HgWhiz

What is fasted layed brick or block that you have witnessed on the job ?
In a hour, before lunch or all day.

cleveman

2000 modulars each by two on an apartment building. That was double normal.

jomama

I got drug into (long story) laboring for one of my employees that was in the Bricklayer 500 at WOC a few years ago. He layed close to 600 brick in an hour (I think) but got DQ'ed. I did get to watch the winner tho, & he laid 792 in an hour, if I remember correctly. None of the walls were sellable IMO. Either way, in the real world, I would say a great mason at ideal heights laying mods with no detail could lay between 1500-2000 in a day, but be awfully tired .

NJ Brickie

1500-2000 a day? 8hr. day? I hope that wall can only be seen from a high speed train. I would think you would get sea sick looking down those bed joints. Couldn't spend much time striking and polishing those joints. Seems like the fastest guys only have speed and not much quality. Thats not to say the slow guys always have quality. Go as fast as you can and still produce nice work everyday.

Resta

Quality and Quantity not all the times go together.

jomama

I didn't say I ever did 1500-2000 per day, nor could I, because I'm too picky. But I know in ideal conditions, this mason could do it. Just do the math someday when your layin gfor an hour. If you are using poles on a large wall, no telephone or ordering guys around, long, straight wall, you may be suprised how many you can lay in an hour. Now imagine being on Hydro scaffold, always at ideal height, no bending over, no reaching for anything. BTW, what's an 8 hr. day?

Tscarborough

If you estimate a job at 1000 brick a day per mason, even on a straight up flat wall, you will lose your ass. I hear brags about "laid per day", but realistically a sellable wall is 600 to 800 for a humping crew on an 8 hour shift.

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stacker

my cousin and i layed 3030 mods in one 8 hour day.we were on a straight run,with only control joints.scaffold was built and stocked,everything jelled perfect for us that day.

when i was working in liberal ks on a school,4 of us laid 25,000 mods in a week(40 1/2 hrs).same type setup,straight runs,scaffold built and stocked.the only down time was raising walk plank.

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bobcaygeonjon

I once laid 1750 in an 8 hour day but that was an unusual day when everything just fell into place. Never been able to do it since. A normal day on a straight wall would be 700 to 1000.

DQM

When I work for this company years ago worked with a guy 1500 to 2000 a day his wall looked like a piece of swiss cheese. He would strike his head joints with a trowel of mortar in hand. I tell my guys all I want from them is 600 a day but they better be perfect.

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HgWhiz

On a Video Update (a wanna be Blockbuster Video) in Frisco ,Tx in the summer of 97', on a 75 ft wall wth me spreading a little less than 1\4 of each course , and handing brick to him, my brother-in-law (on a commercial job) layed, jointed, brushed, and rejointed 1375 modular brick in 2 1\2 hours. The only hole was the one that those poor 3 bricklayers got put in 6 courses deep around the corner. They couldn't get out and their section was only 30 ft. If it hadn't been for him having to rig the trig so that both, us and them could have a true line despite the drastic course difference my brother-in-law would have easily surpassed 1400 and been flirtin with 1500.

Waggz

One summer when I was a teen, I worked as a laborer for a mason. Our crew was 2 masons and 2 laborers. We laid a 900+ block foundation in 8.5 hours. Don't remember if that was good, I just remember we finished the foundation in one day and that I was realllllllly tired.

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Paul B

Man that is moving, that's 9+ per minute, not calling you liar, but that is hard to believe. I would like that done.

HgWhiz

Even though I believe the key is having a personal spreader that hands you brick so that you are laying on perfect mud the whole time nonstop, I still feel like I held my brother-in-law back because I just started spreading mud for the first time a couple of weeks before that day and I couldn't grab the brick for him fast enough, usually when someone hands brick to a bricklayer, as he or she lays the brickthere ther is a few seconds of holding the brick in front of them before they grab it. That day it was the other way around meaning he was waiting on me to get the brick in front of him.

Teetorbilt

Back in the late 60's we hired this mason named Frank. He was in his early 80's He was a brick layin' fool, never did take a count on him.

On the flat, it took three young guys to mix mortar (in a boat) and hob to him. The higher we got the more guys we had to add to keep him busy.

I never saw a stringline and his old level would come out once in a while. Boy would he holler if those guys didn't keep up with him. I'll see if I can put up a few pics.

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Tscarborough

Teetor, he was probably trained in the Gabraith method.

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Teetorbilt

Here's Frank at about 82. About 1971 or 2.



Me, same period in front of our work. Frank did most of it, Dad built the forms and pitched in just because he liked it, I was just a spare hand but was taught well. There were about 30 of these storefronts and in places the old brick went up all 3 floors.



Just some entry's. There were 6 or 8 of these.



One of the 12 fountains. There were matching planters down the center of the walkways. You can see the planters in the far background and foreground.



Ol' Frank was hell on wheels.

To all that say one guy couldn't do all of this. 95% of all of the wrought iron work that was done one this job was done by Paul Pincus, in his late 60's. I lay claim to the remaining 5%, I really enjoyed blacksmithing.

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lukachuki

Thanks for sharing Teetor!!!

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Tim

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for the night. Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. - Terry Prachett

HazMat1969

That's 100% correct. Only in people's drink induced imaginations (down the pub) do bricklayers routinely lay 1000 bricks a day. For quality face work in half bond I wouldn't estimate beyond 60 bricks/hr - about 600 for a hard days work.

I HAVE lost my ass on the few occasions I have been tempted to go beyond this. I no longer believe in unicorns, goblins, fairies, or ****-faced bricklayers in the local pub on a Saturday night who brag to me about throwing up a 1000 good bricks a day.

robert77

the average bricklayer should be able to lay approx 80 bricks an hour averaged out to between 500-700 per day