# Mud Runner



## suncoast drywaller (Sep 4, 2009)

Have just purchased tape tech mud runner with northstar 3 1/2 inch corner finisher. I have never had any experience whatsoever using a corner finisher. Tried to use today but the results were very very average. Was wondering if anyone can give me advice or tips to use it

Thanks
Michael


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## joepro0000 (Jun 14, 2008)

keep mud really soupy


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

suncoast drywaller said:


> Have just purchased tape tech mud runner with northstar 3 1/2 inch corner finisher. I have never had any experience whatsoever using a corner finisher. Tried to use today but the results were very very average. Was wondering if anyone can give me advice or tips to use it
> 
> Thanks
> Michael


I use a mudrunner with a 3 1/2 columbia head. Love it. Been doing it for 5 years. If I can help ya, I'd be glad too. I don't have ALL the answers, but i did spend a night at the Holiday Inn Express,,,,:thumbsup:

So what IS your question????


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## suncoast drywaller (Sep 4, 2009)

Capt-sheetrock said:


> I use a mudrunner with a 3 1/2 columbia head. Love it. Been doing it for 5 years. If I can help ya, I'd be glad too. I don't have ALL the answers, but i did spend a night at the Holiday Inn Express,,,,:thumbsup:
> 
> So what IS your question????


Have just ordered northstar 2.5 angle head .Will follow your advice from another thread re mudrunner 1st coat with 3.5 then light sand then 2.5 in last coat ,Thanks mate .Ill let you know how I go:thumbsup:


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

suncoast drywaller said:


> Have just ordered northstar 2.5 angle head .Will follow your advice from another thread re mudrunner 1st coat with 3.5 then light sand then 2.5 in last coat ,Thanks mate .Ill let you know how I go:thumbsup:


Good luck with it, once ya get comfortable with it,,, your gonna just love it.


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## suncoast drywaller (Sep 4, 2009)

Have had second try with mudrunner but still no satisfaction .Ran tape in then corner rolled em then gave coat with 3.5 inch corner finisher .I riped the tape from the angle afew times and sometimes ripped the tape from the angleabout shoulder height .There seemed to be too much mud on the angles . I just dont seem to get the hang of useing it


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## cazna (Mar 28, 2010)

You may be trying to run before you can walk
Try using a 2.5 on angle head handle after the bazooka and corner roller,
Then bring out the mud runner and 2nd coat with the 2.5, and then third coat with the mud runner with the 3.5.
I know its 3 coats but till you get the feel of it just do a little at a time. Angle heads take a bit of getting use to with the ripping of tape thing, dont tape to far ahead of yourself, this just gives the paper more time to soften, hence the ripping. And the mud runner is prob putting more weight on it, a 2.5 on the handle is much lighter.
For me i had to give up on the angle heads and switch to flushers for a while, then i picked up the angle head again and i was off. Hope this helps.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

There is plenty of disagreement on this option. I ALWAYS "bump" my new angleheads agaisnt a grinder. Just a touch. If the angle head blades are not done this way, they will grab and rip wet tape. Run your finger over the blades where they come together to form the 90. If they are "sharp" they WILL rip your tape. 

Its hard to get across in the printed word sometimes. I am not saying, sand em down a bunch. Just knock that burr off where they meet.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

suncoast drywaller said:


> Have had second try with mudrunner but still no satisfaction .Ran tape in then corner rolled em then gave coat with 3.5 inch corner finisher .I riped the tape from the angle afew times and sometimes ripped the tape from the angleabout shoulder height .There seemed to be too much mud on the angles . I just dont seem to get the hang of useing it


They way I do it is like this. I run the corner (up and downs) with the bazooka, roll with the corner roller, pick up the mudrunner. Stick it into the flat, run down to the bottom, then reverse it and run it all the way to to the top. Try that a time or two.:thumbsup:


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## cazna (Mar 28, 2010)

Capt-sheetrock said:


> There is plenty of disagreement on this option. I ALWAYS "bump" my new angleheads agaisnt a grinder. Just a touch. If the angle head blades are not done this way, they will grab and rip wet tape. Run your finger over the blades where they come together to form the 90. If they are "sharp" they WILL rip your tape.
> 
> Its hard to get across in the printed word sometimes. I am not saying, sand em down a bunch. Just knock that burr off where they meet.


