I have arthritis in the hip, degenerative disc in the neck, and frozen solders (can't lift my arms up past my shoulders and some pain). In addition, I have had 7 surgeries on my hands for trigger finger plus carpal tunnel in my working hand. You can add Type I diabetes on that (does not impact modeling unless my sugar goes low).
There is a lot of the micro-control problems using my fingers that make modeling difficult, as well as general holding and manipulating issues. I have a Dremel tool as an assist for some task (and modeling paste for when it does a bit too much). I also work in short periods, and sometimes I have to take a week off because of shoulder pain. But, there are still the sanding task, gluing, pinning, and so on that are hands on only. My dad was an auto-body man (he started in the early 50s), so I learned about how to adapt to work situations from him--he was truly a master craftsman that could use a sledgehammer and a micro-hammer, both with precision. There are many forms and plans for tools to help with model ship building, and I am thankful for that.
My main issue is how I see the model. Something being off say 0.5 mm should not be that big of a deal, but it does bother me so I tend to redo work (and then end up being 1.0 mm off
). But, the models are my hobby at this point in my life and the wife is kind in supporting. I build slow, and for myself.
Lastly, on another form on another website, I saw a rather arrogant comment that one person said he never used a power tool on the model (only off). I thought, well good for you, some of us don't have that luxury. Perhaps at sometime, during some conference, there should be presentations about working with disabilities (yea, I know some people don't like the word but it is what it is).