Learn to timber frame: craftsmanship, simplicity, timeless beauty

193 Pages·2016·38.7 MB·English

by  Beemer

LEARN TO TIMBER FRAME
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L E A R N T O
TIMBER
FRAME
CRAFTSMANSHIP SIMPLICITY TIMELESS BEAUTY
j j
Will Beemer
Foreword by Jack A. Sobon
Photography by Jared Leeds
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Storey Publishing
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L E A R N T O
TIMBER
FRAME

CRAFTSMANSHIP SIMPLICITY TIMELESS BEAUTY
j j
Will Beemer
Foreword by Jack A. Sobon
Photography by Jared Leeds
ß
Storey Publishing
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The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.
Edited by Hannah Fries
Art direction and book design by Jessica Armstrong
Indexed by Samantha Miller
Cover and interior photography by © Jared Leeds Photography, except © 2009 Olaf
Protze/Getty Images, 12; Mars Vilaubi, 179, 180; © mcsilvey/iStockphoto.com, 13
(bottom); © nightjar09/iStockphoto.com, 13 (top); © Perry Mastrovito/Design Pics/
Getty Images, 29; Courtesy of SIPschool/www.sipschool.org, 171; © Will Beemer, 10
French carpentry marks chart from Traité Théorique et Pratique de Charpente, by Louis
Mazerolle, H. Vial Publisher.
Illustrations by © Michael Gellatly
© 2016 by Will Beemer
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the
publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review
with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other —
without written permission from the publisher.
The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations
are made without guarantee on the part of the author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher
disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information.
Storey books are available for special premium and promotional uses and for customized editions. For
further information, please call 1-800-793-9396.
Storey Publishing
210 MASS MoCA Way
North Adams, MA 01247
www.storey.com
Printed in China by R.R. Donnelley
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file
This book is intended to introduce readers to the concepts of timber framing
small buildings similar to those shown. The structural engineering formulas and
recommendations are meant to be guidelines only and should not be used as the
sole factors in determining appropriate design for all conditions. The author and
publisher advise that anyone not trained in structural engineering get professional
assistance from a licensed engineer before proceeding with construction and
follow all applicable state and local building codes. Take proper safety precautions
before using potentially dangerous tools and equipment or undertaking potentially
dangerous activities. Be alert and vigilant while operating heavy machinery.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to Jack Sobon for providing the original
design and so much inspiration over the years; to
Dave Carlon for helping me teach and cut so many
of these frames with students; to Tom Barfield
for suggesting this book and for his continued
support; and to the many students who learned to
build these frames and the clients who were brave
enough to let them.  
In memory of Ed Levin, who taught us
the love of timber framing
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CONTENTS
FOREWORD by Jack A. Sobon ............................................................................... 8
PREFACE ..................................................................................................... 9
CHAPTER 1
What Is Timber Framing?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
CHAPTER 2
Getting Started
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Using Ungraded Native Lumber.............. 21 Ordering and Storing Timbers ............... 30
Timber-Frame Engineering 101 .............. 25
CHAPTER 3
Layout Systems
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Mill Rule ....................................... 34 Scribe Rule .................................... 35
Mapping ........................................ 34 Square Rule ................................... 35
CHAPTER 4
Tools
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Tools for Layout ............................... 39 Boring Tools ................................... 49
Cutting Tools .................................. 45
CHAPTER 5
Procedures for Layout
& Cutting
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 52
First Steps in Layout ......................... 53
Laying Out the MortisReu alnesd oTfe Tnhounm ..b. .fo..r. J..o.i.n 5e8ry Design
in Square Rule ................................. 78
Cutting Procedures ........................... 62
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CHAPTER 6
The Tiny Timber Frame
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Plan Drawings ................................. 82 Braces ......................................... 108
Timber List .................................... 8 8 Collars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Sills ............................................ 89 Door Posts ..................................... 114
Joists .......................................... 92 Tie Beams ..................................... 115
Posts ........................................... 94 Plates .......................................... 117
Girts ............................................ 105 Rafters ......................................... 123
CHAPTER 7
Variations on the Frame
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Moving Doors and Windows .................. 129 Overhangs ..................................... 138
