Ten hours on a line does a specific kind of damage: dry plant air, adhesives and sealants, parts washers, gloves on and off all shift, and a hand wash at every break. Around here that is the RV and component plants, and half of Elkhart County comes home with hands like sandpaper by January.
What is actually doing it
- Plant air. Big buildings with big heaters run dry, and dry air pulls moisture out of exposed skin all shift.
- Adhesives, sealants and solvents. They dissolve grease, and they do not distinguish between the adhesive on your fingers and the fat in your skin.
- Gloves. Hands sweat inside them, then the moisture flashes off the second they come off, leaving skin drier than if it had been bare.
- Washing at every break. Necessary, and each pass takes some of the lipid that holds your outer skin layer together.
- Handling. Sheet goods, fasteners, staples, trim. Constant abrasion on skin that has already lost its flex.
Why tallow rather than a lotion
Beef tallow is built from largely the same fatty acids your own skin produces, so it absorbs and becomes part of the barrier instead of sitting on top of it as a film. Beeswax keeps it there through a hand wash. Most pump lotion is mostly water, which is why it feels good for twenty minutes and is gone by the next break.
On skin that is already split
Balm on an open crack stings and will not close it. Keep it clean, cover it while it closes, and use the balm on the skin around it and everywhere else so you stop making new ones. The goal is preventing the next crack, not treating today's. Anything hot, spreading, or refusing to close needs a doctor rather than a tin.
How to use it on a working hand
- Heavy before bed. The application that actually repairs. Eight uninterrupted hours beats six rushed ones. Cotton gloves over the top if the splits are bad.
- On damp hands after washing, so there is water in the skin to hold onto.
- Knuckles and finger webs first. That is where splits start.
- Not right before gloves. Give it ten minutes to absorb.
Unscented, if you would rather
Plenty of people do not want a fragrance on their hands at work. Raw is the same seven-ingredient base with none in it.
Why a tin
A screw-top tin lives in a toolbox, a bag or a door pocket without leaking, which a tube will not. A 2oz tin lasts most people six to ten weeks at nightly use.
Made by hand in small batches in Wakarusa, Indiana. Seven ingredients, and 5% of every sale goes to FreedomSystem, which connects veterans through authentic camaraderie and meaningful programs.
