I finally listened to an old timer about setting posts in clay
About a year ago, I was putting up a fence in a wet part of Seattle and an older guy from a crew down the street walked over. He said, 'Son, you're digging those holes too neat. In this gumbo, you gotta rough up the sides with your auger or that concrete won't grab a thing.' I was just making clean cylinders. The next day, I started wiggling the auger to scuff the walls before pouring, and the hold is way better. Anyone else have a trick for dealing with heavy clay soil?
Yeah, that "clean holes on purpose" thing is a perfect example. I see it all the time with new tech or tools. People follow the basic instructions to the letter, making everything neat and perfect. But real world stuff is messy. Like wiping a phone screen with a soft cloth but it's still greasy until you learn to breathe on it first for the moisture. The manual doesn't say that, but it works.