No pictures today, sorry!  Today was a planning day. Tim is fresh and back from his vacation with Stacie in Florida to celebrate her 22nd B'day.  Happy Birthday to Stacie. Tomorrow construction of the bents will begin. We'll be up at Lewey Lake enjoying the fall colors, but the work goes on.  Join us for this history making event in the Town of Guilderland.  We're not building a shopping mall here, we're just recreating what made this town great.

Ken

We started today by finishing the pins for the last couple of half-laps. This put the finishing touches on the main deck.  As you know from the pump-house article we worked a large portion of the day on that.  We did however close the day out by loading the main deck with timbers for the bents (walls).  I think we put 8 timbers on the deck.  They need a lot of work.

We did use a builders level to check the deck main piers. It is important before we build the bents to understand how level the barn really is.  Dad walked about the foundation area recording the data. 
 

By the end of the day the deck was fully loaded with some more wood to work. Dad started thinking on the corner Bent post in the gable end of the barn.  Lots more work to do.......

The pump house roof was finished today.  Since this is the first truly new structure since the saw-mill pole-barn was completed in the late 1960's we went all out with architectural shingles.  Again it was a HOT day for late September.  In the end we got the roof on.  The south side wall will remain open until the floor/ceiling is installed and insulated for the winter. 

We still have to.

1. Fill in the foundation with concrete.
2. Finish the siding.
3. Build the floor/ceiling
4. Install a freeze proof winter faucet.
5. Wire the pump permanently with a disconnect
6. Install temperature monitoring warning equipment.

So here is the finished product.
 

The Floor Beams and Joists are Finished

Today we did a little more cleaning up of the work site. The driveway from the road down the South side of the Dutch Barn is open and ready for the next load of lumber.  We mowed the working area East of the Dutch Barn and moved the old fanning mill out of the way. 

It was then onto the last 10 floor joists. Dad had to go out this afternoon so I (Ken) worked along on the joists.  He helped me get a good set of measurements so it went along well.  Here are the photos of the finished product.

Now we can start loading the deck with the next phase of construction......Looking forward to that.

I'll tell you for September it was HOT....The started around 8:30AM with a general session of wood sorting on the East side of the Butch Barn. The construction area had gotten a little helter-skelter with blocking, boards and pallets.  I did not take a before and after picture but now you can drive down the barn driveway and into the construction site.  Now all the wood is sorted and neatly stacked.  The next time wood is delivered it will come right down to the work area.W

We needed to head up to Berne to the lumber yard to get 7 - 4x8x8's to finish the floor joists of the German Barn. They were sawed as we waited, loaded into the truck where as of this evening they are still there. Why you ask, because they were too darn heavy to unload with it as hot as it was today.  What did get unloaded and used was some much smaller and lighter wood for the pump-house. We got the West side closed and started in on the roof. We decided to make it solid and use shingles.  There is a 10 inch eve on the North and South side.  We got the roof all on and covered it with Tar-Paper.  I admit historic tar-paper was used on this building.  This role of paper was from another generation.  Dad had first used it when he shingled the farm house - 60 years ago.  The paper was in original condition and much heavier than what you can purchase today.

By the end of the day the little barn was trimmed along the roof line and the 60 year old felt paper was installed. Next it is the shingles and floor that will keep the underground area from freezing in the winter months. So the pump-house is almost done.  Hats-off to Tim for making such a nice frame that I could close in and add a roof.
 

That was about it for today.  And yes, the 4x8's are still in the back of my truck, sitting in my driveway. 

 I had a little break in the action this week because of my day job, but rest assured work on the barn continues.  There are a few pictures missing as Tim and Stacie are in Florida with my camera and card.  I'll update the post after they return next week. 

So the East gable end beam was laid in place completing the floor.  You can see it in this picture as Tim drills holes for the wooden pins. To make the pins the oak boards are sawed to size on the table-saw and cut to length on the chop-saw.  Dad (Everett) is using the saw on the new stand that Tim built for the project and beyond.  Since we have to make so many pins we moved the table-saw into the Dutch barn from the woodshed.  I know they sharpened them somehow but since I was not there I won't use my editorial privilege and make it up.  I will fill you all in later.

