I flew out to Phoenix to learn more about crack sealing. The extreme heat and temperatures swings test the limits of asphalt's flexibility. And whoever said it never rains in the desert was wrong.

This episode, Robert Bonura and the crew at DeHart Asphalt invited me (Brandon Noel, editor-in-chief, Asphalt Contractor magazine) to learn two of the most common forms of pavement crack repair — crack filler and mastics — in one of the most punishing environments asphalt faces anywhere in the country.

When temperatures push high enough to actually soften the pavement surface, those cracks don't just appear. They pull apart, let water in, and accelerate deterioration from the bottom up. We fought rain, dirt, and mud with a heat lance, a colonial-era bucket, and some new types of equipment meant to make the process easier.

Along the way, Robert walked me through when to use crack filler versus mastics, what self-leveling material actually means in the field, and why surface prep — clean and dry — is non-negotiable before any repair.

Then Crafco brought me inside their factory in Phoenix, where ~80 people build 450-to-500 machines a year by hand. We talked skilled trades, workforce development, supply chain management, and what it actually takes to keep American manufacturing moving — one machine at a time.