Finally got the hang of that tricky soldier course on a curved wall

I was working on a garden wall in Phoenix last month and had to lay a soldier course on a 15-foot radius curve, which I've always struggled with. Instead of my usual method, I tried cutting the bricks at a slight angle before laying them and the whole thing lined up perfectly on the first try. Has anyone else found a specific trick for curved work that saved them a ton of time?

3 comments

3 Comments

adam_young311mo ago

Ever try using a string line tied to the center point of that curve? I kept one nailed to a stake and just checked each brick as I went, saved me from the whole thing drifting off line. What radius were you working with?

blairm3516d ago

Adam how tight was that radius? Smaller curves almost demand the whole center point string line method but I find anything under a 6 foot radius and the string gets too close to the bricks to be useful. Ever run into that issue or was your 15 footer forgiving enough to eyeball it with the line?

rowan1091mo ago

That's a solid trick with the angled cuts. Had a similar breakthrough last summer on a curved patio edge. Spent ages trying to force the standard bricks into the curve and kept getting ugly gaps. Finally just started buttering the mortar thicker on the outside edge of each brick, like a tiny wedge, and it clicked into place. Felt like such a simple fix after all the frustration.