Hi,
I am using a sandbag (that my mom made for me, years ago😍) to support my hands while pulse arc welding…i rest my hands in the contoured, forward edge of the sandbag, and can adjust the contour of the sandbag easily…
it allows me to stabilize my hands and just move my fingers ever so slightly to make contact with the electrode
…I was inspired by Jeff Herman’s website where i saw him resting large objects on a sandbag…
please note, the orion user manual does caution against having flammable objects near the weld area…i am looking to replace my denim covered sandbag with a leather covered one…
There are rests made specifically for rifle target shooters, and for in-the-field hunters that might be adaptable for some jewelry applications. I know some may be uncomfortable with the gun aspect but consider these just as tools that are intended for steadying, and you may find something that works for you.
Some are just bags, which can be heavy, filled with sand. Others intended to be carried in the field for hunting can have a very light fill.
Some devices can be raised on screw posts or gears and locked in place rather than yield the way a filled bag might.
There are many variations / models available. The tripod / screw rests seem to be quite large, and I’d love to find a small one to rest my arm on while I place solder chips. I’d also love to find an affordable, rock-solid turntable for soldering that doesn’t jiggle the solder out of position.
As you may guess at this point I have a lot of trouble placing bits of solder if the workpiece is enough above my soldering bench surface, say on a tripod stand, and even more so if it is on a shaky turntable.
regarding soldering…on a related note, i sharpen my welding electrodes out of my studio…on the patio…using a variable speed dremel clamped vertically in a vice…and have been concocting various simple hand stabilizing supports…using varying heights of blocks of 2x4…perhaps 4x4 blocks would be better for soldering…i am using 2x4’s because a) thats what was on hand, and b) the vice jaws are narrow…
i need to set up my extra foredom out there…the lowest dremel speed is too fast for my liking…
sometimes when i feel like making it a meditative activity, i place my solderite board on a piece of paper, in my sweeps drawer, which is approximately at waist height…
i spin the paper to spin the board…
i let the flux dry and then either solder there, or move the board to my soldering station/ rotating pan, which is more at chest height…
i also use stacked fire bricks across the front of my station as hand supports when using my pick or tweezers…
