Switched from a magnesium float to a resin one last month and it's night and day

Honestly I used to swear by magnesium floats for everything. Thought resin ones were just for fancy decorative work. Then I had this job in Nashville where the mix was super sticky and my float kept dragging. Borrowed a resin float from a guy on site and the finish came out way smoother with way less effort. Now I keep one in my truck for any pour under 4 yards. Has anyone else noticed a big difference between float materials on certain mixes?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_viola11d ago

Oh yeah, resin floats are a total game changer on sticky mixes.

terryw6710d agoMost Upvoted

That crushed rock mix is exactly what I ran into last month on a driveway apron, and yeah the magnesium float was just grabbing and tearing everything up. I swapped to a resin float and it was like night and day, the surface just buttered right out with way less effort. The trick I found is you gotta keep the resin float a bit wetter than you think, just a light mist spray between passes, otherwise the sticky stuff will start to ball up on the face of it. But once you get the hang of that, it's hard to go back.

elliot_patel11d ago

Wait, have you tried a resin float on a mix that has a lot of crushed rock in it? I had this same EXACT experience last summer on a garage floor job. The aggregate was really sharp and the magnesium float just kept tearing the surface. @the_viola is totally right, resin floats are a game changer on sticky mixes. I switched halfway through and my finish came out way flatter with way less elbow grease. Now I won't touch a magnesium float for anything under 5 yards unless it's a super dry mix.