I might be able to help as I suffer from the same problems, unfortunatly there is no one answer but lots of little things he can try.
One item I have found very useful on my right hand is a wrist support like
THESE I have tried several of them and eventually found one that is comfortable and works.
Another option for the right hand is an anti vibration glove, these can be brought from a turning supplier but I have found cycling gloves to be just as good and cheaper, like
THESELarger tools handles might help but more importantly ones of the correct size, to find out what size of handle would be best get him to hold his hand as if he was holding a chisel in a position that is comfortable for him and then get someone to measure the hole his thumb and finger makes then make a handle to that size and see if it is any better.
One of the problems with handles is that they are nice and smooth and slippery so you need to grip them otherwise they can slip altering the handle so it has a slightly rough finish also helps.
A better way would be to get some of
THIS tape and wrap it around the handle till it is the right size this will also help with the vibration problem. It is available in this country as I have seen it for sale but unfortunately I cant remember where. Or buy handles like the Simon Hope ones which I find very good.
There is a fancy name for the following but I cant remember it, it might seem like common sense but it is very hard to do in practise. The basics are very simple you find out by trial and error how long you can do something before it starts to hurt then stop before you reach this time and have a rest then go back to doing the job. So for instance if you know that you can work on turning a bowl for 60 minutes before it starts hurting you would work for 50 minutes then have a rest for an hour or so then go back to work for another 50 minutes etc. This takes a lot of working out to get the best work and resting times and a lot of discipline to stick to it, especially when you are enjoying yourself.
Hope this helps and he can start getting more time on the lathe I am sure there are lots of other things I do but I cant think of them at the moment, whereabouts does he live?
john