Are you saying the little part of the top blade that over hangs the side blade, this part you bump with the grinder capt??
I have some new angle heads and im very happy with them but a little bit of paper builds up at this intersection and then they dont wipe as well, i just have to pick it off and they are away again, so your saying bump that spot and this wont happen?? Am i on the right track??
I think a gentle file will be more for me if this is the case.


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## suncoast drywaller (Sep 4, 2009)

Had another go today . Put final coat on with 2 1/2 northstar anglehead . Although I had to fix a fair few with corner trowl I was happy with the results .I am now starting to get more confident with it .Thanks guys so much for your help CHEERS:thumbsup:


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

cazna said:


> Are you saying the little part of the top blade that over hangs the side blade, this part you bump with the grinder capt??
> I have some new angle heads and im very happy with them but a little bit of paper builds up at this intersection and then they dont wipe as well, i just have to pick it off and they are away again, so your saying bump that spot and this wont happen?? Am i on the right track??
> I think a gentle file will be more for me if this is the case.


Caz, I only "bump" the junction of the two blades, where they meet at the 90%. Where they meet, ya know, where they hit the corner right in the middle. You have to have the blade over-run the "shoes" by a fingernail width. If you don't you will leave a hard edge on the side of the angle. A bitch to sand. The blades are carbide, so sand-paper, files or anything else is NOT gonna work. They are tough, ya know. A grinder is the only thing I know of that has any effect on em, but I am always willing to learn a new trick, if anyone else knows a better way, I'm all ears.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

suncoast drywaller said:


> Had another go today . Put final coat on with 2 1/2 northstar anglehead . Although I had to fix a fair few with corner trowl I was happy with the results .I am now starting to get more confident with it .Thanks guys so much for your help CHEERS:thumbsup:


Way to go Sun,,,,, Hang in there, you can do it !!!!!!!!!!! DID ya see that folowing the bigger head with the smaller head means less sanding???

Did you think that even tho you have to touch some up, its still like 300 times faster??? 

But in the end,,, did ya like it???? :thumbup:


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## suncoast drywaller (Sep 4, 2009)

*Yep*



Capt-sheetrock said:


> Way to go Sun,,,,, Hang in there, you can do it !!!!!!!!!!! DID ya see that folowing the bigger head with the smaller head means less sanding???
> 
> Did you think that even tho you have to touch some up, its still like 300 times faster???
> 
> But in the end,,, did ya like it???? :thumbup:


Still srruggle a bit with 1st coat but it was like about twice as good as last time so Im makeing progress .The final coat works gangbusters saves heaps of time . Whats your method for speed sanding beetween coats ,pole sander with round disk or hand sponge sander just curious .:thumbsup:


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## Mudstar (Feb 15, 2008)

no need to sand with the proper application methods suggested by the Capt...... in an other thread he has posted


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

Thanks for the props guys. Like I said, I don't know it all, but i DID spend a night at the Holiday Express.

I have a corner sander that I got from All-Wall. It fits on an old stlye sanding pole (wierd threads). It has two velcro pads that attach. It will sand both sides at the same time. You can adjust it to sand the middle of the corner harder, by attaching the pads "high" so they push out harder on the middle. sorry i can't splain stuff any better. Or put em on "short" so they sand the edges more than the middle. If you get one of them, you can speed sand the corners in a 200 brd house in like 15 minutes. It doesn't really do alot of sanding, but it WILL get rid of ANY trash,,, Thats the biggest thing when your learning this stuff. 

Also, when you start running the mudrunner, you HAVE to keep your eye on the corner, cause you WILL pick up trash on your angle head. When you do, just take your finger and wipe the blade, then re-run it. I like to wipe the trash off on my pants leg, but you may have a better idea !!!!

