Hand Sewing Is Killing My Fingers

[roo4u]

sports tape here to keep the thread from cutting into the creases of my fingers

[amuckart]

So ya, I've been hand sewing a bunch of holsters recently and 3 of my fingers have really bad cuts in them from pulling the thread tight after each stitch.

just wondering what the leatherworker.net mindhive does to solve this problem. I was thinking of using some light weight leather to make some "sleeves" or whatever for my most used fingers but wonder if this would just make my clumsy.

I had exactly the same problem until I got used to the traditional solution used by shoemakers. Inseaming thread gets pulled really tight and shoemakers use a combination of a thumbstall, which is a little tube of leather that goes over the thumb of your awl hand, a hand leather which is a tube of leather sized to go over the palm of your off hand with a hole in it for the thumb, and awl handles that have a 'capstan' end the thread can be wound around.

This is slightly difficult to explain without recourse to pictures I don't have right now, but the technique is to put the off-hand bristle through first, then the awl-hand one and pull them through almost all the way. The off-hand thread gets wrapped around the hand leather and pulled and the awl-hand thread between the fingers holding it and the work gets hooked by the back of the thumb over the thumbstall and then hooked by the butt of the awl haft and pulled. The combination of the hook over the thumb and the wrap around the awl haft makes a secure grip. Once you're used to it and it becomes part of the natural rhythm of sewing it's very little effort at all.

That may have made no sense whatsoever, but I'll endeavour to dig out my kit, which is still buried post move, and take some pictures.

[TwinOaks]

I developed callouses at the little finger joints as well. I also learned the very important lesson that if you hand sew while saving up for a stitcher.....you save money faster.

[Boertjie]

Same old problem, lookup this link. Sorry about the photo's, it was my first post. Hope it helps.

http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=781&view=findpost&p=122614

[UKRay]

Band-Aid's, little tubes of leather - I've tried 'em all LOL Sadly, the little tubes of leather vanished somewhere under the bench and I used up all the wretched band-Aids so right now I'm back growing blisters again. I know they will turn into calluses soon enough, but you have my sympathy. I should never have purchased that sewing machine!

Ray

[Shooter McGavin]

Thank you for all the advice!

I used medical cloth tape with an over wrap of electrical tape and it was perfect.

A machine... maybe one day... if I can keep selling product.

Thanks!

[Shorts]

I wore a glove, plus I installed some leather pads on the palm and finger tip for when I needed to push a needle through.

[Saddlebag]

With two-needle stictching fingers on both hands can wind up sore. I wound up cutting the tips off my old leather work gloves, I prefer to use this style of stitching on certain pieces of harness, it one thread breaks the other holds, unlike the chain stitch of the awl or a machine. For pushing a stubborn needle through I wear a sailor's palm on my thumb. Tandy sells them altho I made my own from scrap leather and a penny.

Edited December 20, 2010 by Saddlebag