Press position relative to human

[Paddy]

I have my presses mounted on a big metal turntable and what I've found is that I much prefer to have the press angled to the right so that when I'm sitting or standing there, I swing my right arm in a bit of an arc, and it feels like there is more room for me to use the press. Especially with O presses, but really all of them. Also keeps lever arm out of my knees a bit.
Does anyone mount them this way? Seems most edge mounted presses are kind of designed to be square against the bench edge and the operator as well. Just an ergonomic observation.

 

[LiveLife]

When my work hired an "ergonomics" consulting company, they replaced our entire office desks, chairs, keyboard trays, etc. The main thing I took away from the technical information during the "ergonomics" transition was that we need to maintain "normal human operating postures" and our equipment needed to be adjusted to maintain those postures and range of motions.

Since I stand/walk a lot for work, I prefer to reload sitting down. It is more comfortable for me and allows me to relax. From my comfortable sitting position, all of my reloading equipment (bench height, press ram lever, etc.) are set to accommodate my body's natural range of motion. I am right handed, so all of the presses are mounted just to the right of midline which also allows me to set bullets for placing with my left hand.

Only exception is C-H 205 single stage I use for resizing .308 brass. With thicker walled military cases, I prefer to resize standing up with leverage properly applied with my hand/ram lever in a comfortable position by my waist.

I think press position is very personal and should be placed wherever makes you comfortable.

 

[9mmepiphany]

I'm no expert...certainly not one in ergonomics...but, I do have some experience, from Tai Chi training, in moving with your body as opposed to against it.

OP, it sounds like you favor using your bicep and chest muscles to move the handle. While this is a more expansive motion..."more room"...it is actually a less efficient use of your body.

If you offset your body to the press, as bds mentions, so that it's main body is aligned with your right leg/hip, you'll avoid any interference with your knees. You'll also find that it allows a more relaxed rotation of your right arm...I highly recommend the Inline Fabrication Ergo handle also to not over extend your back.

I've also been experimenting with sitting on a saddle chair

 

[Paddy]

Interesting. Yeah it's worth noting that I'm 6'5" as well. I have a stool but I simetimes stand to mix it up a bit. I hear you on the offset. More experimentation needed, however I feel any right armed person could benefit from a slight rightward bias on the press base.

 

[noylj]

I can not stand for more than a couple of minutes before my back cramps up. I sit and all three presses are mounted to a table. I position myself to the left in a position that I find comfortable and that is that. I adjust my lever arm to the length that is comfortable.
I sit in a "secretary" chair (no arms) and can load for hours with no discomfort.
I can not imagine standing to load (even if my back was perfect) and it just isn't comfortable to load at a bench on a tall stool. We all find what works best for us.

 

[cfullgraf]

I sit while reloading. Generally, the presses are angled a bit to the right so that the handle clears my legs.

My presses are all mounted on free standing floor stands which allows me to re-position the press to a comfortable position at each use.

 

[higgite]

I also sit to reload. All of my presses are mounted "straight" on the bench. I just position myself a couple of inches to the left so the lever doesn't hit my knees. Same effect as rotating the press to the right, I guess.

 

[Blue68f100]

All my precess are mounted straight. I do set off to the left side so the handle clears my knees. Feed every thing with the left hand. Ergonomics is all about have the body in it's most natural state through out the range of motion. I have tennis elbow ( and bad back) so keeping the hand wrist elbow in it's natural alignment is a must for me. I find that handles twist the wrist and elbow where the ball aligns every thing to float. I set when I'm reloading. Chair height is very important too. With my press handle full up my shoulder/arm is horizontal. This allows me to just lean in with my upper body (elbow locked) if I need more power.

 

[moxie]

My press is set a little to my right.

I sit on a swivel chair, and can angle my body into whatever position feels most comfortable.

 

[Potatohead]

When my work hired an "ergonomics" consulting company

Wow, shows if you're willing to pay for it, you can find an expert on anything. I want to work for an ergonomics consulting company when I grow up. I wonder where I can sign up?

Speaking of the ergos, I like a bit of an angle too, so I cock the chair a bit, and I work from a lee reloading stand, so it gets cocked to the side a bit too. Its easy to slide it on the hardwood because I put some of my socks on it!

For the chair, I use a tallish barstool, I like to kind of hover over everything.

 

[Walkalong]

If you offset your body to the press, as bds mentions, so that it's main body is aligned with your right leg/hip, you'll avoid any interference with your knees. You'll also find that it allows a more relaxed rotation of your right arm..

This is how I do it. I also bent the press arm on my LNL to mimic the one on my old Projector which keeps my arm from over extending either up or down.

 

[Tony k]

I like to be square with the press, letting the handle fall just to the right of my leg.

Biggest problem I've had is when I wasn't paying attention to reach. I was reaching out and slightly to the right during a marathon .45 acp session. I ended up with terrible pain in my right shoulder all the way to where my shoulder blade meets my spine.

Lesson I learned is to try to keep everything square and as close to your body as possible,

 

[buck460XVR]

I too sit when reloading. I changed the height and position of the press several times before it felt really comfortable for me. When friends come over to use it(I rather they use my equipment than have me reload for them), or my sons use it, they sometimes claim it is awkward for them. This tells me we're not all the same........

 

[9mmepiphany]

Wow, shows if you're willing to pay for it, you can find an expert on anything. I want to work for an ergonomics consulting company when I grow up. I wonder where I can sign up?

They have been around forever, but ADA has made them more prominent with HR departments.

If you are really interested, you'll have to go back to college...pretty much the same classes that Physical Education majors take combined with some Organizational Behavior classes

 

[Hangingrock]

One can always build/configure within the parameters of the 95 percentile man humanoid figure.

 

[1SOW]

BDS +1

I sit slightly at an angle to my press for the most comfort and best pull on the handle. I have the handle at the high position about level with my shoulder.

Each reloader needs to find their best position for the repetitive motion with the least effort.