Dusty Tales

Sometimes, having a pile of tools is all you need to get the job done. Even if you don’t have the right tool for the job, most of the time one of your workmates does. I mean, lets face it - we finish carpenters are die-hard tool junkies. When we see another carpenter who has something that will get the job done better, faster and stronger, we have to have it, right? Right.

Even though we finish carpenters are sometimes fools for new tools, actually buying a tool that you will only use once in a great while, just isn’t an option. Either because the tool is too expensive to justify buying, or the shipping time makes the tool purchase prohibitive.

The short of it is - I was working on a project, and discovered I needed a big saw. Or at least a way to cut glue-joint surfaces on an 8″X 12″ Doug Fir beam at a 45 degree angle.  For what, you ask? One really big Doug Fir fire place mantle. The mantle was to be constructed of one beam stacked on top of another, and was to wrap the chimney chase on three sides. The bottom beam was sized at 8″X10″, with the bigger 8″X12″ beam stacked on top.

To achieve cabinet-quality joints in such big timbers was going to be a challenge. (more…)

For any construction contractor to be successful, it takes hard work, creative thinking, and the ability to connect to the dreams and ideas of our clients. These facts are tested continually in many different ways.

For instance, in the same home in which Nautilus Construction installed the radius trim we also installed wood-paneled ceilings throughout. It presented a couple of challenges most carpenters don’t run into very often.

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Hello, thanks for stopping by.

Shown here are a few photos of Timber Passages installed in a custom home in Sisters, Oregon. The style of this home is true to its surroundings, Mountain Lodge.

The timber passages here are set up to fit inside the rough opening and it worked out really well. The framers did a good job in leaving us with enough room to achieve a 48-inch finished opening, with one inch reveals between the legs and the head piece.

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