Timber Framers Guild Forums General General Forum Questions Storypole

Hi Everyone. Do you use a story pole for layout? How many kinds of templates do you regularly use? Have you ever found an old story pole such as in an old barn?

Thanks, Jim

Hi Jim -
One of the last things I was shown in the shop at Hamill Creek was a storypole belonging to Keith Hamilton, our master timberwright (according to me).
I was amazed at it, and unfortunately never got a chance to use it. But now that you've reminded me, I'm going to get Keith to show me again and explain it all (slowly..)
Thanks!
*K

We’ve tried story poles with limited success. We have one frame design that is relatively simple, but also relatively complicated, that we have built around 50 times. I felt it was a perfect story pole case and forced my guys to try it for a while. We tried using a story pole for the post layout but the feeling was that it was actually more confusing to use and introduced additional errors compared to a tape measure. I’ve felt there was a benefit to using a story pole vs. a tape measure, but it just hasn’t worked for us yet. I may need to keep trying.

We use many templates, scarf joints, rafter peak/feet, etc, and those work great for us.

Pete

I'm getting an idea from the descriptions of what a storypole is. Can someone post a sketch or photo?

I wrote this story last March:

How to construct and use a “Story Pole.”
By Jim Rogers

Recently I was asked by a timber framer: “.......do you have any detailed information on how to use, construct, and layout dimensions on a story pole? I would like to use one instead of a tape measure when I do layouts on timbers. I have found some general info, but nothing really specific or detailed. Thanks for any help you can provide.”

To construct a story pole you’ll need a piece of good lumber. Straight as you can find and without any large knots or defects. I would start with a full inch board maybe two inches wide. Or even three inches wide in order to have enough room for all your notations. This “story pole” should be longer than the timber you intend to lay out.
It should be planed smooth on both sides to make it easy to write on, so it will probably finish around 3/4 of an inch thick.

For the purpose of this story, I have selected to create a story pole for a post used in a simple “garden shed.” It is the one in the picture below, marked with the red “X.”



This shed has six posts, and many of the dimensions on each are the same.
Here is a single timber drawing showing all the important dimensions of all the tenons, mortises, shoulders, housings, and peg holes.



This type of dimension line is called a “base line” dimension. It starts on one point and all locations are measured from that “base” point up the dimension line to the top of the post’s top tenon.

In the above drawing the dotted lines show cuts entering from either side the timber or on the opposite face of the timber, basically cuts that aren’t on this side.

To lay out a “story pole” I would start by laying out a post using the dimension from your single beam drawing. Locate all the locations of the joints, housings and peg holes along the arris of the reference face and the adjacent face, known as the reference edge. And then lay out each joint, housing and peg hole on all sides of the sample post to insure that each is correct. And then transfer these locations onto your “story pole.”

Once you have the joints, housings and peg hole locations marked on the “story pole” you’ll need to identify each line with some type of note as to what that line or location means.



In this drawing you’ll see that he “over all” length of the timber has been labeled as “OA.” And the shoulder has been
labeled “Sh.” Some might be TM for top of mortise, BM for bottom of mortise, and PH for peg hole. If your “story pole” is wide enough you can write out each label in full so that anyone can understand these line locations later on. Also mark your arris edge on your “story pole” and note which is top and bottom of your posts.

After you have transferred the line locations to your story pole and you have labeled them then you can use it to layout more posts of the same frame.
I would inspect each post for crown and arrange your post for the best faces to be showing inside the building and label your reference edge with the standard triangles or whatever markings you use to show these reference face and edge. Then place your “story pole” along this arris and transfer these joint locations onto the post. After you have transferred all the location lines from the “story pole” to the new post, you can layout each joint, housing and peg hole around this post to their proper faces.

A while ago, I discussed this “story pole” layout procedure with another very experienced timber framer and he said he used one to inspect his timbers for defects, such as knots. He lays out his “story pole” with all the joint locations and then holds it up to his timber looking to see if a knot will be in the area of a joint. If the knot is in the area of a joint, housing or peg hole, then he slides the “story pole” down or up the timber until all joints, housing and peg holes are free from knot defects. Then once he has located the correct position of the “story pole” so that the joints, housings and peg holes are free from knot defects he marks one line on the post that matches one line on the story pole, such as the shoulder line. He then lays out all the joints, housings and peg holes with a tape measure from that shoulder line to ensure that they are truly in the correct and accurate location.

I personally layout with a tape measure for the same reason.

It’s one thing if you’re building a storage shed, barn, cabin or outbuilding and another thing when you’re laying out some planed expensive timbers for a house.

I hope you have found this story useful.

Jim Rogers

PS. If anyone would like to see larger photos of the above drawings let me know and I'll either post them here or email them to you directly.

Thanks Jim. That was quick.
The term "storypole" was new to me. I was thinking of a jig or template of some sort ... close enough.

Thanks, Jim -
I like the idea of using the storypole to decide where on the timber to make your layout, because that is what consumes much of my time. I'm very particular when it comes to both structural and ascetic properties of my timbers, and often find myself memorizing multiple measurements and running my tape up and down the faces of each pc.
But, alas, I would need a different story for each pc, which would of course consume even more time...
I supose I'll continue to rely on my super human brain power...(tape, that is... )

Thanks everyone. The reason storypoles are on my mind is because I am fairly ignorant of how framers measured anything before tape measures were invented. I know surveyors used chains. What did our forefathers use to measure a twenty foot rafter? It seems to me that measuring was a lot more difficult 200 years ago, so creating a story pole would have saved time and reduced errors.

Jim

HI all:

I might add here that when you are working on rough timber with a story pole, you have to do your layout in line with the chalk lines, and use a scratch awl to pinpoint each reference mark.

NH

I don't use storypoles enough but everytime I mess up a layout with a tape, I kick myself for not having developed the habit. There is no point to having to do all the mental aritmatic again and again on every post.

I really think I could benefit from adding storypoling to my skills.

The posts here will help a lot.

I do use templates for knee braces, referenced near the ends. This ensures each brace end layout is geometrically true, even if the stock has a curve mid-length.

Pete