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Hi, Bob, Both previous answers are right. A masons chisel won't set you back much and you won't feel pressured by the daily rental cost of a tub saw, but you'll lose some bricks. A tub saw gives you perfect cuts but has those other disadvantages. I've seen my brother-in-law cut ceramic tile with a diamond blade on a worm-drive saw, pressing a wet rag against the blade to catch the dust. He's third generation in that trade, though, and at age 43 he's been doing it for 34 years. (Sounds medieval, doesn't it?) I'm not suggesting that it's a good idea. I always put extra cement in quickrete. I consider it a very poor quality mix as sold. As far as proportions are concerned, I'd say if you use some, that would be close enough. A cubic foot of dry quickrete should have 5/27 of a 94 lb bag of Portland cement in it to produce a 5 sack mix. I'd estimate it to be about 20% short of that. But cement is cheap and concrete is with you for a long time, so I never mix less than a six sack mix. That means adding 2/27 of a 94 lb bag, or about 7 lbs. Since I can't visualize that either way, I throw in an extra shovelful, and call it good. If you round off the bottom corners of a hoe a little bit, you can get all the mud out of a wheel barrow. A wheel barrow sets up and cleans up a lot faster than a mixer, and provides a brisk workout for your lower back, too. I prefer it if I've got a quarter yard or less to mix. All the best, Stan
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