Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of pics)
Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of pics)
This week I am taking a class on timber frame, or "post and beam" construction. This is the style of building you often see in old barns, and dates back centuries as a construction method. In PJ's films, think everything from Bag End to Bree to the Golden Hall. Timber framing involves basic wood joinery techniques - basically, you set up to "insert tab A into slot B" - except YOU have to carve tab A to fit slot B, which you also carve.
The class takes place a Tillers International, a curious yet very very cool organization, which (among other things) teaches classes on traditional crafts and skills. I will let their website do the talking for them on the count of what they do: http://www.tillersinternational.org/index.html
A few years ago I took their beginning blacksmithing class, which was quite good.
I took a LOT of pictures, so I will try to split things by days, and explain as I go along. I apologize in advance for the poor quality; the only thing I have to take pictures with is my phone. I am documenting this for my sake as much as for anyone else's; I want to get my notes down while they're fresh in my head, so I remember them later.
Monday
The morning of the first day, we learned how to carve a "slot" (called a mortise) and a "tab" (called a tenon). In the afternoon we toured several of the buildings on the grounds, to look at different design elements and unique joinery in the different buildings.
First, we toured the Blacksmith shop.
What I'm looking at in particular here are the little "shelves" carved into the joints, which give a great deal of additional strength to the structure.
There was a similar design in the woodshop, except that instead of being at an angle, there was a full housing for the end of the beam.
I don't recall exactly what I was noting here. The posts don't go all the way to the ground. They set on a raised cement foundation. This is especially important around animals, whose, eh, products can cause rot in the wood.
Noting a particular joint, with what I think is a shim.
This is a case of taking wood away to make it stronger. If the floor joist was cut with a 90 degree angle, the weight could cause the wood to split. With a more gradual curve, that is far less likely to happen.
The base of a post.
A nifty piece of joinery in the upstairs of the Granary.
I forget what this is called, but it's a unique frame design.
A joint for when the timber isn't long enough.
One of the first mortises I chiseled out. This is one with the slanted pocket, because it's for a brace.
A shot of the area. I really like how this pic looks.
This is what we used to start the mortises, drilling by hand. It's actually not too hard, because when you build a frame it's done with green wood. Add to that the fact that we're using tulip poplar for most of the frame, and it's pretty good!
Here's a shot of the blacksmith shop. It has six coal forges, each with an anvil on either side; so they can accommodate 12 students at once.
Here's a gate that was made on site.
Looking down towards our construction site. There are free range sheep, goats, chickens, and turkeys on the farm.
The class takes place a Tillers International, a curious yet very very cool organization, which (among other things) teaches classes on traditional crafts and skills. I will let their website do the talking for them on the count of what they do: http://www.tillersinternational.org/index.html
A few years ago I took their beginning blacksmithing class, which was quite good.
I took a LOT of pictures, so I will try to split things by days, and explain as I go along. I apologize in advance for the poor quality; the only thing I have to take pictures with is my phone. I am documenting this for my sake as much as for anyone else's; I want to get my notes down while they're fresh in my head, so I remember them later.
Monday
The morning of the first day, we learned how to carve a "slot" (called a mortise) and a "tab" (called a tenon). In the afternoon we toured several of the buildings on the grounds, to look at different design elements and unique joinery in the different buildings.
First, we toured the Blacksmith shop.
What I'm looking at in particular here are the little "shelves" carved into the joints, which give a great deal of additional strength to the structure.
There was a similar design in the woodshop, except that instead of being at an angle, there was a full housing for the end of the beam.
I don't recall exactly what I was noting here. The posts don't go all the way to the ground. They set on a raised cement foundation. This is especially important around animals, whose, eh, products can cause rot in the wood.
Noting a particular joint, with what I think is a shim.
This is a case of taking wood away to make it stronger. If the floor joist was cut with a 90 degree angle, the weight could cause the wood to split. With a more gradual curve, that is far less likely to happen.
The base of a post.
A nifty piece of joinery in the upstairs of the Granary.
I forget what this is called, but it's a unique frame design.
A joint for when the timber isn't long enough.
One of the first mortises I chiseled out. This is one with the slanted pocket, because it's for a brace.
A shot of the area. I really like how this pic looks.
This is what we used to start the mortises, drilling by hand. It's actually not too hard, because when you build a frame it's done with green wood. Add to that the fact that we're using tulip poplar for most of the frame, and it's pretty good!
