How Do Carpenters Do It?
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Roger Wright wrote:
Purina Beaver Chow
"Beaver" means something else in Texas, as a transplanted Texas woman told me in Oregon, when talking about the Oregon University basketball team named The Beavers. ;P
I know, but I was speaking of the creature commonly identified with chewing wood and damming streams when I posted. On a side note, I once spent a time practicing "Buckskinning," a hobby of re-enacting the 1760 - 1820 period of the fur trade in the western US. At a Rendezvous I met a lady who gifted me her copper drinking mug, enscribed, "Warm Beaver." That was her Lodge name, for whatever reason you'd care to read into it. :-D And, no, I never tested the evidence. She was 30 years older than I, and much in her cups, fondly remembering her glory years. We feasted that night on a stew of Labrador Retriever, caught snacking in a neighbor's chicken coop, quickly dispatched in the most expeditious manner, skinned and tossed in the cooler for the weekend's Mountain Man festivities. It was delicious, and not a bit like chicken.
Will Rogers never met me.
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.
Looking at the subject, I thought it was some dirty joke.... ;)
I love go-o-o-o-ld!
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.
There is a carpenter rule: Measure twice, cut once.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
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I'm not opposed to paying a professional, but this is what I consider fun! :-D I just hate it when it doesn't turn out the way I expected it to. As I mentioned in my reply to Walt, I used "kiln-dried" lumber for this, and expected it to be dry and free of internal stresses. But the lumber available in the US these days is a far cry from what it was 20 years ago. It would be more accurate to label it "Purina Beaver Chow" than lumber. When we were in the midst of a building boom ten years ago, the excuse that demand prevents the mills from properly curing lumber was plausible. But there hasn't been a construction market to speak of in the US for 5 years, and the excuse is wearing thin.:mad:
Will Rogers never met me.
You move that wood. You put it in your storage, which probably will have another humidity then the previous storage it was in. So the wood is most likely to turn, stretch, whatever.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
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There is a carpenter rule: Measure twice, cut once.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
Done that. And used the best materials available here. This is a mystery to me, as it laid flat on a level pad as I was building it.
Will Rogers never met me.
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Done that. And used the best materials available here. This is a mystery to me, as it laid flat on a level pad as I was building it.
Will Rogers never met me.
Roger Wright wrote:
it laid flat on a level pad as I was building it
I'm no expert but I have a feeling this is the problem. Laying flat involves the wood supporting itself on one large area. Putting up as a gate involves it supporting itself only where it touches the brace. Since you are keen to point out the piece of wood should have been dried, I take your point that being flat on the floor and being upright in a brace shouldn't make a huge difference. However this being the imperfect real world I don't think you can compare one with the other exactly. Totally different force distribution.
Almost, but not quite, entirely unlike... me...
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There is a carpenter rule: Measure twice, cut once.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
Don't forget the Carpenter's Corollary: Cut it twice and it's still too short.
"I do not have to forgive my enemies, I have had them all shot." — Ramón Maria Narváez (1800-68). "I don't need to shoot my enemies, I don't have any." - Me (2012).
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.
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Done that. And used the best materials available here. This is a mystery to me, as it laid flat on a level pad as I was building it.
Will Rogers never met me.
That's a 6" gap - sure you do not want to measure that again? That's like more than a palm's width. Pretty much.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
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That's a 6" gap - sure you do not want to measure that again? That's like more than a palm's width. Pretty much.
regards Torsten When I'm not working
TorstenH. wrote:
That's a 6" gap - sure you do not want to measure that again? That's like more than a palm's width. Pretty much.
I think you'll find the 6" gap is not between the gate and the post <MORON EDIT>not</MORON EDIT>on the X axis but in fact the Z axis. The wood is having a torsion force applied to it twisting it so it is no longer in line with the fence and post.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.
