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Old mason at the supply yard made me redo my corner lead

I was laying a corner on a retaining wall last Tuesday and this old guy named Walt came by from the yard. He watched me for a minute and said I was keeping my perp joints too tight on the return. I always thought tight looked clean but he showed me how it throws the whole bond off after three courses. I loosened up the gap just a hair and the next corner came out way flatter. Anyone else had a veteran bricklayer call them out on something basic like joint spacing?
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3 Comments
xenaf51
xenaf5127d ago
The way tight joints screw up the whole stack reminds me of how people over-tighten screws on deck boards and they buckle later. Or how a buddy of mine used to crank his guitar strings until they sounded sharp, but they'd go dead in two days. There's something about leaving a tiny bit of play that makes the whole thing hold together better. You ever notice that in your own work or hobbies?
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the_tessa
the_tessa27d ago
@xenaf51 exactly, that's a life lesson right there. Loose joints save everything.
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clairen85
clairen8527d ago
@xenaf51, three-sixteenths gap on cedar fence boards saved me a summer of replacements.
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