I was wrong about Corner Trowels!

Useless DIY tool or specialized pro tool?

[baldamphibian]

I keep mine in a small bucket of water and clean it with a wet rag almost every run I make. I do one drag one way with small amount of flex, to get the majority. Then clean/wet the tool and get the lowest angle possible, without dragging the leading edge and go the opposite direction with a bit more pressure. I've been able to do tape and then one immediate coat over tape and done, though I usually have to come back with a second coat over the mud. I was so disappointed when you said this tool was trash awhile back. Love that you are now liking it.

[als]

Yes !! Finally this great tool gets the respect it deserves ! I know plenty on this channel use and love it.
beginners will find it very useful on long ceiling runs, large room, where they can get very consistent results, quite quickly.
I would recommend less mud being applied, and work your way up. It's easy to go back and add more if you need to, the tool is forgiving, and very accurate.
It lays down tape very well, with just 2" of mud on either side of the corner.

[wizgoober]

Hey, I just wanted to say THANK YOU for all your videos! I tackled a bathroom remodel that required a lot of drywall work. Your vids really helped me step up my game. The channel is awesome !

[jasonwatzka]

I already like your videos. For you to say, "You know what? I was wrong" speaks volumes about your character. Great job

[johnschutt]

Just a thought that may help you out, since you've helped me so much. When a camera sees a scene, it will meter so that the majority of the scene is 18% reflectivity. This will render a white wall as gray. The way to lighten this is to use a setting on the camera that is called "exposure compensation." See if you can learn how to do this. I'd suggest you use exposure compensation of about +1.3, or +1.5, or maybe +1.6. That will lighten up your video recordings.

[bay]

Like all tools the skills follow the application over time. You'd be surprised how nicely those inside corners turn out. Flawlessly.

[nomadnowhere]

Corner trowel is standard practice for a professional plasterer here in Australia - how it’s commonly used here is….
Where the handle makes a right angle and attaches to the trowel, you can hook your thumb under there and then put your pointer and middle finger on one side of the trowel wing and your ring and little finger on the other side of the trowel (like the star trek ’live long and prosper’ hand sign). If you hold it this way, you can apply pressure to either the right or left side if needed to float different sections. And also to apply pressure to the trowel sides to feather your edges more without pushing in the center of the trowel too much.

[TheDarrenJones]

Really good to see this. I've learned a HUGE amount from watching you - I'm self-building my own home extension in the UK and I'm doing all the drywall (plasterboarding as called in the UK) myself - mostly with what I've learned from you. Corners have been really hard for me, and I found that the corner trowel was getting me good results quickly - in fact, the thing I've been most confident with (and there are a LOT of corners because of the shape of the building). So it's nice to see you've changed your mind and to give a good demonstration on how to get it looking good. I'm at the second coat stage for everything, so hopefully I'll get the finish right. Thanks again for your videos - they've been super-helpful and you're a great teacher as well as craftsman.

[repoman]

Thanks for the video. Glad to see you saw the light on the corner trowel. If Marshalltown makes it, it's a pretty good bet it's a pro tool. I like to load my corner trowel with mud on both sides near the top (takes some practice), eliminating the first knife step you showed, and then lower towards the wall as I drag down the corner. I also find it's a very fast way to mud any type of corner tape - lots of personal preference here, many others do not like corner trowels...

[gBayCanada]

Thanks to you, I'm a serious DIY drywall guy and used the smaller corner trowel. 
It worked really well to set the tape. Saved me much time and effort. Glad you endorse it.

[johngrossbohlin]

For sure the corner tool is great for the narrow strips by doors and windows... Blame the framers for putting those things too tight into the corners... sometimes so tight that the trim has to be ripped/scribed to fit! The corner tool helps make you look good in those situations!

[HotspotsSoutheast]

Any project I do is a long drawn out thing. I work a few hours here and there when I have time. Not any rush. Waiting for mud to dry is a perfect excuse for putting off more work until later. Or at least moving on to some other task. Thanks as always for posting!

[antonioliles]

I did drywall for 20 years and always used a corner trowel.
When I started working with a different company, the guy I got paired with thought I was an armature when he saw me pull out my corner trowel. He even commented what kind of home owner tool is that.
He changed his tune after the first job we did together. Took me half the time to get the same results as he did.

Little tip. Feather your edges with a 6" knife before you use the corner trowel. You will get less mud roll.

[ErikScott]

You videos have been indispensable for me fixing up the house I bought recently. I just replaced a lot of drywall in a closet that had been damaged by a roof leak around the chimney. I picked up the corner tool a little while back figuring "ehh, what the hell, why not give it a try" and it ended up working out for me really well. It left a nice consistent fillet in the corner, and I was able to knock down the ridges with a 6-inch knife. I can understand why professionals might not use it, but for a DIY-er who just wants to get things done and doesn't have time to perfect mudding techniques, it's a great option.

[MAGAMAN]

I found using a corner tool gives me better result than I could ever get with a flat blade. As a beginner I found my biggest problem was leaving too much mud in the corners.

[noelways]

I'm a DIY for 25 years, and this corner tools was one of the first tools in my arsenal. I have found it indispensable. The is also another round over tool that have helped so much. Also, regarding the corner tool, they also come is smaller versions for tighter corners.

My first comment !! Love your channel !!

[ncinteriorsplus]

I have a smaller one that I use. I pull perfect 90° inside angles with this tool. After I pull the bed then the tape, I just feather the edges with a 6 " knife.
I'd be lost without this tool.
A complete time saver and a professional inside angle.

[rockstopsthetraffic]

Exactly something I was thinking about for 1-day drywall jobs with a bunch of corners, thanks Ben!

[edover]

Glad you did this. I only do patches and this tool saves me time. It also works better around windows like you mentioned. I find holding my finger in the middle of the crease makes for a tighter corner.
I also use the adjustable corner tool for those wonky no-coat angles. Maybe it’s just my lack of skill but it’s way cleaner and faster

[alanreynolds]

I have used my corner trowel on every inside corner I have done for the last 20 years. For people starting out, don't try to mud both sides where two inside corners meet (as in this video) it will get frustrating quickly. Do vertical corner seams to get the hang of it!