The Finished Product
We are going to need a couple of hundred of these, so I suspect we'll get pretty good at it. Now with holes drilled the pounding begins to join the half-lap joints of the main beams.  If you look at the photos you will see that the floor-joist pockets are in place so we'll be able to place the joists after we head to the lumber yard to get the rest of the wood.  More photos tomorrow.

If you live here you know that today, at least in the morning was not real good for barn building.  By about 10:30 we got started.  The last of the main floor beams was half-lapped and placed on the center pier joining the North and South beams.  Now all that is left of the main floor is to place the East gable-end beam in place.
 This morning while looking for another tool at my home in Altamont, I found a very old Awl, which belonged to my wife's (Pat), Grandfather, Charles Habbinger.  He was a carpenter by trade and I have had this tool for many years.  It was indeed a great find to be able to put this antique tool back in service by his, great-grandson, Timothy.  Not only does the awl make a clean precise line close to the square, it would have been the only tool we could have used to mark the wet wood we were working with.
  
For a change of pace we moved onto doing the floor joists on the west side of the barn.  I am not sure how much these 4x8's weigh but I know they were heavy.  On each end of the joist we cut notches to make sure it fits the main beam pocket correctly.  They can't be too long or the barn will get pushed out of square. Too short and after drying, not enough of the pocket will remain in the beam to be strong enough.  We managed to get all but one of the west side joists in place.

We had some visitors at PVF today.  Dr. John Powell stopped by with some fresh apples to see the work that was going on.  He is the owner of the Frederick farm in Guilderland and as such is taking care of the land of our ancestors and relatives.  We picked some fresh sweet corn and loaded our post-hole digger into his truck so he could plant some trees.  Felt a bit old-fashioned and great in a way to help a fellow farm owner.  A simpler time existed not so long ago, when the neighbor helping neighbor was widespread.  There is something good about it.  It seems to fit well with the work we are doing on the farm.

Pat, my wife and Sarah my daughter stopped by to see the progress.  At that moment the weather was not cooperating and one of those dark clouds dropped a little shower in the work site.  The barn got reviewed and the sheep got some TLC.  It was a good photo opportunity.

Well, we had a pretty good day here today.  The drive through 9x10's are all in place.  This involved another couple of those dovetail joints that are so much fun to create.  Each time I watch them being made with a mix of old and new tools, I marvel at the creativity of our ancestors.  Certainly 2-3 and sometimes 4 people could not take a barn from footings to main floor almost done in 12 working days without the aid of modern tools.

Today started off with some more main beam pockets.  This requires a mix of modern and traditional methods.  We took some good photos of the traditional methods today.  I would expect barn enthusiast to really appreciate the effort that has gone into this barn. Tim, Dad (Everett) and Ken (me) all got a hand at the tools of the trade today.
It was really my first time working with the tools of the trade.  Each time I struck that chisel into the wood that had been partially worked by power tools, I grew more amazed at the work that went into dong this all by hand.  There were no circular saws, cut saws or other electical devices. The craftsman made them all by hand. You know we've done it and my father has taught us how to do it.  There is a burning desire to do as much of the barn as possible as my ancestors did to build the original barn on this location.  So on we went, making the last two beams of the drive through section of the barn.

These half lap joints and beam pockets seem to go easy when you consider that the next beam to the east will be a dovetail with a middle half lap. Great care is taken and since Tim is a cabinet maker turned barn builder, he and is Grandfather often discuss the accuracy of these joints and how they should fit.  As the son of Everett and the father of Tim it is great fun to sit back and watch the two generations interact.  The results of the joints are shown below. You'll see pictures of Tim using a plunge router to make joints but you need to understand that principals of laying out the joint and all the cuts that take place before the router finishes the joint are the same as when this barn was originally built in ~1800.

