This is one of our reviews on the plastering trowel from Ox. This Australian company have created a load of tools for all tradesmen. From tape measures to hammers this company have there fingers in many pies.
Today I’ll be giving my view on there plastering trowels. I’ve recently been using the 14″ x 5″ finishing trowel from Ox and we’re going to go through the pros and cons to this little beast.
First off let’s talk about first impressions. It looks robust and it actually looks like it can take a fair bit of abuse. It has a solid rubber hand grip that feels quite comfortable in the hand – It’s not to heavy either giving a nice balance when you hold it.
The blade is made from stainless steel and it looks like it’s been well forged to its frame. First impressions show its decent piece of kit – so far so good!
Let’s go deeper. Here’s a list of pros and cons we faced when using this trowel.
Pros
We found that when we were using this trowel we could get a decent finish quite fast. It doesn’t need that much work with being broken in and it they have done a good job at making a trowel that is user friendly from the beginning.
It was effective during the first and second coat of finish plaster leaving minimal streaks and lines. It was easy to smooth over and good for leaving a even application ready for finishing.
It was nice to use on the final trowel also giving a smooth finish after the first use. It can sometimes take a while to break in a trowel for the final trowel but this was well adapted.
The handle was firm during use and the rubber grip made sure you could get a firm hold onto the trowel (especially important during the final trowel).
The price was also good. I bought this one for £28 which to me, is a fair price for a finishing trowel of this standard.
So far so good, not a bad trowel! However there was one thing that stopped this trowel being great.
Cons
There was one major problem with this trowel that for me, actually ruined it as a tool. The handle was too close to the frame. Let me explain.
Where you would usually have a lot of space to hold the handle and move the trowel with the plaster, this feature really restricted my movement. For example when I was applying the plaster, I wanted to apply a long streak for a smoother finish but It just wasn’t possible (or at least comfortably), with this trowel.
When your angle your hand as you applied the plaster your fingers would get trapped between the frame and the blade. I felt like a couldn’t get any flexibility when skimming.
For me this one difference has really effected my opinion on the trowel. It could have been so good: looks decent, feels sturdy, finishes nicely. It was just a nightmare to use in the end.
It sounds harsh but I really didn’t enjoy using it. It didn’t feel natural and I generally felt I was fighting with the trowel rather than working with it. This one simple difference has totally effected my view on this tool.
Unfortunately due to this minor but detrimental defect I’m afraid I’ll have to give it a 2.5 out of 5.
It can be the best trowel in the world but if you don’t feel comfortable using it then is it worth the hassle?