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Shoutout to the old guy at the lumber yard who saved me from myself
I was on a job in Everett, hanging board in a garage. I'd been taping for about two years and thought I had a good system. I was always careful to put a nice, thick coat of mud on my seams, then sand it down smooth. This old timer, Frank, who delivers for the yard, was dropping off some studs. He watched me sanding for a minute, then just said, 'You know, you're working twice as hard as you need to.' I asked what he meant. He walked over, took my knife, and showed me how to scrape the mud flat with the blade before it even dries, leaving almost nothing to sand. I'd been building up mountains of dust for no reason. My whole method was backwards. Has anyone else had a basic skill they were doing wrong for way too long?
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emerydixon2mo ago
My uncle told me a similar story about painting. He used to cut in whole rooms with a brush before he saw a pro use a small roller for the edges. Changed his whole process.
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robin_foster12mo ago
But is it really that big of a deal? It's just painting a room. Some people use a brush, some use a roller. Does the method actually change the final look that much? Seems like a personal preference thing, not a life-changing tip. Your uncle probably just found a way that works faster for him.
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