Warning: Hit 100 leather spines and my hands fell apart

I thought I was being tough finishing 100 books with leather spines in 3 months for that local library order in Portland. But my finger joints started locking up something awful by the end of last week. The constant pulling and stitching tore up my hands way worse than cloth ever did. Has anyone else run into joint pain from doing too many leather bindings in a row?

3 comments

3 Comments

jade35d ago

Haven't you ever had a project where the material itself just makes everything harder? I mean, I get what you're saying about technique and pacing, but leather is genuinely way stiffer and harder on your grip than cloth or paper. I've done plenty of bookbinding and my hands never hurt like that until I tried to do a run of all leather. Your fingers are working way harder to pull those needles through and push the awl in, even with good form. Maybe it's just me, but I don't think blaming the person's conditioning is totally fair when the material is objectively tougher to work with.

william_miller14d ago

You're really gonna blame the leather instead of your own technique or lack of conditioning. People have been doing leather bindings for centuries without their hands falling apart. Maybe the issue is you rushed the job and didn't pace yourself or use proper hand stretches between sessions. Joint locking usually comes from poor posture or gripping tools too tightly, not from the material itself. Ever consider that your hands just weren't ready for that workload, not that leather is somehow the bad guy here?

gibson.oliver14d ago

Oh, come on now. Leather absolutely fights back when you're working it dry and stiff. There's a reason every old timer I know keeps a bucket of neatsfoot oil close by. You can have perfect posture and still wreck your hands on a tough hide.