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Saw a guy on a site in Denver screed a slab with a 2x4
I've always used a 2x4 for screeding. Figured that's just how it's done. But this finisher used a metal screed rail and the slab was dead flat. Mine always had little dips. How much difference does the tool really make?
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paul_mason121mo ago
My neighbor runs a crew that does nothing but warehouse floors, and he swears by a 7-foot magnesium channel (like an 80 pounder). He let me try it once and the difference was night and day - no flex, no bouncing, just a straight cut every time. A 2x4 on a 12 foot span will cup and dip from the moisture in the concrete, even if it's kiln dried. You can fight the 2x4 and get decent results if you're careful, but the metal rail makes it almost automatic.
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I noticed the same thing with my floor sander at the shop. The cheap rental sander left swirl marks no matter how careful I was, but a friend's pro model with the right counterbalance laid down a perfect finish first try. For screeding, the 2x4 flexes and bows under its own weight over a long span, while a stiff metal rail keeps a true straight edge across the whole slab. It's one of those things where spending a little more on the right tool saves you hours of fixing little mistakes.
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