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Georgia - Help with Shed

Started by TimberMember, January 16, 2014, 08:24:53 PM

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TimberMember

Looking for someone in the Atlanta area that can make some cuts for me? Authentic Thoreau size cabin of yellow pine? Any advice about yellow pine?

VictorH

Welcome TimberMember!  Have not lived in Atlanta (Stone Mountain) in over 20 years but I'm sure someone near you will be along shortly.

Thehardway

I work with a lot of Shortleaf Virginia Yellow Pine.  There are a few things to watch for.  Yellow pine can have a tendency to spiral as is grows and has a lot of movement and internal stress.  Some is worse than others and there are stands that have virtually no spiral.  The problem with spiral is that you can mill it straight and square and then as it dries and shrinks, it will twist.  For a good example look at the culled peices of treated wood at your local big box.  Most of this is SYP.  If at all possible, pick your logs carefully and look closely at the pattern in the bark.  If this is not possible, Have your boards and timbers milled stacked, and air dried for no less than 60 days.  Let your sawyer know that you will reject timbers that do not meet your specs.  As they dry, you will notice ones with spiral grain do not check parralell to the grain, they check diagonally.  That is a bad sign.

In some cases yellow pine can be pitchy and want to bleed sap as well.   This may offend you.

On the plus side.  Yellow pine is nice to work with while green.  It cuts and machines well.  It's strength to weight ratio is very good.  It has excellent resistance to shock.  If clear sections are taken from the trunk without knots, its strength is exceptional amongst pines.  When dry, it becomes extremely hard. The heart wood is warm to the the touch but yet extremely hard and durable for flooring and panelling.  The more knotty top sections can be milled into beautiful boards for paneling, wainscoting or T&G planks.

The heart wood has good rot resistance and will last a reasonable amount of time exposed to weather.  The sapwood is not very rot resistant.  It is prone to Pine beetle and Blue stain.  Some people like blue stain and others don't.  It is also a subject to Borer Bees.

Treating it with a borate solution or diatomaceous earth can be beneficial to help control insects.

There are perhaps few, if any woods that are more widely studied and publications available on than SYP.  It makes up a large contingency of the US commercial lumber market as plywood, OSB, Pressure treated decking and framing as well as larger framing dimensional lumber, flooring, T&G and Decking.  You can likely find anything you want to know about it in American Wood Council publications as far as detailed properties and specifications.

Thoreau's cabin is a wonderful little Timber framing cottage using simple joints and construction.  It should be a fun project.  Be sure to share your experience and photos with us and welcome to the gang.

Norwood LM2000 24HP w/28' bed, Hudson Oscar 18" 32' bed, Woodmaster 718 planer,  Kubota L185D, Stihl 029, Husqvarna 550XP

danreed76

Welcome to the forum TimberMember.  We're just a bit South of Atlanta and using SYP for our frame (Long leaf and Loblolly mostly).  Seems to work easily either green or dry, and while it definitely takes less effort to work green, I think the overall end result turns out better when it's had a bit of time to dry.

-Dan






Woodmizer LT40 Hydraulic with resaw attachment |  Kubota MX5200  | (late)1947 8N that I can't seem to let go.

Magicman

Welcome to the Forestry forum, TimberMember.  As mentioned, SYP is not very rot resistant and White Oak was the timber of choice with the pioneer cabins.

That being said, I am considering Red Oak for a log cabin build because it is what is available to me.  My thoughts are that if it begin to decay it can always be covered with Poplar B&B.   ;D
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

TimberMember

Thank you for the replies. I am thinking that it may be best just to bolt this together until time is found for a course and then a bigger shed. I purchased the Sobon book with the shed design and also found a simple frame at Georgia Tech and Thoreau with a Google search. Does anyone have any frame ideas that are small, 10'x15', or so that could be put together without any complicated joinery? My carpentry experience is limited and I will be doing this without any assistance. Thank you again for the replies.

Thehardway

Timbermember,

The joinery in the Thoreau cabin is really not that complex if you just take it one cut at a time, one timber at a time.  Its primarily 6"X 6" with longest timber 15' and overbuilt at that.   A  SYP 15' 6"X6" is easily worked and handled solo.   Don't worry if every joint isn't perfect and tight. Few frames are perfect and sometimes mistakes can lead to Ureka moments of creativity.

If it really intimidates you and cost is more tolerable to you than time, you may want to consider a Timberframe kit.  A frame the size you are talking about can be purchased for about $6K or less cut and ready to assemble.

Other alternatives with less complex joinery would be log cabin, balloon frame stick built etc.

Start with something simple and useable like a pair of  timber saw ponies.  Lots of examples here on the forum.  It will give you basic joint cutting experience and you can see if you like it enough to go on from there.  If not, you haven't lost anything. 
Norwood LM2000 24HP w/28' bed, Hudson Oscar 18" 32' bed, Woodmaster 718 planer,  Kubota L185D, Stihl 029, Husqvarna 550XP

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