Appreciation post: My taping used to look like a mountain range after a day

Switched to a 6-inch flex knife for the second coat a month ago and the flats are just... smooth. Anyone else find a specific tool that fixed a stubborn problem?

4 comments

4 Comments

jamie_white21d agoMost Upvoted

Well, are you saying I wasted all those years wrestling with a 4-inch knife and a bad attitude? I switched to the 6-inch flex blade for my second coat and suddenly my drywall looks like a mirror instead of a topographical map. It's almost annoying how such a simple change made me feel like I finally know what I'm doing.

margaret_gonzalez2521d ago

Oh man, that's exactly what I found too... but I'm wondering if you've tried the 5-inch blade at all? I hear some people swear by it for the first coat because it's still got some flex but doesn't bog down as easy. I went straight from a 4 to a 6 and never looked back, but now I'm curious if I missed a step. Did you ever mess around with the 5-inch or did you just jump right to the 6? Because I feel like the 6 might be too wide for tight corners or small patches, and I'm always second-guessing myself on those spots.

maryt621mo ago

My 4-inch knife always left ridges, but the 6-inch flex blade was a total game changer.

ray3631mo ago

Honestly, that makes total sense. I had the same problem with my old short blade digging in and leaving marks. The longer flex blade just glides over curves instead of catching. It took me way too long to figure out that was the fix.