After reading through a few threads I thought I'd put out an intro/profile and share my TF goals with the group.

I grew up in Mid Coast Maine and have been around the country since '79 with the last stop in the NW Chicago area. Just closed on 42 acres back home and will build a timber frame workshop with an above appartment over the next four years (will move back around the same time and use this as my shop and temporary residence).

My wood working experience is in custom furniture using traditional design and build techniques. I also own a Woodmizer LT40 which is in a great old TF dairy barn north of me - provides lots of inspiration. Although I can make mean hand cut dovetail joints and dead on mortise and tenon joints in a piece of fine furniture my timber frame experience has been limited to cutting a few replacement beams for barns up north. I have a good feel for what logs do when you cut them into lumber and air dry them. Most of my lumber cutting experience is with making quarter sawn white and red oak.

My brother is a structural engineer specializing in older buildings and my brother-in-law is a New England style home builder back east. They are acting as my main consultants. For the workshop project I have chosen a high posted cape traditional to the Mid Coast Maine area. Measurements around 28'x 36'. I have a good start on reading the clasic TF books but have some specific question not answered yet. Also any contacts with Maine TFG members near the Bremen area would be helpful. Bremen is near the Damariscotta, Nobleboro, Waldoboro area headed down the Pemaquid peninsula one peninsula north of Boothbay.

I have access to free red and white oak trees from a tree removal company in the Midwest and would like to pre-cut the timbers and ship them to Maine. Is this economical and does anyone have experience in shipping timbers? Contacts appreciated. How long should green timbers sit before the beam work? Since I have a "regular" job and will be doing the work over an extended period of time by myself will this cause problems. Could I do the beam work here and ship ready to assemble or should I over saw the demensions and re-saw to allow for wood movement considering oak as the frame choice? I have enough experience with large oaks to know I want to handle them the least amount but want as accurate joints as possible. Considering oak as the choice and a 28'x 36' frame are 8"x8" overkill for principle members? I'd like to get the most out of these great tees. A list of frame members with recommended demensions using oak would be helpful.

I've probably worn out my welcome already but any advice is appreciated.

Thanks - Ben

Before you go assuming 8x8 is overkill you need to create a drawing of the frame and have the frame design checked for engineering.
Do you know the snow load for that area?
What about wind load?
These things have to be taken into consideration before you start cutting timbers.
You can cut timbers now, but unless they are stored properly then they may move some while waiting to be worked on or shipped.
You can cut the joints first if you want to. Every little bit helps to reduce the overall weight of the timbers as this might effect the shipping cost.
You can begin working green timbers as soon as your design is finalized. There isn't much value in waiting for them to dry out much, as it will take years for an 8x8 to dry to the center.
Hope this helps.
Jim Rogers

Hey, Ben.

I'm up in Benton Falls. right next to Waterville. Always happy to help out, drink your coffee, and be a general pain in the elbows.

I really like to let green stuff dry "some" before working it up, this gives best possible solution for my clients. Drying is exponential operation, "free" water comes out first and fast - then "held" water in cells migrates to the newly dry channels. We let timbers sit sticker in the wind under cover, ideally until lots of little checks just start to show - this is perfect. Depending upon species and climate, 6-12 months is great. You'll also see how wood starts to misbehave. This much drying does NOT drastically change the size of the piece, but helps make joints tighter in finished frame for long term.

One argument used to be hardness of wood. Irrelevant with the tools and techniques we use. Getting rid of this free water significantely changes weight of pieces and this helps if you work solo.

End sealer is good and bad for this. I usually leave end sealer off until after this free water release. Then apply it to slow the held water up and force it to migrate sideways. Ends won't blow apart. Good topic.

Oh crap, forgot to add...

Ditto about design. Draw some plans and figure out the wood before cutting. May not need full engineering stamp, but may if situation is weird.

A great way to meet timber framers - have a plan review party. Serve some beer, wine, cheese & brats and you'll have a whole new set of awesome friends.

Lots of us willing to help a newbee with plan ideas - with or without money involved. Have fun.

I agree with Randy.

Ecxept I always end seal oak. I have let oak timbers sit both with and without end sealer and, at least in the Georgia summer, the ends do blow apart without the sealer. We seal the logs when they come in if we aren't going to get them sawn within a week or so, otherwise we seal at the end of a day of sawing.

Good luck,

Gabel

Is it better to harvest timber during the winter months or is this nonsense?

Common wisdom says harvest your trees when the sap is idle.