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c/bricklayers•gibson.averygibson.avery•1mo ago

Old school bricklayer told me I was buttering too far ahead and he was right

Was laying a garden wall last summer and a retired mason walking by said I was laying too much mud at once, causing it to skin over before the brick hit. Slowed down to a three-brick butter ahead routine and my joints came out way cleaner with less waste.
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2 Comments
jade_jenkins
Watched my buddy try to lay a whole patio in one go last spring and half his bricks were wobbling the next week because the mud crusted over before he set them. He ended up pulling up half the damn thing and starting over.
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spencer_park26
spencer_park261mo agoMost Upvoted
Oh man, that's brutal. I've been there too, tried to rush a small walkway once and ended up with bricks that looked like a wave. The trick is to only mix up what you can actually lay in like 20 minutes, especially if it's hot out. Once that mud starts to skin over, you're just asking for trouble. Better to take your time and do it in sections than pull up half the job later.
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