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Thread: Carbine manipulation with injury

  1. #11
    Ah elbow pain.......fun isn't it?

    I suffer from the same thing but only in my support side elbow. I can make it flare up good when shooting off hand and doing the reloads. Even shooting pistol now makes it flare up.

    One "trick" I do when shooting to bolt lock on support side is go to one knee and kind of use that propped up knee (the one not on the dirt) to take some of the rifle's weight while it's canted to the side. I can fumble my way through the reload and continue the drill from kneeling.

    My guess is that the forward weight and your arm/elbow/wrist trying to overcome that weight causes the pain train to arrive.....at least for me it does.

    My other tricks are ice and generic Naproxin Sodium. Aleeve. Works real well for me. I only have to take one and I am good to go for 24 hours or longer.

    A good, long shooting session will make mine start up and I have to ice it down to get relief. The joys of aging.

    Good luck with it.

  2. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by lwt16 View Post
    My guess is that the forward weight and your arm/elbow/wrist trying to overcome that weight causes the pain train to arrive.....at least for me it does.

    Good luck with it.
    Thanks, and yes that is exactly what is happening. The original injury happened one day in the gym when I had just added weight to my max dumbbell press. Now it seems anything that stresses that joint irritates it and it isn't healing. I don't remember things like this happening when I was in my 30s... or 40s...

  3. #13
    I hear you. I am approaching 47 and if I would knock off the dumbbell stuff and push ups mine would probably heal and quit bothering me.

    But for some reason, a good workout will give me a couple of days of pain relief. It always feels a thousand times better right after a workout. First couple of curls is no fun but after that it's smooth sailing.

  4. #14
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    I have an injured right hand from birth, which has always been weak. Now I've developed things like rotator cuff issues to go along with it. I think Duelist was right about taking it easy, as I've found that things like racking slides can cause a flare up for me. The good thing about a (properly functioning) AR with a 30 round mag is that you don't have to do a bunch of manipulations.
    My strong, functional hand is my left hand, so when I reload an AR, I do it with my left hand, taking it off the grip to get the mag and supporting the rifle with my weak hand. Not the way most people do it, but might be worth a try?

  5. #15
    Site Supporter Erick Gelhaus's Avatar
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    A thought ... forget doctrinal techniques and look for other ways to accomplish the task without stressing your parts.

    - I tuck the stock into my arm pit more often than not when reloading ARs and shotguns;
    - Or, when it comes times to load, reload let the support arm take the weight & support the gun while the strong hand deals with the magazine &/or the charging handle;
    - Another example, because of knee injuries I find a reverse kneeling (support knee down) works better for me a fair amount of the time (and it really helps when I'm working a barricade);

    Sometimes, especially with injuries, the best way isn't the book way. You may just have to spend some time finding what works for you & your limitations.

  6. #16
    Member StraitR's Avatar
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    A lot of good recommendations in here. Before I owned a suppressor I had little actual understanding, beyond speculation, of how different the handling characteristics are when you put an extra pound (or more) on the end of a 16" AR.

    I never used to tuck carbine stocks under my arm during reloads and general manipulations, then one morning I realized that I was doing it without thought while shooting suppressed. Age and injuries have dealt me some hand strength and tendonitis issues, so I just go with it and try not to condemn myself too much.

  7. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by StraitR View Post
    A lot of good recommendations in here. Before I owned a suppressor I had little actual understanding, beyond speculation, of how different the handling characteristics are when you put an extra pound (or more) on the end of a 16" AR.

    I never used to tuck carbine stocks under my arm during reloads and general manipulations, then one morning I realized that I was doing it without thought while shooting suppressed. Age and injuries have dealt me some hand strength and tendonitis issues, so I just go with it and try not to condemn myself too much.
    That pretty much mirrors what's been happening with me. I can force it, but repetition leaves me with severe pain and I just can't keep the same actions up for very long. The method described in this thread seems like the ticket though.

  8. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Angus McFee View Post
    A thought ... forget doctrinal techniques and look for other ways to accomplish the task without stressing your parts.

    - I tuck the stock into my arm pit more often than not when reloading ARs and shotguns;
    - Or, when it comes times to load, reload let the support arm take the weight & support the gun while the strong hand deals with the magazine &/or the charging handle;
    - Another example, because of knee injuries I find a reverse kneeling (support knee down) works better for me a fair amount of the time (and it really helps when I'm working a barricade);

    Sometimes, especially with injuries, the best way isn't the book way. You may just have to spend some time finding what works for you & your limitations.
    Based on responses here, I think I had made an assumption about what is the "doctrinal" technique. Surf's post and others have pointed out that what I thought was improper is probably the right way -- at least in my case.

    I can see the utility of the reverse kneeling position when shooting around a corner or barricade -- but I think the regular kneeling position is probably better for supporting the carbine in most cases. Good discussion.

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