I'd like to explore the options for a more traditional approach.
Think I got lost from the beginning Jon...so I have more questions than being helpful (yet...)
Other than lashing members together with the countless bends, hitches, splices, etc, which is perhaps the oldest "joinery method," I can't think of a family of connecting modalities more traditional and ancient than mortise and tenon. Next would be "notching forms" (i.e gains, laps, scarf/splice, etc)
I know I am missing something here...apologies.
Sorry. My brain was clearly not functioning when I wrote the post. I'd seen a lot of stuff from Ben Law about the "butterpat joint", and hadn't clocked that a large amount of his joinery is still mortise and tenon with scribing to enable the timbers to mate well. What I was imagining was a sill plate (at least, we can use that as an example). In my head, the sill would be joined to the side of the posts, rather than going over the top of them which requires something other than a mortise and tenon since neither timber is terminating at the joint.
After posting my question it occurred to me that my current design could accommodate a sill plate on top of the posts which allows for a mortise in the sill and a tenon on the post with the post being scribed to match the sill plate. I just need to work out how to prevent water from pooling in the joint given that this joint will be outside and largely unprotected from the elements.
...is there anyone out there detailing the necessary methods for attaching roundwood timbers to one another?
Especially regarding scribing the form of one timber onto the other.
Log work has extensive methods in this area, a lot of which is around lapping and scarfing joints, and of course mortise and tenon. Examininging these will go for into "scribing methods." Then there is all the templating and lofting methods to work in concert with these.
Thanks. I'd not realised that "real" log cabins (as apposed to squared timber chalets) involved significant amounts of scribing. Thankyou YouTube for clarifying how to use a log scribe!
A number of Artisan are working in "bamboo"...and...some of this is still employing "lashing methods" over metal hardware. Haukafa/Lalava of Pacific area indigenous peoples, et al, are just some of the countless forms and styles of lashing as a joinery method. Square, tripod, shear, round, and diagonal modalities are just some.
If not, I'll just finish up with some slightly awkward looking reductions around my joints.
"Reductions"...???...do you mean joint housings or something else?
Yes. Between the vocabulary that I have in French, in American English and British English it's frankly a wonder I ever manange to find the right word.
D L Bahler: Thanks for the insights. I don't have the thickness in the timbers to make those bridle joints (and my posts sadly lack the convenient fork) but interesting to know that the horizontal to horizontal connection used in log building could also work. That was essentially what I was originally looking for.
