Timber Framers Guild Forums General General Forum Questions historic hewing questionnaire

Good evening everyone:

Waccabuc: The picture is in a previous post but I will resend it as per your request:

Hi everyone

Waccabuc could you receive the photo OK

NH

Hi everyone:

Just a little change of pace and back to basics again

Here is a photo of a few of the large mud sills (12" by 12" by 30 feet) being prepared adjacent to the reconstruction area.

In the foreground you can see on of my favorite tools, I have just finished fashioning out a tenon with it and also in the background you will see the tenon guage that I use to make sure that the exterior size of the tenon is as accurate as possible. this is obtained by sliding the guage along as it is being created.

these timbers were created from large hemlocks that squared 12" at 30 feet, each timber took a tremendous amount of work considering that the large ends were over 36" in diameter.

the whole network of timbers making up the floor alone took us 1 full season to create (may 15 to sept 15), and contained the largest of the timbers that were hand hewn.

I hope you enjoy
NH

Hi Richard,

Please add "Mud Sills" to the glossary together with a definition for same. Is this the same as ground sill ?

Regards

Ken Hume

NH / Ken:

I know "Mudsill" as a regional term here in the Nothern US. It's completely the same as sill, just refers to horizontal timbers that rest in the mud so to speak (ground contact). I find it often used by the elder generations. No offense NH!!

I guess it's one of those varriations, like "crow's foot" or "birds mouth"... same reference...


NH:

That tenon gauge reminds me of something I use to make canoe paddles with: a notched board. Mine is made of plywood w/ an 1 1/8" throat to measure shaft diameter on the paddles as I use a spoke shave.

Mudsill, in my understanding, is a sill on a foundation bedded in mortar ie mud.

Hi everyone:

I sure enjoy the comraderie between you guys, and Don no offense on "the older generation thing" I am older and proud of it in lots of ways!

I always knew the lower sills to be called mud sills the term was picked up from my father's generation of craftsmen, and just carried forward.

We also used a false tenon guage for the mortise holes that fit exactly the tenon guage in the photo. If you used both of them as you created the various mortises and tenons, you could be fairly sure that everything was going to fit providing all other criteria was met, such as squareness, and the timbers being in plane.

We had a discussion a while back on seatings on the upper sides of the mud sills, you can see we have prepared the locations of the vertical posts of the upperframework as you look in the background at some of the other timbers lying around in the preparation area.

Some of the longer timbers were 36 feet in length (the barn being 3- 12 foot bays), and these timbers in the rough were about 38 feet long to allow for trimming and squaring the ends.

I believe you can see one of these adjacent to the foreground timber.

Thanks everyone for coming on board

NH

Glad no offense NH...

The tenon gauge makes perfect sense... where would we be w/out our little jigs and fixtures!?!?

I'm thinking Mudsill would be a good "member name" for a new forum member. I just checked the "M" user list. There's "Mudd" and "Mudman" but no Mudsill (yet)...

Hi everyone:

further to this topic:

I beleive there are a few persons in our midst that would appreciate just what I am referring to when I am talking about these large hemlocks in the rough------

"squaring 12" at 36 feet"

I travelled this area for about 100 square miles to get my eyes on trees of the right specie, of the right size ( as best I could ascertain from ground level), and of course they had to be straight as well.

Cutting them for this project seemed to make it worth while, but I still hated to see them fall knowing full well they had escaped the saw many times to have attained their height and size.

7 hemlock trees of this size were required just for the floor structure, and then for the upper framework 9 more of the same length but slightly smaller, and then all the posts and girts that made up the framing.

Please remeber this is just a small 3 bay barn nothing really special other than of course the early age of the structure, the unusual framing details, the hand hewn braces, the wooden door hinges, and other details referred to in previous posts.

Hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane



NH

Hi everyone tonight:

Here is a good view of the mud sills, and timbers for the ross barn floor, being lifted and fitted in their positions.

You can see that it takes about 5 or 6 pairs of men to lift and carry the heavy timbers with comealong timber carriers.


I am open for questions if any comes to your mind(s)
about any details in the photo.

enjoy

NH