I was just wondering if anyone has some secret recipe for getting,
and keeping hands clean I like Clean-All Heavy Metal Hand and Body
Soap, which we use as we work wit h lead alot in our stained glass
shop. Ick. I know that oil painters also use a barrier cream that is
applied to clean hands and keeps the grime off the skin… don’t
know the name of it, but I suspect art supply stores would carry it.
Congratulations on the wedding!
Dani Greer
Greer Studios
Hi Sharon, First of all may we send our sincere greetings for you
coming marriage.
As to the matter of keeping your hands clean and free from polishing
residues on your fingers, it’s pretty simple - DO NOTHING!
Come on! I’m only joking. Have you tried to wear surgical rubber
gloves. They may help. Or else, Rio Grande can supply you with a
self-adhering tape that protects your fingers from minor cuts,
abrasions and burns. It’s called, ‘Alligator Skin’ and it is
non-allergenic too. It’s easy to use: it wraps around your fingers
in seconds and can last all day. It’s non sticky and is easily
removed!
Hope you find our advice useful.
JOSEPH TANTI
http://www.jostanti.cjb.net
Sharon said she had "gotten used to* constantly *dirty* hands (from polishing) but as I am getting married in 6 weeks I was just wondering if anyone has some secret recipe for getting, and keeping hands clean.
There is a wonderful product called Glove Cote. It comes in a tube
like hand cream, but you put it on before polishing and wash it off
with soap and water after. You have no sign of the ick from
polishing. It is water soluble, so when you wash between grits, it
comes off.
A second choice is to use a paraffin spa. It does a wonderful job
of cleaning up your hands, leaves them nice and soft, and feels good
too.
Third choice - start tumbling your work, your hands will always be
clean.
Judy Hoch
Bob, Your discussion of gloves brings up an important safety issue.
Most lapidaries, including me, avoid leather gloves like the plague.
You may be using relatively low-powered (1/15hp) motors to run your
polishing equipment. In that case, leather gloves are not
particularly dangerous. They become a serious safety hazard,
however, if your equipment is based on powerful electric motors.
This is especially true if those motors are attached to exposed
pulleys and belts. A leather glove can be caught in high-powered
equipment, and carry your hand along for the ride. That’s a good way
to lose a finger!
I mention this because we have a lot of stone cutters on Orchid -
and I want to be certain that everyone is aware of the risk. Some
techniques which are safe for metalworkers are not safe for lapidary
Peace,
Peter
It amazes me that so many different chemical “goops” have been
suggested for keeping jeweler’s hands clean…actually it is not
so much a problem of what to use, but HOW to use the various soaps,
detergents etc. I discovered that when you scrub your hands with a
plastic scouring pad ( cheap and widely available) almost any soap,
detergent or other cleaning compound will immediately clean your
hands. It is just that simple !
Ron at Mills Gem, Los Osos, CA
Just one word of caution regarding barrier creams – if any of the
stuff you are working with is allergenic, be very cautious about
using these creams without checking carefully first; most of them
seem to actually attract the allergenic substances. (I found this out
the hard way!)
Margaret
@Margaret_Malm2,
in Utah’s colorful Dixie
When I really need them to look presentable, I clean my hands in any
number of ways, usually a combination of two. I’ve tried GOOP (my
favorite for removing grease, ink, and other assorted dirt) and lots
of other waterless cleaners cleaners from auto supply stores. I have
also used Fast Orange which uses pumice as an abrasive. Plain old bar
soap will do a great job if you give it a chance to work. You need to
leave it on for a few minutes, instead of lathering up and rinsing
it right off. Use a stiff nail scrub brush to work out the really
grimy ground in dirt. What I find most uncomfortable is how dry and
rough my skin feels after all of this “cleaning”. I made prom dresses
for my two nieces and needed my hands to be clean AND soft, to avoid
damaging the delicate fabrics I was handling. A tip I found on
sewing web sites that is worth it’s weight in gold to me is: Wash your
hands with warm water to soften the skin. Dry them off and mix a
teasponful of table salt with a little oil (olive, corn, walnut,
sesame - use whatever you have on hand). Add just enough oil to
moisten the salt. Then scrub your hands all over with the mixture to
remove all the rough, dry, cracked skin. You can soap off the
mixture, but I just rinse my hands to dissolve the salt, and rub in
the remaining oil. For really sore, raw, cracked skin, I start off
with sugar instead of salt, the larger crystals are more abrasive.
Then I repeat with salt.
Gail Middleton
Hi Ron, you’ve obviously discovered the amazingly versatile Particle
Adherent Device (pad). I personally favour the Bristle Reactive Unit
I have done less work in recent years, but HATE to get my hands
un-cleanable at times, because I will resort to diluted ammonia to
clean them which generally gets it all if I use a scrub brush, and
it does sting. I am not sure what kind of gloves were mentioned, but
I have latex gloves, powderless, from the drugstore and use those
now. I usually break them stopping a spindle from impatience, but I
have not had any accident problems with them. They are too fragile
not to break if caught. It keeps the worst off. Anyone else out
there doing this? Any safety issues I may be ignoring? There is such
a thing as latex allergy…Jay
Hello Jay, There was an extensive thread on glove use some time ago.
Many voices saying gloves were a safety issue. I’m a guilty party
to using the tightly fitted latex gloves. I’ve not had any safety
problems… not advocating anything here, gang - just my personal
experience. The latex gloves don’t take heat well, so if I’m going
to be polishing for a while, I use the “alligator skin” tape. It’s
not quite as clean, but works better for handling hot metal. Again,
just my personal experience. Judy in Kansas I am not sure what kind
of gloves were mentioned, but I have latex gloves, powderless, from
the drugstore and use those now. I usually break them stopping a
spindle from impatience, but I have not had any accident problems
with them. They are too fragile not to break if caught. It keeps the
worst off. Anyone else out there doing this? Any safety issues I may
be ignoring? Judy M. Willingham, R.S. Biological and Agricultural
Engineering 237 Seaton Hall Kansas State University Manhattan KS
66506 (785) 532-2936
I have skipped over most of the long thread about getting hands
clean, so please excuse me if this is redundant.
I have recently started using Gesswein’s (phone 800-243-4466 page 30
of the new catalog for the sample set) water soluble polishing
compounds and found them to be outstanding. Pat Flynn recommended
them to me. I have the rouge and tripoli. They polish beautifully
and clean up on your work and hands much more easily than
traditional compounds. Soap and water, no ammonia needed.
Don Friedlich