Screwdrivers, wrenches, nuts and bolts lie scattered among the drill press, lathe, sewing machine and band saw in Albert Rappoport's workshop in the back of his office on Santa Monica Boulevard.

"This is where we do most of our adjustments," said Rappoport, the director of Performance Prosthetics, a center that specializes in artificial limbs for disabled athletes.

Rappoport, 33, has the aid of three full-time technicians and another "laboratory" down the block.

"When you start a new business, you're the president, the secretary and the janitor," Rappoport said. "As you grow, you get some help. I've always enjoyed building things and working with my hands."

Rappoport played football and wrestled at Santa Monica High before losing his lower left leg to bone cancer the summer before his junior year in 1976. He opted for a career in prosthetics because of his frustration with the lack of prosthetic devices available for the disabled.

"It was painful to run, and you couldn't go swimming with your leg because it was made of wood," Rappoport said. "Man had been on the moon, but the only technology available for amputees was wooden feet and straps. I felt I could build a better leg myself."

Such exploration helped lead to the development of the Activankle in 1991 and the Activsleeve two years earlier.

The Activankle is a plastic ankle that connects prosthetic legs and feet. Unlike most other prosthetic ankles, which have only fixed settings, the Activankle allows adjustment from the walking position to an extended position for swimming or a free-flexing setting for skiing or rowing.

The Activsleeve, a rubber sleeve suspension system for below-the-knee amputees, uses suction to attach an artificial limb as an alternative to belts or straps and allows greater range of motion. A ribbed design allows the sleeve to create a seal around the thigh and prevents water from entering the socket when swimming or showering.

Rappoport studied agriculture at Cal State Chico before changing his major to adaptive physical education. He obtained a master's degree at USC and graduated from the Prosthetic-Orthotic Education Program at the UCLA School of Medicine.

In 1991, he co-authored the book "Physical Fitness: A Guide for Individuals with Lower Limb Loss," which is published and distributed at no cost by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Rappoport has often had to rely on ingenuity to meet the demands of his patients at Performance Prosthetics.