Unpopular opinion: pointing guns aren't worth the hassle on small jobs

Last month I was repointing a retaining wall in a backyard in Ohio, maybe 40 feet long. Old timer walks up, retired bricklayer, and watches me mix mortar by hand. He says "son, you're wasting time, get a pointing gun." I told him I've used them before but for small jobs like this the cleanup and wasted mortar isn't worth it. He shook his head and walked off. I finished that wall in 3 hours with a trowel and it looked clean as can be. Has anyone else ditched the fancy tools for basic hand work?

2 comments

2 Comments

kevin_murray881d ago

My first pointing gun turned a 2 hour job into a 4 hour mess with mortar EVERYWHERE and half the tube still stuck in the nozzle. I swear those things are designed by someone who never had to scrape dried mortar off a lawn chair. Give me a trowel and a bucket any day for small walls like that.

-1

sandra1461d ago

That dried mortar on the nozzle is the real villain, not the tool itself.