One last reminder, no matter how thin you THINK you have your mud,,, thin it down MORE !!!:thumbup:


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## tricounty dwall (Apr 29, 2010)

well i am having the same problems he had. I runa bnjo and i taped my angles and rolled them out. Then as i was glazing i was tearing some tape and it was snatching the tape out of some of the corners. Some of the glazing i had to go over a couple of times and it was railroading and some of it was leaving a heavy edge. I was about to pull my hair out. So what do i do to stop the railroading in some areas and the edge on other?


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

tricounty dwall said:


> well i am having the same problems he had. I runa bnjo and i taped my angles and rolled them out. Then as i was glazing i was tearing some tape and it was snatching the tape out of some of the corners. Some of the glazing i had to go over a couple of times and it was railroading and some of it was leaving a heavy edge. I was about to pull my hair out. So what do i do to stop the railroading in some areas and the edge on other?


I'll try to answer that best I can.

1) If your blades have not been "bumped" on a grinder, they will rip wet tape. Either bumo em or just do the flats one day and the corners the next. No wet tape, no rip.
2) Not sure what ya mean by railroading, but I'll take a guess. If your haveing to go over your corner a "cpl" times, you are not leaveing enough mud with the banjo, open it up,,, if you have too, file the bottom lip on the banjo back to force it to let more mud out.
3)If your leaving a heavy edge (i read a hard edge on the outside of the corner) your blades are adjusted too close to the shoes(side blades). You need a fingernail width over the side shoes. In other words, run your fingernail up the shoes, it should "catch" on the blade.



I think that once you get enough mud out of the banjo, and don't try to run too far ahead of yourself (the mud will start to set), your problem will go away by itself.

One last note, I think I understood you to say your were pulling the corners back,,,, again, I may be thinking of a differant thing here. Never, put your anglehead at the top or the bottom and begin to run. Put it below the top, or above the bottom, run to the top or bottom, then reverse and run the rest of the angle. In other words, run the corner up a ft or two, to set the tape, then turn it around and run the whole thing.


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## tricounty dwall (Apr 29, 2010)

sorry i didnt reply my internet was screwed up. Basically what i mean is it was full in some places and leaving a bunch of hollows in othere. looked like railroad tracks lol. The bottoms looked great. but the tops are where i had problems.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

tricounty dwall said:


> sorry i didnt reply my internet was screwed up. Basically what i mean is it was full in some places and leaving a bunch of hollows in othere. looked like railroad tracks lol. The bottoms looked great. but the tops are where i had problems.


Sounds to me like you are not leaveing enough mud with the banjo. Open it up, or file the bottom lip to make it put more mud out. If you don't have enough mud, you can't run em, simple thing.

You mentioned the tops VS the bottoms, do you mean the up and down corners are fine? and the top angles (crown) is where the problem is?. If so, then mud is the problem, the top angles have alot of bevels in em, meaning they need more mud than a corner(walls) cause they don't have bevels in em.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

Another point, had to add a second post, cause the edit thing don't work for me. If your using the mudrunner on the first pass and haveing these problems, you are probbly trying to use mud that is too thick, or you are going too far ahead and the mud is beginning to set.


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## tricounty dwall (Apr 29, 2010)

yea the up and downs and u are right. has to be i need to open the bnjo up more. Thanks.


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## Capt-sheetrock (Dec 11, 2009)

tricounty dwall said:


> yea the up and downs and u are right. has to be i need to open the bnjo up more. Thanks.


I file the bottom lip back on mine. If you stand the banjo upright on a table, I am talking about the side that is on the table, behind the blade. That allows more mud to come out with the tape. Makes a bigger opening. Its hard to get across ideas on here sometimes, i hope you get the idea.


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## tricounty dwall (Apr 29, 2010)

yea i got it. i actually did it today. Ive got to hang a job monday so ill see how it does. Thanks for ur help


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