# curved or flat trowel?



## carpentaper

i prefer using a flat trowel for my finishing. i am new to the trade and i am pretty much teaching myself. can anybody explain the pros and cons of each or just tell me which you prefer and why?


----------



## Whitey97

curved serves as a good door stop


----------



## carpentaper

due to the nature of renovations, i often have to flatten out uneven walls and float large butt joints. i found the curved trowel always gouges the coat. i use a flat trowel now and i don't have the problem anymore. i guess that kinda answers my own question as to which i prefer. still it would be nice to know what i could use my curved trowel for before it does become a doorstop.


----------



## Whitey97

nope, in the drywall world, that's about it's only use. unless your really want to use it, you can fill your butt's with it. one swipe through the middle.


----------



## carpentaper

thats PERFECT! i have a dropped ceiling at this job. i can coat the underside of the bulkhead bead with my straight trowel and hoop the curved trowel and coat the wall flats with my butt :thumbsup: super multi-tasker


----------



## Apple24

Another drywaller is born.


----------



## Whitey97

yay... another person We've taught without being paid for it


----------



## eastex1963

ain't that the way it always goes......sumtin fer nuttin........

i think i threw all my cup trowels away back in the mid 90's.......still use hand tools, just 12 and 18 in. broad knifes....i never could get my dad to understand the more you add to a flat surface...(cup trowels), the LESS flat it becomes....old school HA


----------



## Whitey97

I still have one, can't think of the last time I've used it though. some people swear by them though


----------



## TonyM

I bought one and hated it, so I straightened it out (not very well I might add) and use it for dot and dab.


----------



## JoeMudder

carpentaper said:


> i prefer using a flat trowel for my finishing. i am new to the trade and i am pretty much teaching myself. can anybody explain the pros and cons of each or just tell me which you prefer and why?


Both serve their purpose. The curved trowel is designed for your first or second coat so that when the mud dries it will shrink to where you want it. A flat trowel works well for your final coat since you don't want anything heavy.

I don't recommed using a curved trowel on both first and second coat. You can use flat on first coat wiping tight with the board then a curved trowel on second coat so you are ready for your skim coat and you won't see the shoulders of the board once the board is painted.


----------



## carpentaper

thanks for the info. i just did five rooms with only the flat trowel. it worked out great. next time i might use the curved trowel for the filler coat on the flats. nothing works better for a good skim coat than the flat trowel for me. thanks again for all the posts and answers to my questions. you guys are a big help.


----------



## brdn_drywall

flat trowel works great on bead, butts but if your planning to tape regularly you should invest in boxes for your flats sooner than later not just for time but unarguably better workmanship the crown when dried is flat and true to the drywall without varying thicknesses, waves and skips that come with hand coating requiring a tight skim for a perfect final coat.
boxes are arguably the most important tools for a taper to own if your not considering speed as part of the argument.


----------



## Whitey97

I will argue that and say a good hand washing brush


----------



## [email protected]

Or a bucket water heater!!!


----------



## Whitey97

oh.... yeah.... bucket heater... ahhhh


----------



## carpentaper

brdn_drywall said:


> flat trowel works great on bead, butts but if your planning to tape regularly you should invest in boxes for your flats sooner than later not just for time but unarguably better workmanship the crown when dried is flat and true to the drywall without varying thicknesses, waves and skips that come with hand coating requiring a tight skim for a perfect final coat.
> boxes are arguably the most important tools for a taper to own if your not considering speed as part of the argument.


some day i will get into all the fancy tools you guys are talking about. for now i really enjoy getting the hang of it by hand. i figure it can only make me a better taper to have a good understanding of the basic hand tools first. also my jobs pay by the hour right now so its not hurting me.


----------



## Whitey97

hell, when I do by the hour, I pull out the hand tools too!


----------



## Steve

*curved trowel*

I recently picked up a curved 14" trowel to try out on some bulkheads that divide acoustical ceilings. Since the cornerbead was spaced about 13" apart, it was going to take a lot of mud to fill. So anywho, I used the trowel and some hot mud on the first coat. Dried flat across. All I had to do was pull it tight with a knife for a finish coat. I liked it.

It works for butts too. But I like my knives better.


----------



## Frankawitz

I have both I use the curved for base coat and skim coats and use the flat for burnishing, you get a better rub from the flat, when doing whole ceilings the curved works better for me to load the area up with mud, I can pull it so I leave a 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick basecoat, then hit it again. after finish off with 1/8" topping. works for me:thumbsup:


www.frankawitz.net


----------

