Remembering how we used to have to cut every single leather strap by hand before the hydraulic clicker press showed up at the shop three years ago

Last week, I was showing a new apprentice how to set up the press for a run of 50 straps, and it hit me that the kid has never known the ache in your hands from doing that all day with a knife and a straight edge.

4 comments

4 Comments

susan_adams4mo agoTop Commenter

My old knife calluses feel like a weird badge of honor now.

leehall4mo ago

Those little marks tell a story of real work done. It's funny how our bodies keep the receipts for effort that no one else sees. There's a quiet pride in that.

paulw531mo agoMost Upvoted

Man, susan_adams hit it right on the head with that badge of honor thing. I still got a patch of tough skin on my palm from where the knife handle used to dig in after a long day of cutting straps. It's not a callus anymore, just this weird thick spot that doesn't really go away. The new guys with the press never get that - their hands are all soft and smooth. Sometimes I catch myself rubbing it when I'm thinking about the old days, like a little reminder of all those hours I put in before the machine made it easy.

grant4784mo ago

Man, my buddy still has a weird dent in his thumb from doing that for years. He says it's like his own little time capsule from the old shop days. Honestly, you just don't get marks like that from a machine.