You've got to have the right technology -- which, in this case, is a ball of string and a few nails.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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I used kiln-dried lumber, wood screws, and extra bracing. Nothing's slipped, nothing's leaning. I'm hoping that a few days of baking in the sun will remove the last vestiges of moisture from the wood, and allow the internal stresses in the lumber to equalize. I plan to attach the slats while the frame is clamped in position so that they can add support to any unbalanced residual moments. I opted not to use a diagonal brace, since the gate is only 3' wide, and I don't anticipate much sag, and didn't feel that a compression member would be necessary. If need be, I can fabricate a tension member of angle iron, but I don't think that it will be much use in countering the torsional force in this case.
Will Rogers never met me.
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I used kiln-dried lumber, wood screws, and extra bracing. Nothing's slipped, nothing's leaning. I'm hoping that a few days of baking in the sun will remove the last vestiges of moisture from the wood, and allow the internal stresses in the lumber to equalize. I plan to attach the slats while the frame is clamped in position so that they can add support to any unbalanced residual moments. I opted not to use a diagonal brace, since the gate is only 3' wide, and I don't anticipate much sag, and didn't feel that a compression member would be necessary. If need be, I can fabricate a tension member of angle iron, but I don't think that it will be much use in countering the torsional force in this case.
Will Rogers never met me.
Roger Wright wrote:
I used kiln-dried lumber
That might be your problem. Kiln-dried lumber dries way to fast, leaving it with internal stresses whose warping result might not show until exposed to normal moist and temperature variations.
Roger Wright wrote:
I'm hoping that a few days of baking in the sun will remove the last vestiges of moisture from the wood
For kiln dried wood that would be untrue everywhere except in the desert.
Light moves faster than sound. That is why some people appear bright, until you hear them speak. List of common misconceptions
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Is the wall actually straight where you put in? I have had that happen to me once. Never assume that somebody else's work is 100% straight.
I'm always assuming that everyone elses work is faulty. I'm less prone to disappointment that way.
Light moves faster than sound. That is why some people appear bright, until you hear them speak. List of common misconceptions
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Roger Wright wrote:
I used kiln-dried lumber
That might be your problem. Kiln-dried lumber dries way to fast, leaving it with internal stresses whose warping result might not show until exposed to normal moist and temperature variations.
Roger Wright wrote:
I'm hoping that a few days of baking in the sun will remove the last vestiges of moisture from the wood
For kiln dried wood that would be untrue everywhere except in the desert.
Light moves faster than sound. That is why some people appear bright, until you hear them speak. List of common misconceptions
Fortunately, I'm in the desert. :-D
Will Rogers never met me.
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TorstenH. wrote:
That's a 6" gap - sure you do not want to measure that again? That's like more than a palm's width. Pretty much.
I think you'll find the 6" gap is not between the gate and the post <MORON EDIT>not</MORON EDIT>on the X axis but in fact the Z axis. The wood is having a torsion force applied to it twisting it so it is no longer in line with the fence and post.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
Exactly correct! :-D
Will Rogers never met me.
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Exactly correct! :-D
Will Rogers never met me.
Roger Wright wrote:
Exactly correct! :-D
I need to get me a job interpreting Yankee to other parts of the world English and vice versa.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
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Fortunately, I'm in the desert. :-D
Will Rogers never met me.
I know.
Light moves faster than sound. That is why some people appear bright, until you hear them speak. List of common misconceptions
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I've seen a gazillion wood fences with gates that line up top and bottom perfectly, but I've never been able to achieve this myself. This weekend I rebuilt part of my wind-destroyed fence, and I painstakingly measured and cut, and selected the best lumber available, to make a perfect gate. But once well hung on a perfect post, the outer edges were 6" out of plumb!:mad: How the hell can this happen? It was assembled flat, on a level concrete surface, and showed no inclination to lift a corner once assembled. Yet here it hangs, the top aligned perfectly with its opposite fence, and the bottom jutting out 6" sideways! It's extremely aggravating, and to make matters worse, my pizza delivery was an hour late. In the vain hope of rectifying the problem, I've closed the gate with the top aligned, then using two lengths of steel angle and a 'C' clamp, brought the lower ends into alignment. I plan to let it soak in the daytime sun at 105°F+ in the hope that it will straighten itself out. I don't know what else to do. Any ideas?
Will Rogers never met me.