timberframe addition

[Wade]

Testing to see if I got this right

[Carpenter]

     I saw the picture.  But, I had to click on it to see it.  Don't know why it didn't come up as a picture in your post.  Are you planing to build a timber framed addition?  Looked like you had some templates made.  That's a good start.

[Wade]

Hi Guys and Gals,
The above post was to see if I had posting pics figured out. Looks like I need a little more work to get them to show up on the page as opposed to just a link to them. I spent an hour typing a new post on the frame I'm doing and trying to upload pics when my computer decided to shut down and I lost what I was doing >:(.
I hate to type! So an hour of gathering thoughts and typing lost, did not make for a good night.I 'm far enough along that I thought I would post some pics and words about it. Maybe someone can put the pics where they should be or I'll figure it out soon enough.


Anyhow, I haven't posted for awhile and have been working on a 22x20 timberframe addition. It will be a 4 bent hammer-beam porch addition made from reclaimed white pine beams from an old feed store that was built around 1890. Rafter sizes are 8x11, posts are 8x8, hammer-beam beams are all8x8, tie beams are 8x11 and braces are 6x6 and 3x5.
The pic above is of the patterns and templates for the various members.
I drew a full size drawing of each joint as a reference during construction.
This is my first attempt at timberframing so if my terminology isn't correct I
apologize and feel free to correct me.
Here are some more pics and I will post more with explanations over the next few days.

[Wade]

Going to bed. I'll try tomorrow >:(

[Carpenter]

     Well, your work looks good!  I'm not really computer literate enough to explain why your picutures aren't showing up in your posts.  I've just done a little timber framing and I've laid everything out with a framing square.  But, I've thought that when I do a big project that I probably should take the time to make a set of templates like you've got.

[Wade]

 








Got it!
These pics are the post tops showing the shoulders for the connecting beams to rest on. They will have a through mortise in them for a spline. The tenon on top is for the hammerbeam plate (?). The rafter sits on this plate with a birds mouth cut in it. Also, there is a mortise in it for a tenon on the rafter.
The splines and the braces for the post to connecting beam will be cherry 3x5.
The brace for the post to the hammerbeam is white oak 6x6.








Follow directions and posting pics is easy!
I'll post more later. Thanks for looking

[Jim_Rogers]

Any and all tips or critiques are appreciated.

You just needed a few opening tags to get your photos to show. I added them for you.
Jim Rogers (just doing my moderator job..... ;D)

[Jim_Rogers]

Normally tenons on braces aren't centered on the brace. The reason for this is that you then need two shoulders, one on either side of the tenon. And these two shoulders have to be in line with each other. Not something that is easy to do.

Then you need to have two housings in the post one for each shoulder. And the two housings have to be in line with each other. Not something that is easy to do.

When you go to try and "fit up" the brace and if by chance it doesn't fit right you may have to trim two shoulders and two housing to get it all to line up. And what's that line: "not something that is easy to do".....

Now some people like a challenge, and there is no reason you can't do what you have done. Just understand that it is something that could be made easier if you want to.....

When timbers are true then creating housing into the timber are easy, as the surface of the timber is a surface you can measure off of to get the brace pocket including housing the correct depth.

What I mean when I say "When timbers are true...." is that the timber is planed on all four sides and that each side is truly 90° to each adjacent face. And that the dimension of the timber stays the same from one end to the other.

When timbers aren't true then creating a "centered brace pocket/mortise and two housings" are difficult as the surface of the timber isn't something you can measure off of. You have to use the opposite surface of the timber as a reference face.

What I mean when I say "when timbers aren't true...." is that the timber is rough sawn, not planed, and the sides may not be truly 90° to each other.

It would appear from your photos that the "sample" brace tenon was made out of a piece of timber that is true. If the pieces you're going to use to make up the braces for all your bents are true that most likely you won't have a problem.

Always make your mortise deeper then the tenon length. Or trim your tenon 1/8" shorter then your mortise depth. This will insure that the tenon never "bottoms out" in your mortise.

It would appear from your photos that your posts are true, in that they have been previously planed. If they are true then you may not have any problems with your layout and cutting of the joints.

When you layout the locations for the mortises for the braces they have to be located in the correct spot or the frame, when put together, will not make a 90° corner.

Connecting the three timbers, post, beam and brace, together and getting them to make a true 90° is very important in timber framing. This is where the frame's strength is.
It is even more important when it is a "hammer-beam" bent frame.

All of my comments are mean to be "tips" and I am trying to help you. I hope you take my comments this way.

Good luck with your project.

Jim Rogers

[Carpenter]

     Nice job on that brace pocket!  Fit looks great.  I don't think it gets much better than that, unless the pieces grew together.   

[Wade]

Hi carpenter, Thanks for the reply.
Hi Jim , thanks for the response also. I am always open to suggestions and easier way's to do things. I have been building furniture for quite awhile now and thats how I've always done m-t joints. I was a framing carpenter for 20 years also. I figured this can't be too hard, put the two together and have at it , right? I didn't think about it, but now that you mention it, I've seen it done that way.
But as you can see, I'm commited to this way now. I will keep that in mind for next time though.





By the way thanks for the chisels. They were sharp right out of the box and a pleasure to use.
So far in my fit ups every thing has gone together well. The sample brace is planed square as are the actual braces. The posts are pretty decent also.
Moving on to the hammerbeam assembly, all the timbers are the same size so there are no housings. I'm not sure I like the detail I put on the end of the upright (?). What do you guys think? Looks kinda chinese to me.








The last pic is the plate and upright of the HB. I did most of the cutting while they were one piece. Made it a little easier than working on two smaller timbers.

[Wade]

I'm not sure how many pics you can put in one post so I've started another one.
Hopefully, this post is not too dis-jointed. My thoughts and my fingers are on two different speeds (neither of them very fast) ;D. Here's some more pics of the HB to post and rafter to HB and 1/2 of a bent.








That's Tacho.







It's kind of hard to see, but here's a pic of the full size drawing I made.





More to come.

[Jim_Rogers]

Looks good, have fun.....

[ljmathias]

Beautiful, careful work,  8)  unlike what I mostly do- I just don't have the patience for fine woodworking so I tend to larger stuff that I can hide mistakes better with.   :D

Lj

[Thackery]

Wow,   very impressive.