Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic trowel?

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Halogen

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As most spreads seem to be,we are a modest bunch of folk.We realise the difficulty in what we do and we marvel when we succeed.Some days are good and some days not so.The not so are usualy because of terrible boarders ahead of you who dont realise that their boards should not flap and their screws should be below the surface of the boards....or because an agent ran his hands all over your walls RIGHT INFRONT OF YOU........or terrible joinery.......or stupid plumbers pipes that love to trip you up or take out an eye or two.......

We all (most) have alot of pride,plastering to me is all about pride.Been doing it 7 years and ofcourse theres lots i know but lots i dont,I dont think you ever stop learning in this game.
My bread and butter is the board dab and skim which i feel very competent at.Its second nature to me. But i want to achieve perfect skimming as often as possible.

Ive tried it stiff,ive tried it wet,ive tried one coat (arrrgh bad days) ive tried using the retarder (and quite good when used in baking,CREAM OF TARTAR) which to those who aint tried,lets you throw miles on....but it dont trowel up very pretty and your shattered after one gauge!

So as i stand,im jus doin woteva it takes to get it flat,trowel'd up and paintable,pay them bills etc
I went in2 a guys flat 2day and it was IMMACULATE!! i darent ask him his secrets but i was dying to.I know he used a plastic,which ive done in the past but u cant polish a turd!
it was blemish free,like glass,no tiger stripes no NOTHING!JUST 100% PERFECT!!

I feel of late ive lost my way,i jus put on my 1st coat super tight,then grease over with same stuff (agen tight) then flatten,2 waters and then a hard one but it dont look 100% its all completely safe and paintable ofcourse,my attention to detail is 2nd 2 none i just want HOLLYWOOD WALLS AND CEILINGS.

IS A PLASTIC TROWEL THE ONLY WAY OR CAN U ACHIEVE IT WITH THE METAL????

any SUPER tips to achieve FANTASTIC results??????????????

thanks (sorry for the long windedness,its been a long 3 gauge day......AS ALWAYS!!) BLOODY WINTER SET,3 HOUR GAUGES!!! ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

you can achieve this perfect finish with any metal trowel! what i do is first trowel up and down,second trowel side to side taking most of blemishes out then,third trowel up and down again taking rest of blemishes out and finish when hard with a dry run (shine ). ;) i find running the brush on wall rather than throwing water works better to take these marks out on second or third troweling. ;)
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

this is a new one on me at what stage would you use a plastic trowel ????
and would i be correct in thinking a plastic trowel is for outside work ??
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

ive never used plastic trowel inside , just outside ,but ive heard of people using them in aswell but never seen them at it myself ;)
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

I have never used plastic trowel, what do they look like whats the technique?

Danny
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

plastic trowel? :o

not heard of that before, ive seen them mind just thought they was a cheap trown for kids? lol.

i put plasteron the wall with big trowel (stainless steel) and lay it down with the smaller trowel, going up and down then side to side all over.

again same with 2nd coat and once its ready splash bit of water on and trowel it up.
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

I think it all comes down to preference and what trowels you work best with. I've never used a plastic trowel but have tried both stainless steel and carbon steel. I prefer stainless steel for all my work but i know a few plasterers that work best with carbon steel. Never seen a plastic one used on site though, interesting!
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

Halogen   said:
I feel of late ive lost my way,i jus put on my 1st coat super tight,then grease over with same stuff (agen tight) then flatten,2 waters and then a hard one but it dont look 100% its all completely safe and paintable ofcourse,my attention to detail is 2nd 2 none i just want HOLLYWOOD WALLS AND CEILINGS.

IS A PLASTIC TROWEL THE ONLY WAY OR CAN U ACHIEVE IT WITH THE METAL????

any SUPER tips to achieve FANTASTIC results??????????????


Sorry I may be misreading this. Do you use the same mix for second coat? Tat may be more of an issue than wot your trowel is made of. I have tried this and a different mix for second coat IMHO is essential.