Tim puts the finishing touches on the last dovetail joint.  The right picture shows the 4 main drive through beams in there final locations. The barn at this point is within 1/4" across 42 feet of being 26 feet wide.  The cabinet maker is happy and gramps, well gramps just smiles when Tim wants to measure the cabinet, I mean barn to see how accurate his work is.

The new barn had some visitors today.  Peg (Ma) and Helen Fries stopped by to see and perhaps supervise the progress.  They were there when the latest load of lumber showed up for the floor joists.  The 4x8's were very heavy....and the truck got backed very close to the new barn to aid in the unloading process.

At the end of the day we could not stop until we placed the first floor joist in place. Tim and me set about making the first one just to get it in place before we finished for the day.

Now imagine yourself working on recreating a 200 year old barn with your father and your son and your Dad needs to call the saw-mill to check the status of the latest order.  So you hand him your MS Windows Mobile PC phone so he can call the saw mill.  You dial it, hand it to him and he says "what do I do now"?  I swear this was the high-point of the day.  Watching my father sitting on the framework of new barn talking on a mobile phone. I must say this was weird indeed. I guess at this point, I don't feel too bad about using some modern tools to aid in our barn construction, providing we preserve the natural way of construction and don't lose touch with the true techniques.
 

History is being made and preserved at Pleasant View Farm in Altamont, NY.  Join us and the Dutch Barn Preservation Society at the workshops and barn raising days.  The schedule is included on this site under the DBPS blog.

Ken, son of Everett, father of Timothy.

By the end of today three main floor beams were in place.  The first of the dovetail beams fit perfectly into the pockets created.  For today the photos pretty much speak for themselves.

Pleasant View Farm - Altamont NY - http://www.plesantviewfarm.com

Half-Lap cut with a 16" Circular Saw produces some nice blocking material.

The weather has been very cooperative. By now you should be interested enough to join the Dutch Barn Preservation Society for one or more of their timber framing classes. The schedule is posted on this site or at http://www.dutchbarns.org/ .

Join us and become a part of history in the making.

Progress, Progress. As the writer I wish I was at PVF1799 instead of walking around a chemical plant today.  At least I know that I can in someway contribute to the New Barn, by updating this website every evening.  Today the North sill was laid into position.  Now 3/4 of the main sill is in place.

Most of you have no doubt noticed that the NE corner of the barn, is well above grade.  Rest assured that this will be filled in with stone in the traditional method. We apologize in advance that the original methods could not be used throughout the  entire process.  All must also now that the preservation of history on  Pleasant View Farm in the Town of Guilderland is our highest priority.

Now on to the rest of today's progress

Dad (Everett Rau) puts the finishing touches on a beam pocket and half-lap of a main beam.

To hold the barn together at the drive-through beams require the creation of a dovetail joint.  You've all seen these joints in dresser drawers. Now imagine building one on a large beam.  

It is important to create this joint to hold the main beams together.  So.....this joint is good for dresser drawers and German Barns.  Now....Everett can show you how to create this joint using original tools and I encourage you to learn from my father, Everett. So to be completely honest, we know how to complete all this work the old historical way, but we do use some modern tolls to complete the process given the fast pace of today's society.  Tim Rau, Grandson of Everett Rau and son of Kenneth Rau (author) uses some modern tools to assist the process.

Yes that circular saw is over 16 inches in diameter. I was in awe of a warning on the tool that weighs 35 pounds.  "Warnng - Do Not Use Overhead." No kidding! Who could hold this saw over ones head and use it safely?  I want you to note that Tim has learned enough from his Grandfather to use a LARGE chisel to finish a beam.
You have no doubt noticed the power planer sitting in this photo. Yup we admit it, we use power tools from time to time to adjunct our building process. To me the author, I see it no different than an in invention like the broad-axe being used to aid n early barn production.  Again, my apologies to the traditionalist's who will undoubtedly  disapprove...Sorry.  As I see it, we've improved on the process given tools invented by man....w/o that we'd not be as far as we are today.

Best regards to all.....Ken, Son of Everett....

