Some of us are blessed with manual dexterity,
but others, not so much. I’ve known people
whose hands are so steady they could do brain
surgery, but personally I have difficulty removing
a splinter, and this puts me at a disadvantage in
the maker universe.
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had a mild case of
“essential tremor.” This is a relatively common
neurological condition in which the brain over-
corrects in response to feedback from the fingers,
somewhat like a closed-loop servo system doing
“hunting” oscillations. Unlike Parkinson’s disease
(which has serious consequences), essential
tremor is harmless. It just annoys me when I
can’t apply the tip of a soldering iron precisely
where it is supposed to go.
Recently I discovered that there are simple
ways to deal with this problem, and the strategies
and gadgets may be helpful for detail work, even
if you don’t have especially shaky hands.
ADDING RESISTANCE
The simplest option is to add mass to the tool
that you’re using, because mass has inertia, and
inertia provides resistance to motion. Suppose
you are lifting a dumbbell. The weight is so
heavy, it will subdue any tremor in your hand. At
the other extreme, if you’re holding disposable
wooden chopsticks that weigh a couple of grams,
you may have difficulty picking up grains of rice.
Even a normal steel fork is easier to use than
chopsticks —and in fact people with significant
tremors can buy weighted knives, forks, and
spoons to improve their coordination. A set of
these “adaptive utensils” is shown in Figure
A
.
Other options also exist:
• If your handwriting is shaky, you can try a
weighted pen holder (Figure
B
).
• The all-purpose weighted handle in Figure
C
could receive a toothbrush … or a stylus for a
graphics tablet.
I might be able to address my soldering-iron
problem by wrapping something heavy around
the handle, such as 3M weighted tape, which is
sold for balancing automobile wheels. This is
expensive, though, and there’s a more general
solution which works with almost any small hand
tool. Figure
D
shows a double-walled cloth pad
13
make.co
Adobe Stock - cloud7days, Michelle Lowman, Kinsman Enterprises, SP Ableware, Charles Platt
A
Adaptive utensils, weighted to suppress hand tremors,
could be a model for precision hand tools.
These holders are secured to pen or pencil using a
grub screw that is tightened with an Allen wrench
(provided).
The Maddak Universal Handle, unfortunately not large
enough to accommodate the handle of a soldering iron.
The Hand Weight™ won't win any awards for design
elegance, but it works.
B
C
D
M81_012-15_GetaGrip_F1.indd 13M81_012-15_GetaGrip_F1.indd 13 4/12/22 1:21 PM4/12/22 1:21 PM
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