That looks slick, I’d imagine it would go pretty fast one you got the jig set up. Finished product looks good.
I read through that discussion a bit, and the R-value calculations he's doing seem a bit off... so if you're in a colder locale, it may be an issue for you... or if you have building code requirements, etc. That being said, it's a cool idea if it works for you.
I think the biggest detractor is the aesthetic... it seems like a lot of work to have the look of a log overlay at the ends, only to have it be shitty looking dimensional 2x8 pieces with nails. Personally, I'd probably grab some rough sawn pine planks from a local lumber mill and use them as the outside layer, and take more care with the nails being used. You'd also want to be sure they were galvanized/etc so they wouldn't rust over time. At least that way you get a better (in my opinion), weathered plank look. I'd also be tempted to do that on the inside. I can get thick sawn planks a hell of a lot cheaper per board foot than dimensional lumber.
The nails wouldn't bother me much, but since the planks are also structural I think dimensional would be a better route since the chance of warpage would be less then rough hewn. I imagine trying to keep everything plumb would be enough of a challenge with this method without having to deal with excessive warping. Another concern would be moisture intrusion..he said he chinks using wood adhesive, which strikes me as a bit odd. My only other concern would be that although I'm only planning on roughly 20x30, I had planned for a 4x8 XOX window in the living room and I just don't see that as a good idea with this method, especially on a load bearing wall. An 8' empty area with no way of dispersing the load seems like a pain in the ass waiting to happen. Anyways, I'm going to order his PDF and have a look. Worse comes to worst I can always use it to build a pump house or a detached shop.
You can get seasoned rough hewn lumber usually that is reasonably dried and "warp free", at least around here... I've found that the bigger stuff is more stable than the dimensional crap, usually because dimensional is rush dried and can get some weird stresses built up as a result. Again, depends on your supplier, etc. as to the 8' empty area, why not just frame it and put in a header like you normally would? I can see doing a special glu-lam beam for the header as a "one-off" for the whole build... they're not that expensive, and would provide you the support you need, and you could probably get one that would fit in quite well with the existing dimensions.
If you can do work yourself a cheaper way of doing a house is a prebuilt. And if you watch the some times have nice sales on them.
Well, I've been drinking tonight... because I messed up some stuff in the shop. I'm in the process of installing a new bench vise, and had a last little bit of birdseye maple that I could use for the wood jaw parts (whatever you call them). So I measure and templated the 3 vice shafts, aligned everything, drilled the fuck out of them (maple is hard on bits), routed them , sanded, them, and I have zero idea how it happened but my template was inverted, and the wood inserts didn't fit. I'm such a fucking idiot. I was so happy with the end results, only to have them end up in the fire pit... and now I have no leftover hardwood to finish off the vise. That being said, it was still a fairly relaxing day in the shop... quite therapeutic... except for the finish. Such a fun hobby.
Is there a big difference between polyurethane spray vs the paintable stuff? I’m trying to put a gloss/smooth finish on some shelves and 3 coats of the spray doesn’t seem to be making any noticeable difference.
After you coated it, what did you do? I'm sure Nett, Aetius and some of the others can weigh in with better advice and video links about coating, multiple high-count grit sanding, buffers, etc. But, if you're just doing a quick spray-type and want it to look pretty good - smooth and gloss, but not super high-gloss mirror finish - just get an old, dry washcloth and rub the shit out of the surface. It's just abrasive enough. YMMV.
This is the first thing Ive ever built, so total noob status. Sanded the shit out of it and then applied a thick stain coat. Then went in with the poly. Yeah, smooth and gloss and not mirror finish shit is what Im going for.
Sand with 220 grit paper in between coats and make sure you apply the poly and sand with the grain of the wood. Some people also use really fine steel wool, but I haven't tried that yet.
This will totally work. But, what I found in the stuff I've done, is that if I do that, I still have to rub that last coat out with something, and the old washcloth or towel works well for me. I've made or just finished a couple pieces where I really put a lot of time in the finish, and it frankly didn't look as good as I wanted. I'm just not that craft-y, or the weather was wrong, or I don't have a good shop set up with low dust, high ventilation. And, then, I've bought some unfinished stuff that I put a Minwax stain on it. Let it dry. Bought a can of spray polyurethane, spray one coat and let it dry until just past tacky, then spray it again to dry. Then, I rubbed it like a mofo with a cloth. Looks just as good as other stuff I have and has held up well.
Could also try a light coat of furniture paste. It’s like a car wax... apply, let dry a bit, then buff. I really like the look/feel of it over poly.
Yup. Depending on how smooth you want the surface you should also wipe down the piece after sanding with a damp cloth. You'd be surprised at how much dust gets left behind without wiping it down or how sensitive our finger tips are to bumps. Don't worry about restaining once you start applying poly.
No need to restain. Stain is applied to the bare wood, then you apply multiple coats of poly. Between each coat of poly, sand it. Just enough to knock the high points down and scruff it up a bit. The next coat of poly will come in and fill in the surface flatter and smoother than the one before. Spray on is thin so it will take a few applications. Wipe on goes on a little thicker so will fill in the surface faster. For the final coat, don’t try to sand it (unless you go 600+ grit wet sand), just buff the shit out if it. Again, a little furniture paste really helps with that buffing.
Might want to look into “tack cloths” that are designed to pull all dust off of the surface before you apply the poly.