Avoiding Writer's Bump (Callus)

[akshayv]

I have several foot issues (bunions, hammertoe, pronation, and neuroma) and it is hard to find a shoe that I can walk in all day. Well, finally I did! I have Orthofeet's grey and red pair and they look and feel terrific and have great arch support. Will definitely look in to purchasing another pair.

[Inkling13]

If you went to Catholic school back in the day, I heard that if the teacher couldn't snatch the pen out from your hand due to a loose grip, you'd get a beating. Maybe you need a nun? jk. Conscious effort to break the habit.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Finally made some pictures of the 'forefinger up' method of grasping a fountain pen. An automatic light grip...............no more Death Grip.....and remember to keep the thumb a flat dam....no Kung Fu Death Pinch....

The Classic Tripod puts pressure down on the pen from the 10&2 positions.

With the thumb held flat at 08:30-09:00 there can be no down pressure. The forefinger rests on the top of the pen.

The pen will not somersault out of your hand.

Move the pen from the nail joint to 1/3 inch into the fat of the finger pad.

Pens used a Pelikan 400 and a 605.

It takes three minutes to learn, will take some three days to become real accustomed to it....which is better than the 3 months to a year it takes to lighten a Classic Tripod with it's built in over pressure finger and thumb positions....along with the cocked high pressure Kung Fu Thumb Death Grip.

 

I learned this on the com....having a painful dent at my middle finger joint...that was a bit of nerve damage more than likely from Death Grip ball points; that didn't go away with Death Grip held fountain pens.

 

This shows a flat thumb. Bow of the forefinger good....as you will see one can bend it a bit....but you don't want an 'elbow' bend in the forefinger....in that will cause unneeded pressure.

Showing where the pen should rest on the middle finger pad....away from the nail junction.And a 12:00-12:30 resting forefinger position.

Fairly good forefinger up positions. The thumbnail is 1/3 past the forefinger crease....for a higher hold.....a tad too much forefinger bend...but acceptable, in comfort is the main thing...but it is not bent. No mid finger joint poking up in the air like an elbow.

Here the thumb is higher up the barrel...near the forefinger pad crease.

 

With the thumbnail at the crease of the forefinger joint the pen will rest deeper into your hand, more at a 40 degree angle at the start of the web of your thumb....If the thumbnail is a tad before the forefinger crease the pen will rest higher close to 45 degrees.

If you are more comfortable there with 'that' pen. A pen should rest where it wishes....if heavier or longer a bit deeper in to the web of the thumb.

It's your decision, but by moving just the thumbnail a bit down from the forefinger crease, your pens angle will be higher to right after the index knuckle....if you wish.

Above...flat thumb.

 

A fairly straight forefinger up.....comfort is part....a bit of bow in the forefinger is not bad....as long as it's only a bit.............when you have bent the knuckle that is too much.

Just a slightly wider pen.

Edited January 17, 2018 by Bo Bo Olson

[MuddyWaters]

This has been the bane of my search in fountain pens. Most of the issue is the grip, but the shadow and ergonomics of the pen also affect how easy loosening the grip will be.

 

I have found the jinhao 159 to be the easiest pen to do the forefinger up position as I learned from one of bobo's older posts. It has a thick grip and thicker mid barrel that fills the hand, and a tapering end that fits well in the closing narrower crease of the hand between thumb and index. I have found thick section to not be sufficient, and a tapering end to also be useful, so I wonder how I would find big cylindrical pens like pelikans, perhaps not as comfortable as Mont Blanc style.

 

The caveat though, is that forefinger promotes shallower angle of writing, which my jinhao nib is not well ground for. Same for my Lamy 2000 which is ground for more upright finger writing, and narrowband slippery for fore finger up anyway.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Thumb placement before the front of the index joint crease will raise the back of the pen.

 

I find it don't matter much if the pen is thin, regular or thicker...forefinger up works just as well....in you are not using 10-2 down pressure points, nor the deadly Kung Fu Thumb Pinch. The flatter thumb at 08:30-09:00 is only a dam...the pen rests against.

[james3paris]

As a young man, I developed writer´s bump while writing airplane tickets with a ballpoint !

 

I came to hate ballpoints, and never had that problem again using a FP, you are probably putting too much pressure on your grip.

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