Object- Introduction of tools, equipment and machine used in Mason shop.

Introduction of tools- The various tools used by a mason for his work can be grouped as follows.
a) Brick trowel: Brick trowels is usually about 18 cm with a steel blade and wood handle. Brick
trowels are used to collect the motor and spread it to the next brick course level. It is a traditional
tool, made in a variety of shapes and sizes.
The various tools used by a mason for his work can be grouped as follows.

1) Common Tool
2) Mortar Making Tools
3) Levelling Tools
4) Finishing Tools
5) Cutting Tools
1. COMMON TOOLS

In this category, all types of tools commonly used for setting the masonry work such as-
1.1 Trowels: Trowels are basic and traditional instruments developed in a variety of shapes and
sizes to suit their function. Some common types of Trowels include
a) Brick trowel: Brick trowels is usually about 18 cm with a steel blade and wood handle. Brick
trowels are used to collect the motor and spread it to the next brick course level. It is a traditional
tool, made in a variety of shapes and sizes. The motor sleeping blade from the skillet is flat on
one side. The curved edge is hardened to cut bricks. The handle is angled to balance the
instrument while keeping Mason's hand away from the motor.
b) Small size brick trowel: IIt is a trowel but small, it is about 12.5 cm long and is mainly used
to fill joints between bricks.
c) Margin trowel: Margin trowel is like pointing, but has a flat rectangular blade. It is used by
plasterers to apply and smooth material in areas where a larger trowel would be inconvenient.
d) Gauging trowel: The gauging trowel having blade length 15cm to 20cm is used by plasterers
in the same way as a margin trowel. It is preferred by some masons for general application, such
as mixing small quantities of quick setting plaster.
e) Angle trowel: Angle Trowel has a flat blade with edges facing 100mm x 62mm wide and at
right angles of 25mm height. Plasterers use this to soften the surface of the material when
working in a corner.
1.2 Floats
a) Wooden float:- The 50 cm long and 10 cm wide wooden strip with a handle used to place the
mortar in line on bricks, sometimes also at the time of the plaster. It is also available in smaller
sizes, such as 25cm x 10cm. The main purpose of using floats is to fill voids, level ridges, and
smooth surfaces in trowel preparation.
b) Metal float: The metal float is a flat rectangular steel sheet, typically 25cm x 10cm, with a
handle positioned in the centre of the back face. Its general purpose is to apply and finish the
material, applying a pure cement finish to the plaster.

1.3
a) Plumb Bob: Plumb bob is a basic tool for a bricklayer to build any bricklaying job in the
vertical plane. It is available in normally mild steel with a coating that weighs approximately 30-
40 gms. The plumb bob is a pointy weight attached to a line length that is contained in the bob
itself and clamped in a slot in the lid.
b) Right Angled Scales: It is used to set the right angle corner. This is the MS. The square is
30cm x 60cm long with hands representing an inch or so of Cms. It is used to lay the corner of
the bricks in the rectangle.
c) Line Dori: This is a basic tool for any Mason to do the job. Usually a line dori of 3 mm dia.
Wax coating is used. Nowadays the nylon line tori is very used, it can be from 1mm to 2mm dia.
d) Aluminium Hollow box section: Screenboard is used to balance the surface during plastering
and site preparation. It can be wooden slabs of 50mm x 65mm length 1.2m to 1.5m. An
aluminium hollow box section of 65mm x 30mm and 1.5m long is also used. This can be called a
straight edge.
e) Measuring Tape: A steel tape marked in meters and feet and divided into cm and inches.
Usually used by a meson to measure the length and width of the masonry. It is available in 2m,
3m, 5m, 15m and 30m.
2. MORTAR MAKING TOOLS:

a) Measuring Box: It can be a wood or steel box of 1 ft x 1 ft x 1.25 ft, equivalent to the size of
a bag of cement. When pouring raw materials into luggage (say 1: 4), one bag of cement will be
mixed with 4 pharma sand.

