Comment by Dion Battles on August 1, 2010 at 2:20pm

Scott, what did you use for a mix for your first vertical carving? And what what your impressions of it, likes and dislikes?

Comment by Scott on August 1, 2010 at 2:51pm

Good day Dion, this here is a half batch of trupac mix. Please see my recent exchange with Christian, I talk about my potential issue. I think its just me, take into account I am a virtual bananna head when it comes to concrete/cement. I know nothing about it. Thank God my dad was able to give me some pointers and now I have all you nice folks!:) My dog sure as heck ain't helpin'.

I like the mix, I think the next batch will be much better. I waited a half hour before I even started troweling on the sample board. It didn't stick too well, then realized I should probably douse the scratch coat with water. These are all beginner things that I now realize. I wouldn't trust any impression I have of the anything thusfar :)

Comment by Dion Battles on August 1, 2010 at 3:07pm

TruPac is a good product. I have used it. There are some ricks of the trade that are very important, like wetting your scratch coal, etc. Have you spent any time on VerticalArtisans.com? If not check it out, it is WELL worth the $! Any question you will have is shown in videos in great detail. You will love it.

Comment by Tru Pac/Walttools/Don on August 2, 2010 at 4:03pm

Scott. Don here. The biggest trick(for you at this point) for Trupac is NO HALF BAGS. They are designed to be used all or none. The exception is if you have a proper blender/mixer and you are able to thoroughly blend the full contents of the bag before starting. Some guys will do that with a bag or two, bucket it up, and save it for emergencies when they need just a little more to finish a job. There are some precision components in the bag that will certainly come into play when missing or in improper ratios. Blended Vertical mixes are subject to "settling" more so than other bag mixes due to the huge variance in component density so we find it more reliable to just hand batch every bag. I am surprised it worked as well as it did being a partial batch.That being said, the other advice given by this gang is quite reliable, take it to heart. Join the educational site, it is worth it's weight in gold.

Comment by Jeff Bonick on August 2, 2010 at 8:07pm

I'm with Don on this one, the only time you should attempt to partial bag any vertical carve mix is after you have throughly dry mixed the entire bag first so that all the aggregate is evenly disbursed, then cut it down & add your water. Have fun carving! FYI get the subscription to VA it's worth it's weight in platinum!! (didn't mean to one up you Don!!)

Comment by Tru Pac/Walttools/Don on August 2, 2010 at 8:58pm

I almost said "worth it's weight in mortar!" but realized that was bit of a downer.

Comment by Scott on August 2, 2010 at 10:17pm

Haha, eye of the beholder Don. Seriously, I look through some of these projects and you literally ARE transforming mortar into Platinum, Silver and Gold as far as most of us are concerned.

I wanted to thank you all who offered advice, excellent advice and I'm using every last word that was suggested to me. Much appreciated.

I did subscribe to the site and have started getting into the videos and I totally agree...the subscription price is a steal. Money well spent if you really want to do this artistry.
I really like Nathan, excellent instruction and he seems like a super stand up guy.

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