Adding a Loft .................................. 132 Making the Frame Smaller ................... 140
Changing the Roof Pitch ..................... 135 Making the Frame Bigger ..................... 142
CHAPTER 8
Raising the Frame
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Equipment for Raising Day ................... 151 The Raising Script ............................ 153
CHAPTER 9
Foundations & Enclosure
Systems
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Foundations ................................... 164 Insulation and Enclosure ..................... 167
EPILOGUE .................................................................................................. 172
GLOSSARY ................................................................................................. 174
RESOURCES ............................................................................................... 181
BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................... 183
INDEX ....................................................................................................... 184
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8
FOREWORD by Jack A. Sobon
D
R
O
W
E
R There are pursuits in life that 7,000 years, was threatened was a result of that revival.
O
F
go beyond providing the neces- by the changes brought on by Founded in 1985, it attracted
sities for our existence, that the Industrial Revolution, and craftsmen and enthusiasts from
elevate us above the workaday became especially endangered North America and around the
world, that captivate our imag- in the mid-twentieth century. world. Through its outreach,
inations and give us purpose in Old ways and old things were its educational workshops, and
life. The craft of timber framing being replaced by the wonders its publications, the Guild has
is one of those pursuits. It has of the new age. Television, plas- fostered the growth of the craft
all the necessary ingredients: a tics, and space travel occupied and has assured that timber
rich historical background that the minds of most Americans. framing will endure.
conjures up visions of medieval Plywood, steel, and concrete Will Beemer has been a leader
halls, ornate temples, and pio- defined the building industry. It in the Guild’s efforts, especially
neer dwellings; a connection to was an era of overcoming and in its education programs. As
our mother earth (trees are a subduing nature, not working an instructor at his Heartwood
renewable resource utilized by with it. As we embraced and School and through the Guild’s
humans for thousands of years); focused on new technologies, Apprentice Training Program,
and a physical, tangible reward we were unfortunately leaving Will has been perfecting
for our toil in the form of struc- behind much knowledge of the his instruction methods for
tures that last for generations. old, traditional ways. decades. What follows is clear,
The gratification found in timber By the late ’60s, many people concise instruction that will
framing goes far beyond that of were realizing that in our haste enable timber-frame enthusi-
most crafts. We are surrounded to modernize, we had given up asts to get started in the craft.
by our creative work as it shel- some wonderful things. In the By focusing on a small struc-
ters us, enhancing our lives. back-to-the-land movement ture, one can easily learn the
And what about durability? that swept our country, timber concepts, from layout to raising.
Timber-framed buildings can framing figured prominently. It
certainly last a lifetime, more brought us back to nature, got Welcome to the world of
often centuries. Long after us involved in building our own timber framing!
completion, they stand as a tes- homes, and taught people to
tament to our efforts. work together again toward a
This ancient craft, having common good. The formation
served humankind for at least of the Timber Framer’s Guild
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9
PREFACE
P
R
E
F
A
C
On a mountaintop in northwest- equipment. A number of these wood as instructors in its third E
ern Connecticut is a collection structures share a common year; when the founders left for
of 40 or so rustic family camps, origin. It all began in 1988 when other things in 1985, we found
little cabins tucked away in the one of the mountain residents ourselves running the show.
woods by a picturesque lake. took a woodworking class at the Over the years, Heartwood has
Over the years, these families Heartwood School in western expanded to include timber
have expanded. As new gener- Massachusetts (see Resources, framing and other woodworking
ations are born and grow up, so page 181). skills, using actual projects as
grows the need for each group Heartwood was founded in teaching tools. One of these
to have its own private space. 1978 as an “owner-builder” projects is a 12 × 16-foot tim-
Kids’ cabins and kitchen huts school, teaching the skills ber frame.
have popped up, as well as needed to build one’s own When our visitor from Con-
storage spaces for kayaks and energy-efficient home. My wife, necticut came to Heartwood,
other sporting and maintenance Michele, and I came to Heart- he saw one of these classic
THE HEARTWOOD SCHOOLHOUSE, located in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts, was built from trees
on the site by the staff and students in 1978–79. The building houses an office, classroom, greenhouse, wood-
working shop, library, and dining area.
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