DIYbanter - Re Drywall skim Why is a skim put onto drywal

"srazor" wrote in
:

The skim coat makes the 'rock the same porosity as the mudded areas.
this prevents the mudded areas from "photgraphing" though when the
surface is primed and painted

Makes very good sense, but nobody ever asked us/me to do it. I've seen
'photographed' areas and they make me wonder what kind of a rocker would do
that; I hired help, hired help, hired help, and then hired help. It was
hard to find a good taper. A good taper will hide joints and seams
perfectly. Harder to find a plasterer. I did most of the serious taping
(odd shapes, angles, etc.) and all the plastering when I was in business. I
was lucky to have two good tapers for most work (Frogs like me), but I did
the plastering. I was taught plastering by one of my friends uncle. A great
old Italian guy. We smoked Parodis and drank much Dago red, but I learned
to trowel. I stopped taking plaster jobs (except for restoration work)
because they were very few. To make any money plastering, you must be very
fast and proficient. Being fussy, I spent too much time on those jobs and
my profit was nil. I would only get a plaster job every year or two, but I
loved doing them. Plastering is a trade that must be practiced to stay
proficient in speed of application and fine finish. Once or twice a year
wasn't enough to make the job pay. My work was very good. but took a long
(sometimes frustrating) time. I couldn't make it pay.
Hank