I've broken my trowel (turning into deciphering marshal town product names!)

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JFPlastering

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Fairly good chance of it happening, but my prior wobbley handle bodges were repeatedly failing, so i took the risk (which hasn't paid off!)

IMG_20220324_111242404.jpg




So, I've snapped off the bolt (i even went to trouble heating it, and it still snapped), and then the marshaltown handle i bought didn't fit anyway!


IMG_20220324_111426167.jpg


As you can plainly see, im not one for buying new "stuff" all the time, but i think, realistically, my finishing trowel may be at the end of its life : (

It may not have been the best, but im a cautious "devil you know" kind of chap...

Anyway, i thought it was a marsheltown, bought a new handle, which didnt fit anyway, and did the usual nut snapping thing. I bodged it by shaping the hole to fit and ill resin fill it, but, realistically, its new trowel time.


Looked on marsheltowen website - there's a number of different (i suspect, maybe gimiky) names. From going through this forum, i understand permashape is with the corners bent up, but other than that, i have very little idea.

What im after is a 14", probably 4" (current is more like 4 on one and and 4 3/4 on the other) Ive got a larger flexi, and i normally lay on with another smaller trowel, but want a replacemnt for this one.

Can anyone decode the marshaltown buzz words for me, please?


Permashape Finishing Trowel
Finishing Trowel (but not permashape?)
Carbon Steel (i kind of know what that is)
Gold Stainless Steel (im feeling thats proper into snake oil territory?)
Stainless Steel

Really, i just want a tough bit of metal in a rectangular shape with a nice edge - whats the name for that one? I dont want a load of flex at all, as i want to flatten, not bend over bumps.

I dont really care so much about cost. You can see that i dont buy a new trowl every week, but, at the same time, i dont want to spend on on some thing that im not going to get on with.

Thank you!


ps. ive spent a fair while looking though old messages, but the names of these "features" change ever few years also, rendering all the old info redundant also : (
 
MPB14GSD is one u want, give it a tickle along edges with 600grit wet n dry before use.

MPB14SSD is good as well but steel is not as tough/hard wearing as gold one
 
Thank you. Id got the impression the permashape one was the banana one - as in pre-bent, curled up or something? Not that I've seen any photo showing this...

I was hoping for something that was just flat, but, again, if i knew what was going on, id not be asking advice!
 
JFPlastering said:
Fairly good chance of it happening, but my prior wobbley handle bodges were repeatedly failing, so i took the risk (which hasn't paid off!)

View attachment 68851



So, I've snapped off the bolt (i even went to trouble heating it, and it still snapped), and then the marshaltown handle i bought didn't fit anyway!


View attachment 68852

As you can plainly see, im not one for buying new "stuff" all the time, but i think, realistically, my finishing trowel may be at the end of its life : (

It may not have been the best, but im a cautious "devil you know" kind of chap...

Anyway, i thought it was a marsheltown, bought a new handle, which didnt fit anyway, and did the usual nut snapping thing. I bodged it by shaping the hole to fit and ill resin fill it, but, realistically, its new trowel time.


Looked on marsheltowen website - there's a number of different (i suspect, maybe gimiky) names. From going through this forum, i understand permashape is with the corners bent up, but other than that, i have very little idea.

What im after is a 14", probably 4" (current is more like 4 on one and and 4 3/4 on the other) Ive got a larger flexi, and i normally lay on with another smaller trowel, but want a replacemnt for this one.

Can anyone decode the marshaltown buzz words for me, please?


Permashape Finishing Trowel
Finishing Trowel (but not permashape?)
Carbon Steel (i kind of know what that is)
Gold Stainless Steel (im feeling thats proper into snake oil territory?)
Stainless Steel

Really, i just want a tough bit of metal in a rectangular shape with a nice edge - whats the name for that one? I dont want a load of flex at all, as i want to flatten, not bend over bumps.

I dont really care so much about cost. You can see that i dont buy a new trowl every week, but, at the same time, i dont want to spend on on some thing that im not going to get on with.

Thank you!


ps. ive spent a fair while looking though old messages, but the names of these "features" change ever few years also, rendering all the old info redundant also : (
Click to expand...


If you sand that shank down and epoxy (araldite) that new handle on, that'll last ages anyway.

If you want a like for like, what you have there is a carbon steel.


I'll take a punt and say the nearest you'll get to that is what I'm using which is the MXS37


Carbon steel.
14"

So search marshaltown mxs37, which will come with a wooden handle, or MXS37D which will come with that durasoft handle you have there.
 
Did it have a life time guarantee, could be time to end it all? You have had a good innings.
 
JFPlastering said:
Fairly good chance of it happening, but my prior wobbley handle bodges were repeatedly failing, so i took the risk (which hasn't paid off!)

