The way these new guys butter a brick makes my back hurt just watching

I started laying brick back in '82 down in Mobile, Alabama, and we learned to butter with a wrist flick that wastes almost nothing. Last month I watched a kid slather a full trowel head of mud on every single brick, dropping half of it on the ground before he even set it. Has anyone else noticed the younger generation using way more mortar than needed, or am I just yelling at clouds?

3 comments

3 Comments

nancygrant4d ago

You're really out here acting like a little extra mortar is the end of the world. It's literally just mud drying on the ground, not a big deal. Some guys slop more, some guys slop less, and it really doesn't change the actual wall one bit. If the kid's bricks are set solid and the wall's plumb, who cares if he drops a few blobs? Yelling at clouds is exactly what this is, honestly. Let the young guys learn their own way without turning it into some grand tragedy.

grace_bailey8d ago

Keep your wrist loose not your trowel loaded heavy.

mia7487d ago

Wait, isn't that backwards though? A heavy load on the trowel actually helps control it way better for me since the weight does some of the work. Lighter loads make my wrist shake more and I end up with uneven patches everywhere.