Here's a shot of the blacksmith shop. It has six coal forges, each with an anvil on either side; so they can accommodate 12 students at once.
Here's a gate that was made on site.
Looking down towards our construction site. There are free range sheep, goats, chickens, and turkeys on the farm.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Tuesday
I decided to get some pictures of the tools I was using.
This is a mallet used to hit the chisel. Very simple to do if you have a wood lathe. These are made of a hard, tough wood. I don't recall what the exact wood of this particular one is though. I know crab apple and osage orange were tossed around as names of good wood for this.
Left to right, slick, 1.5" chisel, corner chisel, framing square, mallet. These are the most-used tools in creating mortises and tenons. Of course, there are other tools that are used as well.
Another "beauty" shot.
Tuesday afternoon we went on a tour of a few more buildings they have on site. This first one is their museum, a building which they designed and built. It is very impressive, and very large on the inside. They said that the current portion is only 1/5 of the size of what they intend to build. They have a lot of other tools in storage which they want to put on display.
Joinery on the porch
Beauty shot (I really can't resist when the view looks good.) This is a shot from the museum, not of it.
Side of the museum.
Inside looking one way...
Joinery
This was an interesting joint, so I got pictures from both sides.
Base of a post. There is a slab of 2x underneath, with the grain facing side to side rather than up and down. This is to prevent moisture from wicking up the post.
I believe the central post is called a king post.
... and looking the other direction
This is the other side of that joint.
Side view.
I just thought this was cool.
Cider press.
Decorative elements on the porch.
Next we toured a barn which they had moved. Some of the original wood was rotted, and so they replaced it.
This is in the upper level of the barn.
If you notice the mortises with no cross beams attached - originally there were beams there. However, after they came out with hay tracks that ran from the roof, they moved the beam lower to accommodate vertical space for the hay track. They also added a rod for extra stability. There are diagonal slots where the beam was moved to, so that it could be slid in without taking the building down.
Beauty shot.
This is the barn that all those pictures were taken in.
At the end of the day, we had an engineer come talk to us about the peculiarities of getting timber frame structures approved by the inspector. In most places, there are not "rules of thumb" for timber frames like there are for stick frames - so you need to know what you're doing, and hopefully have an engineer who know's what he's doing work with you on the plans and put his professional stamp on them. It's much easier to get permits that way. I took some pictures of some of the books he brought with him, so that I can look into them later.
More to come...
I decided to get some pictures of the tools I was using.
This is a mallet used to hit the chisel. Very simple to do if you have a wood lathe. These are made of a hard, tough wood. I don't recall what the exact wood of this particular one is though. I know crab apple and osage orange were tossed around as names of good wood for this.
Left to right, slick, 1.5" chisel, corner chisel, framing square, mallet. These are the most-used tools in creating mortises and tenons. Of course, there are other tools that are used as well.
Another "beauty" shot.
Tuesday afternoon we went on a tour of a few more buildings they have on site. This first one is their museum, a building which they designed and built. It is very impressive, and very large on the inside. They said that the current portion is only 1/5 of the size of what they intend to build. They have a lot of other tools in storage which they want to put on display.
Joinery on the porch
Beauty shot (I really can't resist when the view looks good.) This is a shot from the museum, not of it.
Side of the museum.
Inside looking one way...
Joinery
This was an interesting joint, so I got pictures from both sides.
Base of a post. There is a slab of 2x underneath, with the grain facing side to side rather than up and down. This is to prevent moisture from wicking up the post.
I believe the central post is called a king post.
... and looking the other direction
This is the other side of that joint.
Side view.
I just thought this was cool.
Cider press.
Decorative elements on the porch.
Next we toured a barn which they had moved. Some of the original wood was rotted, and so they replaced it.
This is in the upper level of the barn.
If you notice the mortises with no cross beams attached - originally there were beams there. However, after they came out with hay tracks that ran from the roof, they moved the beam lower to accommodate vertical space for the hay track. They also added a rod for extra stability. There are diagonal slots where the beam was moved to, so that it could be slid in without taking the building down.
Beauty shot.
This is the barn that all those pictures were taken in.
At the end of the day, we had an engineer come talk to us about the peculiarities of getting timber frame structures approved by the inspector. In most places, there are not "rules of thumb" for timber frames like there are for stick frames - so you need to know what you're doing, and hopefully have an engineer who know's what he's doing work with you on the plans and put his professional stamp on them. It's much easier to get permits that way. I took some pictures of some of the books he brought with him, so that I can look into them later.
