Day 1

Today, May 7th was day one in my book.  Although I had the day off on Friday, it started at the dentist's office, and continued with the unpacking and sorting of tools and materials.  The night before we actually moved the boat out of the garage to a storage location so I could claim the garage for the next 6 weeks.  Frankly moving workbenches and toolboxes and preparing continued through the weekend.  Today seemed to be much of the same.  I also started a new version of the virtual model on AutoCAD for Mac, which I will show as it gets finalized.   Replacing a broken Jigsaw from the weekend, this project also seems like a an opportunity to replace my "starter" tools with some that will be more robust for the task at hand.  Besides a new 1/2 drill and a better jigsaw, there are actually a few tools that are quite special for this project.

After Fed-Ex Day, I had envisioned a large radial arm saw, with a dado blade as the best way to cut the notches in the timbers.  I never could fully resolve if the radial arm saws could accept a dado, but during me research I discovered some new friends at TimberWolf Tools.  I had imagined that moving the timbers to make the multiple cuts on a radial arm would be difficult, and when I discovered the Hema Notcher, it became obvious that moving the saw was the better solution, especially one made for timber construction rather than the "rig" I was contimplating putting together.  

So top on the list of special tools is the HEMA ZF215W Tenon Cutter / Notcher.  It uses what I would describe as a flywheel with chipper blades to notch the timbers.  I purchased the two blades, one that would cut the deeper notch and one that is 40 mm to cut a notch for 2x6s to set into.  The beast came from Germany, and had to be special ordered.  It actually arrived last Thursday., after about a 4week lead time.  I still have to cut off the european plug and replace it with a US standard 230v 20 amp plug so I can power it up.   Special thanks to Marc Boutan and David Powell of Timberwolf Tools for helping me with all the variables.  http://www.timberwolftools.com/tools/hema/H-ZF215W.html  There will be lots of shots of this saw as i move forward.  It is the key tool for making the notches, instead of the traditional chisel and mallet, which when you see the extent of the work would take me a year. 

Next up is a Makita 5402NA 16-5/16" Beam Saw.  This puts all circular saws to shame.  It is huge, but makes simple time of the 6x6s that make up the timbers for the project.  I could have possible gotten away with a chainsaw beam saw. or cutting the beam and flipping it for another cut, but those that know me know I would prefer to to it right and this is the saw for the purpose.  Anyone cutting 6x6s on a regular basis seems to use this saw.   You can source the saw from a number of  places, and even find free shipping.

Barr Tools Framing Chisel

Whiteside Upcut Spiral R

Makita 16 inch Beam Saw

There will always be some chisel work on a project like this, so the next key tools are a new 1-1/2" barr framing chisel and weighted mallet.  My research indicates that these are the best chisels made in the US, and many swear by them.  http://barrtools.com   I admit there are others, including quality ones from England, but my shot out goes the the excellent service I received directly from the source at Barr Tools.  Equally interesting was the Garland Weighted Rawhide Mallet  (40oz.) I also received.  It is a spiral of rawhide with a lead core.  a nice balance of natural materials and weight.


Some of the notches will be shallow and easier to cut with a few passes of a router.  The best I found for that work is an uncut spiral router bit.  The best source, for the best quality seems to be Whiteside. http://www.whitesiderouterbits.com/

WoodOwl Ultra Smooth Auger

Lastly in this round of discussions on tools are the Woodowl bits I ordered.  The Ultra Smooth Ship Augers actually have three spurs, and are balanced well for fast clean cuts.  www.woodowl.com  I will be using them for the interlocking wood dowels used to hold panels in place.