View attachment 68851



So, I've snapped off the bolt (i even went to trouble heating it, and it still snapped), and then the marshaltown handle i bought didn't fit anyway!


View attachment 68852

As you can plainly see, im not one for buying new "stuff" all the time, but i think, realistically, my finishing trowel may be at the end of its life : (

It may not have been the best, but im a cautious "devil you know" kind of chap...

Anyway, i thought it was a marsheltown, bought a new handle, which didnt fit anyway, and did the usual nut snapping thing. I bodged it by shaping the hole to fit and ill resin fill it, but, realistically, its new trowel time.


Looked on marsheltowen website - there's a number of different (i suspect, maybe gimiky) names. From going through this forum, i understand permashape is with the corners bent up, but other than that, i have very little idea.

What im after is a 14", probably 4" (current is more like 4 on one and and 4 3/4 on the other) Ive got a larger flexi, and i normally lay on with another smaller trowel, but want a replacemnt for this one.

Can anyone decode the marshaltown buzz words for me, please?


Permashape Finishing Trowel
Finishing Trowel (but not permashape?)
Carbon Steel (i kind of know what that is)
Gold Stainless Steel (im feeling thats proper into snake oil territory?)
Stainless Steel

Really, i just want a tough bit of metal in a rectangular shape with a nice edge - whats the name for that one? I dont want a load of flex at all, as i want to flatten, not bend over bumps.

I dont really care so much about cost. You can see that i dont buy a new trowl every week, but, at the same time, i dont want to spend on on some thing that im not going to get on with.

Thank you!


ps. ive spent a fair while looking though old messages, but the names of these "features" change ever few years also, rendering all the old info redundant also : (
Click to expand...
Did.you fix it in end
 
John j said:
Did.you fix it in end
Click to expand...

I got the handle on it at about 230 am this morning, but i couldn't be bothered to mix up any resin. I need it fixed for Monday and the only resin i have at the moment is slow cure, deep pour stuff, so i need to get it together tomorrow, else it wont have gone off in time.
 
bobski said:
If you sand that shank down and epoxy (araldite) that new handle on, that'll last ages anyway.

If you want a like for like, what you have there is a carbon steel.


I'll take a punt and say the nearest you'll get to that is what I'm using which is the MXS37


Carbon steel.
14"

So search marshaltown mxs37, which will come with a wooden handle, or MXS37D which will come with that durasoft handle you have there.
Click to expand...

Thank you - that sounds pretty much ideal. I figured it was all just stainless now, but i found another thread here and it seems plenty of people like non-stainless too (ie its not just a cheap thing, but people, including you, i guess, actually like it more)

I think ill go for exactly what you suggest - they dont make a 14" in 4", so 4 3/4 will do me fine.

Just one query though -

You wrote MXS37D - that's supposed to be MXS73D, right (73 not 37), as, if its really 37 then i dont think im seeing the right thing!
 
JFPlastering said:
Which end? : )

Its close to 4" at one, and more like 4 3/4 at the other. Im happy for the new one not to be triangular though! I figured id go for a 4" and that would do me.
Click to expand...

Well, I guess you already know why I asked - Marshalltown offer different 'widths'.


 
Last edited:
JFPlastering said:
Thank you - that sounds pretty much ideal. I figured it was all just stainless now, but i found another thread here and it seems plenty of people like non-stainless too (ie its not just a cheap thing, but people, including you, i guess, actually like it more)

I think ill go for exactly what you suggest - they dont make a 14" in 4", so 4 3/4 will do me fine.

Just one query though -

You wrote MXS37D - that's supposed to be MXS73D, right (73 not 37), as, if its really 37 then i dont think im seeing the right thing!
Click to expand...

Thats the one.
Sorry, did it from memory.
(My other one is the mxs67, only get them in america)




Here you go.

Marshalltown MXS73 Stainless Steel Cement Finishing Trowel 14 x 4.75in

Highest grade spring stainless steel blade, properly shaped and tempered.
www.travisperkins.co.uk www.travisperkins.co.uk
 
JFPlastering said:
Thank you. Id got the impression the permashape one was the banana one - as in pre-bent, curled up or something? Not that I've seen any photo showing this...

I was hoping for something that was just flat, but, again, if i knew what was going on, id not be asking advice!
Click to expand...
it's a very slight curve across the blade, some are slightly exaggerating when the say it's shaped like a banana it really isn't pal
you won't even notice it when you're using it.
the idea behind that is to take away a little bit of added pressure off the corners when trowelling up thus not leaving lines in plaster and by doing this, Marshalltown were able to keep the corners of the trowel nice n square and not rounded off so you can get reet into ye corners properly and not fk about having to use a small tool to do them because rounded off corners on trowels can't do em.
 
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