b) Mixing Tray: Lightweight steel plate is usually used for mixing the motor. It is 2.0 m long
and 1.0 m wide with the handlebars.
c) Sand screen: Usually a wire mesh of 0.9 m x 1.2 m is used as a screen for sand in a wooden
frame or angular frame. For masonry work, the screen is 0.6 mm dia.Wires and 10 x10 wires per
inch square.
For plastering work a screen having 0.3mm dia of wire with 24 x24 wires per inch square.
d) Pan: 40cm Dia's Iron Pan is used to transport the motor. The same can be used for the rate of
mixing. If there is 1: 4 mortar mix, mix 1 pan cement with 4 pot sand
e) Showel: It is the most common tool for mixing the mortar and for filling the pans.
f) Bucket: Generally an iron bucket of up to 10 lit. Capacity is used for mixing the water in the
mortar.
g) Drum: A 200 lit capacity M.S. drum is used to store the water. Nowadays PVC containers are
also available.
h) Garden Showel: A group of 8 to 10 wires of 6 mm MS bars of 500 mm length and these
wires are bent at 90-degree edges (shown in fig.) Are a very effective tool for spreading concrete
with the required thickness in a given area?
3. LEVELLING TOOLS
These tools are used for setting the levels at the time of work.
a) Spirit level: This is the most important tool with the help of which the degree of
movement of the bubble can be determined between any two surfaces. Typically this tool is used
for tiling work to check the size of tiles.

It is usually 30 cm long. The important part of any level is the vial. It is a curved or barrel glass
or plastic tube which may contain alcohol, oil or chloroform. There is a bubble of air in the liquid
which floats to the highest point of the curve, where two lines are marked in the vial. When the
position is "true", the bubble will rest between the two lines.
b) Level Tube: A thin 6mm diameter clear PVC tube about 8-10m. Long and is used to check
levels when filled with water. The basic principle is that the water will occupy the same level, it
is used to do the work at the level.
4. FINISHING TOOLS

These tools are used for finishing work such as Sponge

a) Sponge: A 12.5 cm x 10 cm square of the sponge is used to finish plaster surfaces as sand-
coated plaster. By applying two or three rounds of this sponge, a fine sand texture will appear on
the surface.

b) M.S. Corners: Small pieces of MS sheet of approximately 12.5 cm in length and used for the
perfect finishing of the corners of the wall and the plaster edges of doors and windows.

c) Cove Corner: The corner of the cove is like a metal float, but the rectangular blade bends in a
curved width. It is used to smooth the internal curve of decorative plaster trim that is sometimes
found between ceilings and walls.

d) Finishing Trowel: This trowel, also called a floating trowel, consists of a wide, flat surface
with a handle on one side. Can be used as a tray to transport large amounts of mortar or plaster
and for a final pass to smooth mortar or plaster

h) Brushes: At least two types of brushes 25mm wide and 75mm wide must be with a mason to
clean surfaces and finish the job.
5. CUTTING TOOLS
These are tools used for minor cutting or chipping work

a) Chisel and Hammer: There are several types of hammer and chisel available on the market,
but the bricklayer must have at least two types of hammer weighing 1 pound and 4 pounds for
dismantling jobs and 10cm chisels for small jobs and 20cm for major dismantling jobs .

b) Pointed hammer: It is like a hammer, but it has both ends with pointed edges and is used to
cut the concrete surfaces of beams and columns or slabs before plastering, for a better bond.
Some have a pointy point for deep hacking.

c) Tile cutter: The simplest tile cutter is a square-sectioned steel shaft of 20cm length with a
pointed tungsten carbide tip. It is used to score a line on the glazed surface of a ceramic tile prior
to snapping it off.

d) Portable Circular saw: The portable circular saw is an invaluable power tool. It is mainly a
woodworking tool, but with special tile cutting blades, it can be used to cut ceramics and other
types of tiles.