Thanks for the great resource! I guess this is sorta an intro and a question wrapped-up in one!

I am building an outbuilding (workshop/wife escape) on an historic site. (not regulated by historic rules). It's two stories. I hope to timber-frame the top story.

The bottom level, I have framed-up with rough-sawn hemlock 2x6's (a full 2" x 6"). I've designed pockets to hold two 6x6 oak posts that will sit on top of the block wall and mortise and tenon into a 12x12 beam that will span the length of the building with a post in the center that will sit on a 3" deep concrete slab that's already poured.

The framing (with a temporary brace and spacer where the beam will go). The top plate is not yet on the walls either.


This is a shot of the twin 6x6's in place. (boy, I sure need to get a beam saw!)

and a close-up of the tenons...they are 2" x 6" and have are 2" from the end of the 12x12 beam end.


I intend to run locust pegs into the posts, through the hemlock studs, deep enough to go partially into the sister 6x6 post. Then, once the beam is in place, I'll run them into the tenons as well.

This is just sorta an attempt to get a little experience in the timber-framing methods. I hope to do the whole top floor with TF.

Do you experienced folks see any flaws in this design? I've probably give it TOO much thought!

Just another quick note: this site had a structure on it circa 1860. I've done what I could to restore/renovate it, including restoring a stone wall. How the craziness began:

The original wall:


The wall after I spent months of chiseling, remortaring, and blasting with glass beads/baking soda:

Welcome LTC!
The shot of your posts if from the outside of the building. I cannot tell if you have mortises for braces. Are you going to brace from post to beam?

p.s good looking wall.

No braces...I was just planning to mortise the beam the the top of the pair of 6x6's posts that are built into the wall then peg it.

The beam in the center of the building is a the same size as the long main bean, so I was just intending to mortise that into the beam as well.

Is there a better idea?

Whoops...just re-read the last post (and couldn't find a button to edit it).
The support POST in the center of the building is the same size as the long main beam.

Welcome to the forum,

"a three inch concrete slab" for your post sounds thin to me.
I would pour at least 8 inches thick under a post and somewhere around 24x24.
I assume the "close up of the tenons" is taken from the outside of the building?

What are the dimensions of your building?

Whoops. I need to proof-read better...
The footer for the post is almost 3 FEET thick, not 3 inches. ;-)
I know it's overkill, but had extra concrete left over from another part.

The building is 33.5' x 24".

Yes, the photos of the two outside posts are from the outside of the building. The tenons are 2" thick, 4" wide and 6" deep. The shoulder of the tenon is 2" per side. They are going into each end of the main beam.

The beam is an actual 10x12. It was sawed yesterday. We'd hoped to yield a 12x12 but the log wouldn't give it.

Here it is (with a few 5/4 boards on top of it):

The post for the center is here:

It too is a 10x12 and will be placed right in the center with a big M&T joint and pegged. Should it get a knee brace?

One more thing, other than the obvious (a crane). What's a reasonable method to get this lifted-up into place?
Thanks!!

I don't know how reasonable it is but it could work. Put it on a timber cart and wheel it inside.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRRDzFROMx0&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eforestryforum%2Ecom%2Fboard%2Findex%2Ephp%2Ftopic%2


Tim

I think I could move it inside, but it's getting it on top of the wall that challenges me.

Gin pole works well for such things.....

Gin pole would work for the support column, but I guess I was not clear. I need to lift the long 36' beam on top of the side walls.

Hyster? Pettibone? Crane?

It was to go about 8' up and 15 feet over.

A Lull type machine is very handy for this sort of thing. They still lift a good bit of weight, even with the boom extended a ways. Check the rating compared to the weight you need to lift. If you just need to do a couple of picks, hiring out a crane will be cheaper than a lull rental, unless you are going to use it a lot.

At this point, I really need to just lift the main beam into place. What should I expect to pay for a crane? I'd guess that the actual crane time will be less than 1 hour.
Thanks.

