I’m wondering what the varied ways are that people keep their finger oils off of their models while they work. I’ve worked a bunch with disposable gloves in the past (I’m a doc, during surgery not modeling), latex and vinyl, and the former are often dusted with a whole bunch of powder which I think would be impossible to remove, and the latter are inflexible, and both would be just plain uncomfortable to wear for an extended period of time. I’ve got kinda sweaty mitts, though, so I want to figure out a way to keep my hands off of my work. Saw no previous posts to this effect. Any suggestions? P.S. a former kid modeler returning with a vengeance, these forums (and their contributors) have been invaluable - Thanks!
Ask your pharmacist if they stock latex gloves that are dust free. You would still have the sweaty palm problem, and then getting them on and off would be tougher as the powder is there to reduce the friction.
I just wash my hands before I model, then every 1/2 hour or so…
[#ditto] - latex gloves. (make sure you are not allergic to latex first…[yuck])
Frequently washing my hands with warm soapy water does the trick for me.
Thanks all - I’ll probably stick with the hand-washing. Those gloves hermetically seal in your hands and the hand sweat and I just find them really a pain in the posterior. The powder-free variety are gnarly to put on too and then stick on there like nobody’s business. I guess I could always get botox injections in my hands - believe it or not they use that stuff also to (temporarily) nuke people’s sweat glands who sweat too much. So if anyone suffers from super sweaty _____, then talk to you doc. Super expensive, though. Adios and thanks again 
Ha, I only find the latex gloves to be a pain in the posterior when I visit the proctologist! [:P]
Here is an idea…never tried it though…
Get some anti-persperant deoderant and rub it all over your hands…make sure you wash them good after. That anti-persperant’s effects should last even after washing. (at least that “Mitchum” stuff does…“so powerful, you could skip a day.” [:P])
Love that suggestion - the hands would smell great too. Might be a bit slippery though. Plus I think rubbing antipersperant all over my hands might be an indicator that I have actually completely lost my mind, which, of course, is already a pretty reasonable argument [:D]. I guess I could always cut off the fingers off of some latex gloves and attach 'em to my digits - then no hand sweat and no finger oils on my work. I’ll give it a shot - thanks all!
…Oh the things we do to ensure a good finish…[:D]
I use cotton gloves, they’re soft and allow my hands to breath. Check with companies that deal with photography equipment and handling.
Jesse
No problems with lint?
Shoot i dont use anything. Never had any problems. well you could use finger cots ( minny condoms for your fingers) i used them at an old job long time ago.
This conversation just gets better and better - mini condoms for fingers! Awesome. What the heck did you need those for work for? I bet they would work well, however, so I might have to get me some… Thanks!
[:-^]
It’s killing me, but this IS a family site so I must control myself.
yep worked in a plant that made exlosives for air bags and you counldnt get any finger oils on the parts but aslo couldnt counduct static elecricity so we whore finger cots. Other wise it would have been a BANG up job. and i have no idea of where to get them. dont get them confused with the other product thay are much smaller.
I used to wear latex or nitrile depending on the purpose anywhere from 4-10 hours a day, every day. Go with the powdered gloves and just blow them off with your airbrush or wipe with a damp paper towel. Normally I use “one size fits all” latex if it’s just to keep finger oils off a delicate part. That said most hibby solvents laught at latex and just permeate right on thru, for that purpose nitrile is a better choice. I prefer 8-1/2, handed surgical gloves for super fine work. Yes the hand sweat sucks but you get used to it. Finger cots are an ideal solution if you can stand how funky they feel. Best thing is just to wash your hands well and often.
Latex gloves, easy to use, cheap, never had any problems with powder.
I work for a safety supply company and we literally carry dozens of makes/models/styles of hand protection.
My suggestion to you is to use nitrile gloves. The are very tight fitting for dexterity and tactile feel for small parts, are impervious to most substances we modelers handle, are relatively cheap, are latex free and don’t rip or degrade over time like latex does. In fact, I get my sister-in-law a box every few months for her hair salon. She uses them to keep hair dye from staining her hands and she even throws them in the washing machine to re-use them!
Another alternative is cotton lisle gloves. We sell these to companies that have quality control inspectors handling sensitive parts that can’t have skin oils, etc. on them.
Personally, I keep a box of cheap latex gloves around for airbrushing just to keep my hands clean, and a box of nitrile gloves around whenever I have to handle anything that must not have skin oils on it (i.e. natural metal finishes).
Thanks BB - excellent advice, I think. I’ll probably pick up a few of both. I just hate wearing those puppies sometimes, but still trying to keep my mitts off of my work (and still not succeeding so well, either). Merci Buckets! [:)]
If you want to try the finger cot route try looking in a medical supply place. they are also use to keep a a dressing dry on fingers lacs.