Today was beam pocket day. Take a look at these photos to see the progress.  And if you recall the post from yesterday when I mentioned the need to balance time against preservation of tradition.  Teaching the historical methods will be preserved by Everett and the generations that follow at Pleasant View Farm.  To that end the Dutch Barn Preservation Society is conducting classes during the barn building sessions.  Please see the schedule in another post.

So today, lots of beam pockets were cut.

Now, yesterday you've seen the old tools we know how to use, but today some tools arrived that meet the busy schedules we all have. You can be sure that while this barn is being built we will achieve a proper balance of new technology and historical preservation. So welcome the new tool to assist us.

Take a look and see the work that is being done.  Today the cross-beams were laid out for beam pocket shaping.  There are lots of pockets to cut as you can see we've preserved the old methods of making beam pockets.  We are trying to balance time and the preservation with a mix of modern tools to aid the process.  Since none of us can spend full-time building barns anymore (too bad), we have resorted to some infiltration of the tools of today.

Take a look at today and then read the post for 9/11/2007

Yup it was hot again today...Started off the day pouring concrete for the center piers.  Of course we ran out of concrete and I headed off to Home Depot to get another pallet.  In total now that the pouring is complete 120 bags of concrete were mixed and poured into forms for the barn.

While I was gone Dad and Tim set the other half of the West and South beams into place.  It is actually starting to look like a building and not a concrete factory.  Take a look at the photos.

After the center piers and the last of the concrete work was completed, Tim and me (Ken) setup a little assembly line process to make 12, 48 inch wind braces.  After a little planning of the process, we turned out all the braces in just under 2 hours.  We'll need to make more smaller ones abut 30 inches long for other places in the barn, but that was all for today.

So in the last two weeks we've;

1. Poured all the concrete.
2. Half-Lapped all the main beams
3. Created the wind braces.
4. Made pockets in the main beams
5. Started making the wall posts.
6. Built a pump-house
7. Installed a pump so there can be running water in the barn and garden areas of the house.
8. Poured concrete under the old Dutch Barn for the new beams.

Not bad I'd say. 

Well, today was a wood carving day.  After today we are one half-lap away from having the North, South and West side beams ready to place on the piers/foundation.  Dad (Everett) helped Tim Rau, work the beams into shape. Some decisions were made regarding the roof rafters after reviewing the structure of the barn on the Lainhart farm.

The weather was cooperative with nice breezes and not too hot.  Just in case you were wondering if the barn was being built with modern tools only --- look at the picture below to see the use of old-fashioned hand tools also.

Thursday we will, I promise and hope finish all the concrete work.

Friday started off with the new pump house receiving the siding - but that is a different blog category on this site.  Next Tim and me (Ken) wandered off to Home Depot with the beaver-tail trailer in tow.  What did we come back with, but 4,800 pounds or 60 bags of ready-mix concrete.  Ah what fun awaits......

 

Then there was the ground-breaking  ---- Tim and Dad (Everett) dug the Southwest corner pier and first concrete was poured. The base footing for a few of the south piers were also poured on Friday

Now on Saturday, the real fun began.  Piers, piers and more piers.  Dad, Tim and me mixed pored and mixed some more.  Pat came up and feed the sheep some corn and bananas...yes our sheep like bananas.  Then the drat horses showed up from the old Earl Gray farm at the bottom of the hill. Trish driving a mother and son team named Rosie and Gus pulled the four main beams inside the footings so they could be worked on.  Many thanks to Trish and her husband (sorry forgot the name) for harnessing up these amazing animals and walking them up the hill for this very memorable but short workout.

 

 

 

 

Monday, September 3, 2007

Oh yes, more concrete.....Dad, Tim and Stacie mixed and poured concrete all day long.  Mary Jane brought Mom out to the barn and watched the goings-on.  Barb and Ray stopped by to lend support and see a barn at its earliest stages.  By the end of the day, all major piers were poured.  The South wall piers were at the proper level to receive the main south beam.   Oh yes. and all the concrete, all 60 bags of it had been mixed and poured.

Today the woodworking began.  Dad and Tim, created the south beam.  Most of the bam is prepare and ready to be mounted on the piers once the concrete is cure.