Sorry if I've got wrong end of the stick.
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Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

I think the secret to perfect skimming is firstly in the way you lay your two coats on and then its all about timing. Make sure your trowel/s have nicely worn in corners, this does away with the lines straight away as you lay on. As you lay on your second coat make sure you leave it looking as is if you have already given it a flatten trowel.Remember the expression the better you do each process the easier the next becomes. once the wall is on only trowel the skim when it actually improves the finish .Some people think that the more you fiddle the better it gets....rubbish! As you play with the skim it wets it up and causes uneveness. Sometimes you watch plasterers waveing the trowel about like zoro trying to impress but really they are just making it worse. Plaster like a robot repetitivley using as little effort as possible thats the way. SPREAD ON!
 
Re: Perfect skimmin achievable without plastic tro

Yeh loads of fellas use plastic trowels on site,they are home made contraptions. you take a road sign off the fences at work (the floppy plastic ones) cut it wit snips,attatch it to a float with screams or contact adhesive to a cheap trowel,shamfer the edges with a knife and sand the edges smooth.

its a quick way of troweling up and they do work but i cant be arsed with them no more.you get a nick in them by jus lookin at them then you gota sand it out etc etc

you make alot of sense there rob0,goin on it too early is pointless,but it does depend how much youre puttin on.if your jus doin one tiny wall then you would be putting it on so slowly and gently that it would look very controlled very early on.

if your puttin 2 and a half bags plus on,you gota move a lil bit i find,no hangin round (why wud u wanna anyway,time=money) im startin 2 do a one coat,an coz i aint got time to lay it on like a god,it dont look perfect but its still wet,it doesnt matter,its all consistent strokes/sweeps an its put on even so its no bother,then my 1st flattner,yes it is still soft but i cant let it 'go in' loads an then give it one flattner coz ive got more work to 'go over'!
an if i dont put it on slightly hurried then i wont be able to scoop it out of the tub,my objective is to cover the area as fast as poss before it reaches the point where its like mortar!

its gradual phases,i fink the main fing is,aslong as YOU DONT GO ON IT TOO EARLY WITH THE WATER,then you'll be fine.if your too early with the water,then that is how you will will truely mess things up by taking all the 'body and goodness' out of the plaster.
 
Try putting a thick first coat on, tight second coat, flatten in, water, dry trowel/ 2nd dry trowel . Prior to being self employed I taught at college for 4 years, one of the biggest mistakes in my opinion is 1st coat being to thin !!
 
Try this, mix up some super stiff gear and lay it over your tapes and around the beads. Then mix up normal material and lay it on very tight (2 mm max). Once layed on trowel the walls flat do not use water. When the material has stiffened enough trowel it from a matt finish to a shiny one with as little or no water.
When the material is turning colour and a bit greasy you can give it a final polish with water. You will see it make a difference.
You must use very clean water not even a bit cloudy. If you wash your trowel do it in a different bucket. Dirty water shows fat marks etc.
 
what a load of b*ll***s when the plaster starts to change colour it should already be finished
 
correct me if i am wrong but isnt skimming supposed to be matt anyway to help paint adhere to it.i,ve been doing this job over thirty years and yes i no we polish it because clients,site agents ,contract managers etc think we are rough if you cant see your face in it .ask any painter what he prefers.
 
Gibbo said:
no balloons im not ive been doing it 25 years and can do 130 mts a day on my own, fuk you and youre stupid machines.
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arite mate calm down, its not worth falling out over. me casa so casa innit. Go and have a stronbow and chill out over some sushi. Peace
 
I did 60 m Saturday Inc scrimming up blah blah no record breaker but I started at 9 and was on the road at 1.15 I furkin love one coating :-)
 
hi steve you work skimming just as i have done for years and it works fine . so why the hell have i just ordered 2 speedskim feather edges and 2 plastic 14 inch trowels its amazing what 8 cans of carlsberg and e bay can do to your head . oh well we will see what the result is fingers crossed haha .have a good one cheers.ernie (blasterbits)
 
many years ago we polished f off on a wall it only showed up when the paint diddent adhere proper. naughty i know but was so funny thomas bros of stockport to this day have no idea who done it .and they call kids today they havent a clue ha ha cheers
 
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