12:59 PM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear.

There are several solutions, each of which take more than 5 minutes.

haha! There's always a dope what comes up with a dope answer.

Dopey? The "call the arthritis foundation" and answers of that ilk were
the dopey suggestions.

This is a DIY group. Many of us here could readily dismantle the switch
and lighten its action in some way. But without it sitting here in my
hands, how the hell could I field engineer a solution?

You basically need to lighten the action or extend the lever. (Hint:
"lever" is the root word of "leverage") There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

In article , Tom wrote:

On 7/3/2011 11:27 AM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

On 7/1/2011 12:59 PM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

So I guess there's no solution for the poor dear.

There are several solutions, each of which take more than 5 minutes.

haha! There's always a dope what comes up with a dope answer.

Dopey? The "call the arthritis foundation" and answers of that ilk were
the dopey suggestions.

This is a DIY group. Many of us here could readily dismantle the switch
and lighten its action in some way. But without it sitting here in my
hands, how the hell could I field engineer a solution?

You basically need to lighten the action or extend the lever. (Hint:
"lever" is the root word of "leverage") There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

Is that your final answer, asshole?

On 7/4/2011 4:15 AM, Smitty Two wrote:
In article , Tom wrote:

There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

Is that your final answer, asshole?

haha, you are such a pathetic little douchebag, smitty boy


first, you are the pompous doofus who suggests that you are superior (always
the sign of an insecure weasel)

then you elaborate your dopey theory that the safety features be tampered with
on a neighbor's hedge trimmer... "ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the
defendant willfully and recklessly altered the safety mechanisms mandated by
the government on a powerful electric device with sharp teeth, used by a
trusting senior citizen... and so was the actual cause and proximal cause of
the injuries that followed. His only defense is that a witless talking piece
of **** on the internet named 'smitty boy' said it was a good idea..."


haha, you are such a pompous dope. Now crawl back in your little hole like a
good weasel... unless you want to do a tantrum dance for our entertainment.

On Jul 4, 1:42*pm, Tom wrote:
On 7/4/2011 4:15 AM, Smitty Two wrote:

In article , Tom wrote:

There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

Is that your final answer, asshole?

haha, you are such a pathetic little douchebag, smitty boy

first, you are the pompous doofus who suggests that you are superior (always
the sign of an insecure weasel)

then you elaborate your dopey theory that the safety features be tampered with
on a neighbor's hedge trimmer... "ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the
defendant willfully and recklessly altered the safety mechanisms mandated by
the government on a powerful electric device with sharp teeth, used by a
trusting senior citizen... and so was the actual cause and proximal cause of
the injuries that followed. His only defense is that a witless talking piece
of **** on the internet named 'smitty boy' said it was a good idea..."

haha, you are such a pompous dope. Now crawl back in your little hole like a
good weasel... unless you want to do a tantrum dance for our entertainment.

On 7/4/2011 10:40 PM, DD_BobK wrote:
On Jul 4, 1:42 pm, Tom wrote:
On 7/4/2011 4:15 AM, Smitty Two wrote:

In article , Tom wrote:

There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

Is that your final answer, asshole?

haha, you are such a pathetic little douchebag, smitty boy

first, you are the pompous doofus who suggests that you are superior (always
the sign of an insecure weasel)

then you elaborate your dopey theory that the safety features be tampered with
on a neighbor's hedge trimmer... "ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the
defendant willfully and recklessly altered the safety mechanisms mandated by
the government on a powerful electric device with sharp teeth, used by a
trusting senior citizen... and so was the actual cause and proximal cause of
the injuries that followed. His only defense is that a witless talking piece
of **** on the internet named 'smitty boy' said it was a good idea..."

haha, you are such a pompous dope. Now crawl back in your little hole like a
good weasel... unless you want to do a tantrum dance for our entertainment.

Tom-

How do you realistically expect to address

Is there any way to make it easier for her?


without

the safety features be tampered with on a neighbor's hedge trimmer

you want to change how the thing works but not "tamper with it"


magic?

buy her an older model that, according to you, requires less force?

cheers
Bob


not magic at all, there is a big difference between an approved addon device
(at least one that is commercially available and has been somewhat tested),
and just removing material

P.S. where would you suppose that older model (used) hedge trimmers are
available? I have checked the classifieds.

On Jul 7, 11:20*am, Tom wrote:
On 7/4/2011 10:40 PM, DD_BobK wrote:









On Jul 4, 1:42 pm, Tom wrote:
On 7/4/2011 4:15 AM, Smitty Two wrote:

In article , Tom wrote:

There is no 5 minute bolt-on
solution you can buy at Wal-Mart for this, but there are plenty of
"solutions for the poor dear." You just don't have the intelligence or
the skill to create one.

you sound like a pompous little doofus, smitty boy

but you hear that all the time, don't you

notice that I charitably refrained from calling you 'asshole'

Is that your final answer, asshole?

haha, you are such a pathetic little douchebag, smitty boy

first, you are the pompous doofus who suggests that you are superior (always
the sign of an insecure weasel)

then you elaborate your dopey theory that the safety features be tampered with
on a neighbor's hedge trimmer... "ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the
defendant willfully and recklessly altered the safety mechanisms mandated by
the government on a powerful electric device with sharp teeth, used by a
trusting senior citizen... and so was the actual cause and proximal cause of
the injuries that followed. His only defense is that a witless talking piece
of **** on the internet named 'smitty boy' said it was a good idea..."

haha, you are such a pompous dope. Now crawl back in your little hole like a
good weasel... unless you want to do a tantrum dance for our entertainment.

Tom-

How do you realistically expect to address

Is there any way to make it easier for her?

without

the safety features be tampered with on a neighbor's hedge trimmer

you want to change how the thing works but not "tamper with it"

magic?

buy her an older model that, according to you, requires less force?

cheers
Bob

not magic at all, there is a big difference between an approved addon device
(at least one that is commercially available and has been somewhat tested),
and just removing material

P.S. where would you suppose that older model (used) hedge trimmers are
available? I have checked the classifieds.

"an approved add-on device", approved by whom?

I'd be very surprised if the "reduced force to activate" tool market
is large enough to warrant the design & development costs.

"there is a big difference between an approved addon device (at least
one that is commercially available and has been somewhat tested)"

You're dreaming..... I think magic is your best bet.

I await your design & working model.......

http://www.dimensionprinting.com/
http://i.materialise.com/


cheers
Bob