looks like steel bands around the exterior corners. and might be a tension connection @ the horizontal beam across the corners. and they have a metal roof. looks like the barn is located in aledo, illinois. doubt they have the snow load we have in NH or VT out there. 42' clear span... much larger than we are talking for Thane's project.


joel - yes, i'd need to work out the tension / etc.
just tossed it out there as a 'what if'. i can run a 2d FEA on it to see what happens. typically i only rough these things out and let the pros handle the final number crunching. i'm dangerous enough...

i'd tensile tie the corners. on smaller projects i've done essentially a king post type of joint, all threaded through from corner to corner. the post up from the 'drag on' is a nice addition. we did that on the 2nd picture i posted - but that was a tiny tiny room.

paul - metal roof, some thoughtful steel detailing... could get you most of the way there.