I'd imagine that there are a few in this forum that have had the radial forearm free flap done. How long until the new skin toughens up?

I had my flap site patched up with skin taken from my thigh. One thing I have noticed is that it is still relatively easy to scratch the surface of the skin, sometimes annoyingly so. Simple things like putting on a backpack can scratch it if I'm not careful.

It takes a while but my left arm flap... I don't even think about it any more. It's been over three years for me and it's been fine for over 2 years.. Hugs.

That's great. It is happening less often now, although that could very well be because hiking season is basically over now that summer has gone & the daylight hours are much shorter, it's colder, etc., therefore I am not really running my arm through the straps of a heavy backpack. However, the skin seems to be a bit thicker and tougher than it was only a month ago. I even see a single hair that has made its way through the "new" skin, so perhaps it will be less noticable in the future.

It does take a while before it is totally healed. I have a permanent indentation (egg shape) now (8 years out) but the colour now matches the surrounding skin.
In the early days I used to wear a tennis wrist band to cover it both for protection and to hide it. Have not bothered with that for a long time now
I also still have and suspect forever a large square patch of lighter skin on the thigh!