The old mason who showed me a trick with a brick hammer

Last summer I was working a job in Lansing next to a guy who had been laying brick for 40 years. He saw me struggling to split a brick clean and just said "hit it with the corner, not the face." He showed me how to score the line first with the hammer's pick end, then one tap on the corner pops it right in two. I've been doing it that way ever since and it saves me time and waste. Has anyone else picked up a simple trick from an older tradesman that made a big difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

xenaf5114d ago

Wait wasn't that trick actually from a bricklayer's old handbook or something? I've seen a few old timers do it differently where they tap the face first then flip it over and hit the corner so the break goes both ways. Still though you're right about scoring it first that's the real secret, just thought I'd mention that extra step.

lucasschmidt14d ago

Wait, so you're saying there's a legit old school method for this? I always thought the scoring trick was the whole deal, but hearing about the tap and flip thing makes total sense now. I've messed up plenty of tiles trying to get a clean break, and I bet that extra step would've saved me from some jagged edges. Back when I was helping my dad redo our bathroom floor, we just scored once and snapped it, but half the time the break would wander off course. Kinda wish I knew this tip back then, would've saved a ton of headache.