You may have to pay for a four hour minimum unless they will do it as a "fill in" job.....
Call around to local crane companies and see what they charge.

That guy is great. But I can see some holes in his methods. Did Stonehenge builders have a pressurized water hose?

Leaving the candy,

Any horse clubs in your area? Draft horses and a clever handler might be able to lend a hand...

LTC, my thinking is that braces wouldn't hurt. don't know what is going on top to stabilize though. when it doubt...

you might want to look at renting one of these. you could roll it in, place your timber skewed on the forks, lift, rotate back and down. if you can find one around to rent, seems like it could save you money.

good luck

genie lift: hand crank

After watching that video I wondered why he doesn't use something cool like REAL BOULDERS. Why would you want a StoneHenge out of concrete slabs? I am gonna send him a note that if he wants to replicate Stone Henge construction he can't cheat and use things that are flat and symmetrical! LOL! ;-)

I call it a "Beam ladder". Once I lifted a 700 lb tie beam 8 ft in the air and installed it without breaking a sweat.
It's also how I load and unload my trailer by myself.
Two rails with protruding arms staggerd at about 8" per side.
It can be made verticle or on an angle. The rails should be about 4 ft apart.
I would show you a picture but my wife left town with the camera plus I don't know how to upload anyways.

here is a pic of a lifting rig we used to put a 6x10x32ft ridge beam on a frame, it's the 2 pcs of 2x6 that stick above the building, and the lifting was done in stages with come alongs.

Mark that looks great! Can you explain a little about your technique?
Thanks.

drill a hole and tie a bit of rope at the top of 2x6
place and brace 2x6
attach come along to the bit of rope and to timber(one at each end of timber)
hoist as far as possible, then tie off timber with rope or block, reset come alongs and hoist again.
the 2x6 has to be long enough to allow room for come alongs etc above the spot for the timber.
Then you can let the timber down slowly and fit braces etc on the way down.
surprisingly quick and cheap, we were going to wait till the next day for 4 helpers to arrive, but just got at it and put the ridge and both purlins up with 2 people.

Anyone ever tried a boat trailer hand-crank?
Add a couple of pulleys and it might work well in Mark's setup.

Don, in A Days Work, he shows a number of derricks with a large spool at the base of the gin pole, a contraption I would like to have someday. I don't see many just kicking around though. They were used in the granite quarries and elsewhere.

Tim

Tim:
I have plans for a windlass if you want to make one out of wood:

Don't let OSHA or your insurance man see you using either come-alongs or boat winches for lifting - neither is rated for such work. I'm not saying it won't work effectively, I'm just saying...

And don't let them see members of the crew riding bents on raising day either

Richard Babcock's book "Old Barns in the New World" has a chapter called Gin Pole and Bull Wheel. Bull wheel is another name for the spool-type winch.

I wish I could have seen that presentation: "A Days Work."

A friend of mine has a dock business were he needed a portable winch for lifting. He made a little cart from an old hand truck, two deep cycle batteries and a 8000# (rated for lifting) 12v Warn winch. Chain it to something solid and winch away. Plug it into the truck on the way to and from the job and it stays charged up. He replaced the steel cable with poly line which is also rated, and much easier to work with than steel. VERY HANDY! I want a heavy duty version.

I have also used the 12000# winch on my truck to rase and lower bents with a Gin-pole or A-frames. I feel that I have a lot of control using the winch, it's slow and easy. A block-and-tackle works well for this too, if you have the hands to pull it.

One time I used a set of wall jacks to raise a wall with. They had a boat crank mechanism like a hand crank come-along. I glad we didn't have to lower it back down.You'd be better off with a chain hoist than a come-along.

His book(s) inspired me to build my gin pole and windlass......

Another book you may find useful is the
" US Army Field Manual 5-125 - Rigging Techniques, Procedures, and Applications"
which you can download here or here for free, or just Google FM-5-125.

Pullzall. 110 or Cordless