Timber Framers Guild Forums General General Forum Questions Knee brace mortaise cut wrong place

Hello,

back with a new issue :P
Assembling my second bent today I found out that I cut a mortaise like 21cm to far from the beam shoulder (96cm instead of 75cm). Thta's on my tie beam! The other mortaise on the exterior post is correct. So I'm wondering, what solution should I choose to correct that, for sure I'm not going to cut a new tie beam!!

I'm thinking about cutting a new brace that would use the both mortaises in place, I'll just have to dimension it thick enough to cover the angle difference on the post and just open more the angle on the tie beam.
Or, could I use the same brace i was supposed to use and in a certain way "fill up" the existing hole and cut the mortaise where it was supposed to be?! The thing is that I'll have to find a trick to cover that default after!

What would you guys suggest? any experience about that, or situation you have seen?? I need to make a choice tomorrow..

Neil

Is it an exterior tie beam? A let in brace can cover some the problem. I've also seen some amazing things done with epoxy and branches used to create fake knots to cover up router mistakes.

no it's my second bent, straight in the middle. I rather like to avoid epoxy, for such a hole.

I guess a brace fitting the both already cut mortises is the easiest way, it's just that it will not be 45 degrees angles anymore!

it's time to sleep here, maybe the night will bring me The solution!

It is up to you and what you feel comfortable with. Be creative and don't look back. Put a cut off brace in and peg it, leave is proud of the surface. Extend it back to the actual brace pocket and fill with an exotic wood, show it off. It will be hard to hide it and have it look "normal". You could leave it open but out in front of a brace you should fill it.

hello everyone tonight

Neil

you are not the first to make an error, no one is perfect, I am going to tell you one thing, thank goodness the tie beam wasn't too short or else you would be cutting a new one

My father once said "a good man can make a mistake, but it takes a better man to fix it"--so with that in mind I would suggest keeping all the braces the same run, and fill in the void with a good tight block of the same wood

I have seen many errors in historic frames created by the TFr's of that time, and a lot of them were brace hole position errors, they just put in a filler and moved on

In my field of reconstruction of historic frames having cross girts landing on irregular dimension rectangular upright posts, make no mistake to avoid an error in cross girt length was not for the faint at heart, especially if the girt was 30 feet long hand hewn from a specially cut tree trucked in from miles away

I did have this happen to me and it ended up only a 2" error in length but it might just as well have been 2 feet

So chalk it down to experience and motor on, I am sure you will be a better man for it--anyone who tries to pass judgment, do like my father did and turn and hand them the tools, you will not see any takers

good luck

NH

Ok thanks guys,

Morning and reading your comments, it makes my mind. I'll keep my brace and make a block, with samme wood. I guess I'll have to peg it as well, like a joinery??

It's nice to read your comment about your father norther hewer, I thought directly about the block, which makes me a better man then! hehe

I agree that hopefully it's not a tie beam too short!

I have been checking 27 times before cutting once like say some people, but no one is perfect!

Everyhting looks good so far, tight joints, just few details due to twisting or crowms that appeared through the waiting time after cutting, that's the issue by working all alone, first project, outside in an oceanic climate in the arctic Norway!

You will see all that soon, I promised to post pictures, few more days to finish assembling the bents and I'll do it.

As mentionned in a previous post, I'm gone this winter and I'll raise the bents in the spring, that's why I just make them ready to raise and leave them on the deck covered with a big tarp during the winter.

Talk soon!

Neil

I have dealt with that problem by tapering interfering tenons with an adze while a crane and crew were waiting. It worked out alright. Say it loud and proud.

Cut a new brace pocket and fill the old one with some sort of hanging down decoration, like a small pendant. Then ask anyone who questions it "why do you think it's there?" and see what answers you get. Pick one you like.... or .....

Tell them it's a tribute to the timber gods....

Jim Rogers

ahahah, it 's exactly what I thought, I'll hang something noone wilñl notice anything. But it's a good thing in some ways, keep learning

hello everyone tonight

Have a good one Neil wherever you are going I suspect to escape your Canadian like winter weather

NH