On 02/09/2019 07:29, harry wrote:
On Sunday, 1 September 2019 22:03:44 UTC+1, polygonum_on_google wrote:
On Friday, 30 August 2019 18:12:38 UTC+1, Bert Coules wrote:
Having just made my usual abject mess of laying a single course of bricks
(atop an existing low wall) I seriously wonder why I didn't simply stick the
damn things in place and fill the gaps with more of the same adhesive.
Centuries-old technology may be all well and good if you can manage it, but
for some jobs there are better alternatives.

My best attempt was when I managed to get the mortar just right. Not just adding water but chopping and folding and so on. When it has the right amount of air incorporated, it seems to work much more easily.

Also, frog up or frog down? I believe they should usually be frog down with the frog fully filled.

Brick manufacturers tell you frog up. (Stronger job)
Brickies lay them frog down to make them easier to lay.

You hardly ever see frogs these days anyway, they come on pressed bricks.
Most bricks are extruded and wire cut nowadays.

and some have to be laid cut direction down so the face doesn't hold
water... ....