Sawing at Spencer Field again.

[Tom]

I love this place!  

Sometimes there are customers and families that you really look forward to servicing.  This is one of them.  

I started sawing for Frank years ago.  Frank has a "many" acre cow farm and has been in the real-estate business by default because of urban sprawl.  His pastures on the Jacksonville side of the farm are sold to developers who continue to build houses.  We still haven't figured out where all these people work but the houses continue to be bought.  

Then he buys acreage on the south end of the farm to keep the acreage plentiful enough for the cow business.  He has four sons.  Two have worked the mill  for me for years, Mark and Johnny. The third, Jesse, is a building contractor and uses his knowledge to build camps for the farm.

Frank has a brother, Charles, who I sawed for once but he's sold out.  He was in the Chicken business and has retired.

Frank's other brother, Philip, is the one in the mule, closest to the camera.  He's a sport.  He was an Army pilot, I think, and loves planes.  He owns the airport in the background and lets folks build hangers and keep planes for only the insurance and Tax money.  There are hangers the full length of the grass strip on the other side from where we are sawing.   His son, Curtis, just retired from his logging business after turning its operation over to his son "little curt".   Curt is the one on the loader and handling the hose.

Everytime I saw for these folks, I'm made to feel "part of the family".  They are the most ameniable folks in the world, bending over backward to make sure I'm comfortable, have everything I need and don't work too hard.  If I reach for a dropped wrench, there are 6 or 8 hands down there before I can bend over. :D

The logs are for Curt's house.


This is the way to handle logs.


Cleaning the logs with a stream from a 2" hose
attached to a 6 inch pipe that runs to the other
side of the airport where it is being pumped
by a 6 horse electric pump attached to an
artisian well.

Lunch was a pork bar-b-cue sandwich, fries and sweet tea  ;D

[Gilman]

Looks like the perfect customer.

[sigidi]

Hey Tom,

the lunch sounds good enough reason to go there regardless of sawing :D ;D

[Tom]

I broke down yesterday and was late getting to the mill today.  While I was putting the part on the mill, the 86 year-old instructor cranked up his piper and took it for ride. He just rebuilt the 90 horse engine and is putting some time on it around the airport.   Here he is lifting off in a head wind with 20 mph gust crossing on occassion.  

I wanted to get a picture of him landing but the help came and I had to saw.

[oakiemac]

Customers like that make for a real good day of sawing.
Does he take you up in the airplane?

[Tom]

On the way home, Curt and I stopped by big-curtis' house.  I sawed it a couple of years ago.


Here is Big Curtis' new house.  It is in the middle of the woods, all by itself, a couple of miles from the nearest public road.


Looking at the front door.


Here is the doorbell :D


Looking to the right as you enter.


Looking to the left


The cherry staircase with natural edge and cedar bannisters.


The Pecky Cypress Entertainment Center


The Ridge beam


View of the Master Bathroom upstairs, as seen from the bed.
It's full of cedar.
If you go into the bathroom next to the back door downstairs and look up, you will find the ceiling paneled with the old rusty tin from his Granddaddy's camp, ...nail holes and all. :D


A Spencer pride is the bobcat on the cedar bannister of the cherry staircase and the wood ducks on the living room wall.


I stopped by the camp on the way out and took some pictures of it too.  I sawed it at the same time as Big Curtis' house.  Pictures posted later.
Link to camp pictures

[Tom]

Airplane rides?  Yep!  just for the asking.  If one of the planes is going up, wave and run catch it and you can go too. :D

[Furby]

Way  8) 8) 8)!!!!!!!!!! All of it!!!!!!!!!

[hillbilly]

                Tom what all typs of wood is the in side of the house made of , it looks like pine and oak but i'm not for sure. They sure sound like nice people to do work for ;)
               hillbilly  

[Tom]

The outside is Cypress.  The paneling on the inside is Pine but a little of it (kitchen) is old barn wood from his Uncle Frank's old place.  I don't think there are any hardwoods accepting the stairs.

[Patty]

Wow those are great pictures, Tom. I especially like the cherry staircase.     VERY NICE, indeed.

[Corley5]

Double WOW!!!  That place is super  8) 8)

[redpowerd]

i agree with patty, that staircase really stands out nicely.
you say you sawed it, how long has he been working on the place?
very nice

[Tom]

I've been looking for the thread where I discussed sawing thte pine but can't find it.  I think it was in 2002.  

the wood was dried for the better part of a year and the camp was built first and then the house.  

He probably started it in 2003.  I'll try to find out.

[EZ]

Nice pictures and place, Tom, I always enjoy your post.
The people in Ohio that I talk to thats been to Florida always say the houses are wall to wall. I guess these people only visit the city. Nice to see that there is still some country left in Florida.
Are you and your wife still talking about moving out of state.
EZ

[Tom]

The wife is :D

[Texas Ranger]

GTT, Tom. 8)

[redpowerd]

boy its amazing what you can get done when farming dosent get in the way :D :D :D
my cabin is a 2002 and i still dont have a real kitchen.(i have located a cabnetmaker though) ;D

[CHARLIE]

Wow! A picture of an old J3 Cub!  I love those old planes. I think the top speed was 60 mph, but they were really safe 'cause they had an excellent glide ratio.

It's enjoyable to see pictures of a person's home that loves and enjoys wood.

Now.....BBQ and fries for lunch!  DanG!  If I were there I'd make sure you got a can o' peas instead. ;D

[Tom]

I looked for some, Charlie, but there weren't any there.

Don,
GTT mean Go to Texas?   That sounds like a wonderful thing to do.  I may give it a try.  If I have to leave,  I want a place, finally, where I can build what I want, with my own stuff and not have the local authorities telling me how and with what.  I want to live somewhere once again where 'what's mine is mine".