Kraft tool gripper vs. knee kicker for long hallway seams

Did a 40 foot hallway last week and tried using the gripper for a change. Knee kicker had me sore for two days but the seam was perfect. Gripper was faster but I ended up with a visible seam line in bad light. Going back to the kicker for any run over 20 feet. Anyone else find the gripper only works for small rooms?

2 comments

2 Comments

anthonymurray21d ago

Did you stretch the carpet properly with the gripper? I've found that's where most folks go wrong on long runs. A knee kicker might hurt your leg but it gives you that consistent tension you can't fake with any tool.

milestaylor21d agoOG Member

Funny enough I learned about carpet tension the hard way when I tried to install some myself and ended up with a giant ripple in the middle of the room that looked like a speed bump. My buddy who does this for a living came over and just laughed at me before showing me how the knee kicker really saves your knees from extra abuse. Now I just pay him to do it because my back can't handle crawling around on the floor anymore.