Just realized I was wrong about mixing mortar by hand

I was talking with a mason from Cincinnati who's been laying brick for 30 years, and he said 'machines make it too easy to get the mix wrong, your hands know the right feel.' I've used a mixer for the last 5 years, but his point about consistency and control has me second-guessing my whole setup. Has anyone else switched back to hand mixing and found it better for certain jobs?

4 comments

4 Comments

averymartin2mo ago

My last hand-mixed batch was basically a brick-shaped pancake.

emma4552mo ago

That line about "your hands know the right feel" really hits home. I helped my uncle repoint his old chimney last fall, and I fumbled with his mixer for an hour. The second I started turning it by hand in the trough, I could tell the difference. It was just a bit too wet before, and my hands felt it immediately. There's a connection you lose with the machine.

morganmartinez2mo ago

What if that "connection" is just wasted time and sore muscles? My hands don't know the perfect mix, they just get tired. A good mixer gives you the same result every single time, no guesswork. That hour you spent fumbling could have been saved. Sometimes a machine is just better at the job.

quinn16119d ago

It's worth giving hand mixing another shot for small batches, but honestly, I'd stick with the mixer for anything over a few buckets. The key is learning to dial in your water just right with the machine so you're not chasing that "feel" every time. If you're doing a whole wall, the consistency from a mixer far outweighs any nostalgia for sore shoulders.