More to come...
Last edited by Eärendur on Sat Oct 05, 2013 1:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Wednesday
We continued to work on our frame on Wednesday. In addition to cutting mortises and tenons, we learned to lay out marks for the cuts from the drawings.
This was a cool tool chest in the wood shop.
This was the most complicated thing we had to lay out. It was the end for a brace, with that diagonal shoulder in it for added strength (see my first post).
Our work area during the day
This is a partially finished tenon. We cut these by making cuts with a circular saw, and chiseling down to the right depth.
We continued to work on our frame on Wednesday. In addition to cutting mortises and tenons, we learned to lay out marks for the cuts from the drawings.
This was a cool tool chest in the wood shop.
This was the most complicated thing we had to lay out. It was the end for a brace, with that diagonal shoulder in it for added strength (see my first post).
Our work area during the day
This is a partially finished tenon. We cut these by making cuts with a circular saw, and chiseling down to the right depth.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Thursday
I took some more pictures of the braces, to have a reference to be sure I understood them.
Another shot of the blacksmith shop.
In the process of chiseling another tenon.
We had to move into the shop and under the blacksmith shop porch because of rain.
This is one of the more complex pockets I was working on. This beam is made of white oak rather than poplar. That's because it goes at the bottom of the building (called the sill) and needs to be stronger and more rot resistant.
I took some more pictures of the braces, to have a reference to be sure I understood them.
Another shot of the blacksmith shop.
In the process of chiseling another tenon.
We had to move into the shop and under the blacksmith shop porch because of rain.
This is one of the more complex pockets I was working on. This beam is made of white oak rather than poplar. That's because it goes at the bottom of the building (called the sill) and needs to be stronger and more rot resistant.
- Peter Remling
- Athel Dunedain
- Posts: 3742
- Joined: Sat Feb 16, 2008 4:20 am
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Very informative- Looks like you had a good time.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Friday
Today things really started to come together.
We started laying out which pieces go together in the wood shop.
This is a piece I was working on. The curve is purely decorative.
The building we are constructing is a turkey barn. It is small, and will actually be mobile; it is being built on skids. In this picture, people are working on the base layer, which is setting on the skids.
Most of the beams are sorted.
The big goal for today was to try to get the base frame together. Most of the pictures show this process.
Here the middle section is in with the floor joists. Ratchet straps come in very handily, since we're using rough sawn lumber, which can curve significantly.
Getting another section in.
All three sections are basically in; now the two sills on the side need to be attached. This is more difficult.
The beam carrier is a nifty tool. The weight of the beam helps the carrier to hold on tighter.
This is another nifty tool. It looks kind of like half of a beam carrier, but its purpose is to twist the beam when it's not going on straight.
Things are really coming together!
Some of the joints needed adjustment (i.e., material removal)
Beauty shot! (Can't get enough of em)
At this point, we started test-fitting the uprights into the base, and adjusting mortises and tenons accordingly, to be sure they will fit tomorrow when we actually go to put everything together.
Near the end of the day we had a peg-making demo. There are multiple ways to make pegs. One way is on a draw horse using a draw knife.
Another way is to use this nifty tool, sort of like a draw plate, only they made it using a pipe. Here are some close-ups.
This is to make a 1" octagon peg.
I tried my hand at peg-making, using three methods.
Left to right, made using a hewing hatchet, drawknife, and draw pipe.
Well, that's all for now, more to come after tomorrow, which is raising day!
Today things really started to come together.
We started laying out which pieces go together in the wood shop.
This is a piece I was working on. The curve is purely decorative.
The building we are constructing is a turkey barn. It is small, and will actually be mobile; it is being built on skids. In this picture, people are working on the base layer, which is setting on the skids.
Most of the beams are sorted.
The big goal for today was to try to get the base frame together. Most of the pictures show this process.
Here the middle section is in with the floor joists. Ratchet straps come in very handily, since we're using rough sawn lumber, which can curve significantly.
Getting another section in.
All three sections are basically in; now the two sills on the side need to be attached. This is more difficult.
The beam carrier is a nifty tool. The weight of the beam helps the carrier to hold on tighter.
This is another nifty tool. It looks kind of like half of a beam carrier, but its purpose is to twist the beam when it's not going on straight.
Things are really coming together!
Some of the joints needed adjustment (i.e., material removal)
Beauty shot! (Can't get enough of em)
At this point, we started test-fitting the uprights into the base, and adjusting mortises and tenons accordingly, to be sure they will fit tomorrow when we actually go to put everything together.
Near the end of the day we had a peg-making demo. There are multiple ways to make pegs. One way is on a draw horse using a draw knife.
Another way is to use this nifty tool, sort of like a draw plate, only they made it using a pipe. Here are some close-ups.
This is to make a 1" octagon peg.
I tried my hand at peg-making, using three methods.
Left to right, made using a hewing hatchet, drawknife, and draw pipe.
Well, that's all for now, more to come after tomorrow, which is raising day!
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Is and continues to be - I've got one day left in the class!Peter Remling wrote:Very informative- Looks like you had a good time.
- Beornmann
- Silent Watcher over the Peaceful Lands
- Posts: 329
- Joined: Fri Jun 27, 2008 1:57 pm
- Location: NE Ohio
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Way cool! So, are you going to build a mead hall?
Near is the hour when the Lost should come forth, And the Grey Company ride from the North.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Saturday
Saturday was raising day - the day we put up the building.
Since it had rained the previous night, we started the process with water in the tenons of the sill.
So we drilled drainage holes. That way, even if water gets in there in the future, it will drain without causing rot.
We went ahead and moved the longer beams up next to the base frame. You can get a good look at the timber carrier tools here.
We then started assembling the frames that set in the sill. These are called bents. This building has four bents, which are basically the same shape.
Boards for a bent, ready to be assembled.
Assembling a bent.
The beams that go the length of the building, tying the bents together, are called plates. Before assembly, we test-fitted the upright posts into the plates to be sure everything fit - snugly but not too hard to put together.
You can also see that the turkeys are interested in how their new house is coming along.
Bent #1, assembled.
We covered the base frame with plywood to prevent tripping or falling through. This will be removed later and replaced with a hardwood floor.
Bent #2 is assembled. Actually, it was assembled wrong. Later, we had to take part of it apart again and flip some of the beams around that are on backwards.
Before raising bent #1, ratchet straps and extra braces were added to make sure everything was square and at the proper dimensions. This process was more precise than you might think, since we were working with tolerances of 1/16"
The diagonals were measured to be sure the frame was square.
Once everything was square, we started drilling peg holes. This nifty invention, a mirror with a hole in the center, allows you to make sure you're drilling straight.
Then we started driving in the pegs.
Next came raising. We really didn't need that many people lifting it up with a frame this small.
Some of the joints took some "persuasion" to tighten up.
Checking Level.
Disassembling bent #2
Bent #2 in place.
One thing I didn't mention earlier on was that lunch was provided each day. I have to say, the food every day was excellent. I tried to convince my brother to come out for raising day, but he turned me down. So, I sent him a picture of lunch - chili, salad, and cornbread.
The brace on this bent was a little too long, so we loosened one end of the frame, and chiseled a little off the end to allow for a better fit.
There are two bearing surfaces on the brace, so we had to take material off both of them. The guy doing this was one of the guys teaching the class, so he knows how to set the saw and the angle.
In the end, it fits pretty well.
While most of us worked on raising and assembly, a few people worked on cutting rafters.
Raising the fourth bent.
Now we can start putting in the plates.
The upper plates are called purlin plates, because the beams they set on are called purlins.
We added some planking to be able to work on them better.
Chillin'
When we assemble the beam, we fit one joint at a time.
This is the persuader. It persuades beams to cooperate.
Here all the beams have been added and holes are being drilled for pegs.
On one side of the barn is a window. The rafters are different where the window is, so they set in these slots we made just for that purpose.
Rafters are starting to go up. These are nailed in.
And there's the frame!
I had to get a picture of the Persuader. I need to make me one of these.
Leaving.
Saturday was raising day - the day we put up the building.
Since it had rained the previous night, we started the process with water in the tenons of the sill.
So we drilled drainage holes. That way, even if water gets in there in the future, it will drain without causing rot.
We went ahead and moved the longer beams up next to the base frame. You can get a good look at the timber carrier tools here.
We then started assembling the frames that set in the sill. These are called bents. This building has four bents, which are basically the same shape.
Boards for a bent, ready to be assembled.
Assembling a bent.
The beams that go the length of the building, tying the bents together, are called plates. Before assembly, we test-fitted the upright posts into the plates to be sure everything fit - snugly but not too hard to put together.
You can also see that the turkeys are interested in how their new house is coming along.
Bent #1, assembled.
We covered the base frame with plywood to prevent tripping or falling through. This will be removed later and replaced with a hardwood floor.
Bent #2 is assembled. Actually, it was assembled wrong. Later, we had to take part of it apart again and flip some of the beams around that are on backwards.
Before raising bent #1, ratchet straps and extra braces were added to make sure everything was square and at the proper dimensions. This process was more precise than you might think, since we were working with tolerances of 1/16"
The diagonals were measured to be sure the frame was square.
Once everything was square, we started drilling peg holes. This nifty invention, a mirror with a hole in the center, allows you to make sure you're drilling straight.
Then we started driving in the pegs.
Next came raising. We really didn't need that many people lifting it up with a frame this small.
Some of the joints took some "persuasion" to tighten up.
Checking Level.
Disassembling bent #2
Bent #2 in place.
One thing I didn't mention earlier on was that lunch was provided each day. I have to say, the food every day was excellent. I tried to convince my brother to come out for raising day, but he turned me down. So, I sent him a picture of lunch - chili, salad, and cornbread.
The brace on this bent was a little too long, so we loosened one end of the frame, and chiseled a little off the end to allow for a better fit.
There are two bearing surfaces on the brace, so we had to take material off both of them. The guy doing this was one of the guys teaching the class, so he knows how to set the saw and the angle.
In the end, it fits pretty well.
While most of us worked on raising and assembly, a few people worked on cutting rafters.
Raising the fourth bent.
Now we can start putting in the plates.
The upper plates are called purlin plates, because the beams they set on are called purlins.
We added some planking to be able to work on them better.
Chillin'
When we assemble the beam, we fit one joint at a time.
This is the persuader. It persuades beams to cooperate.
Here all the beams have been added and holes are being drilled for pegs.
On one side of the barn is a window. The rafters are different where the window is, so they set in these slots we made just for that purpose.
Rafters are starting to go up. These are nailed in.
And there's the frame!
I had to get a picture of the Persuader. I need to make me one of these.
Leaving.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Funny you should mention that. Two guys who were there were talking about building a tavern for their 16th C. English reenactment group.Beornmann wrote:Way cool! So, are you going to build a mead hall?
If anyone has the space to build a ranger base, or a mead hall, or an inn... Well, I might be persuaded to come help put it up
-
- Haeropada
- Posts: 937
- Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2013 7:00 pm
- Location: Indianapolis, IN USA
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Yes, yes! I'll know in the next couple of years where my family will settle for the next few decades (my wife's tenure is pending). When we land in one spot, I'm looking to buy some wooded acreage and put a mead hall on it. A dream I have is hosting a national Ranger moot some time in about 5 years' time.Beornmann wrote:Way cool! So, are you going to build a mead hall?
Vápnum sÃnum skala maðr velli á
feti ganga framar þvà at óvist er at vita
nær verðr á vegum úti geirs um þörf guma
Hávamál
feti ganga framar þvà at óvist er at vita
nær verðr á vegum úti geirs um þörf guma
Hávamál
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Great, now I want one. I won't have a need for a mead hall any time soon...a shop/mead shed would be more likely.
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Well, if you're interested in that sort of thing, I highly recommend their class. Getting the hands-on experience gives you a big leap forward.
Also, if you're interested in seeing the blueprints, let me know; I'll post them up here.
Also, if you're interested in seeing the blueprints, let me know; I'll post them up here.
-
- Haeropada
- Posts: 937
- Joined: Mon Feb 11, 2013 7:00 pm
- Location: Indianapolis, IN USA
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Where are you in Michigan? I'm from the Detroit area- living in Indianapolis currently.Eärendur wrote:Well, if you're interested in that sort of thing, I highly recommend their class. Getting the hands-on experience gives you a big leap forward.
Also, if you're interested in seeing the blueprints, let me know; I'll post them up here.
Vápnum sÃnum skala maðr velli á
feti ganga framar þvà at óvist er at vita
nær verðr á vegum úti geirs um þörf guma
Hávamál
feti ganga framar þvà at óvist er at vita
nær verðr á vegum úti geirs um þörf guma
Hávamál
Re: Timber Framing Class at Tillers International (LOTS of p
Well, originally I'm from the Grand Rapids area - but now I'm living a little southwest of Ann Arbor (a little village called Manchester).
Tillers is located in Kalamazoo.
Tillers is located in Kalamazoo.