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THE BLACKSMITH SHOP
This issue we are going to start building our blacksmith shop board-by-board. We will finish the frame and rafters this time, and then the walls and the roof the next time, and finish the entire project with details and tips in the third column. When finished if one has carefully built this model with no glue showing, judicious cutting, and paying attention to detail in each and every step you should be able to earn a merit award with this model.
I am going to use this small blacksmith shop for a small mine in the Owl Creek Mountains of Wyoming. I will be using 2” X 6” studs mainly because this is a structure built pre-WWII. Before that time frame 2” X 6” studs were very common and there was very little 2” X 4” lumber cut. I am also spacing the studs on 16” centers, as this was the common practice prior to the 1960’s. Due to the heavy snows in the Owl Creek Mountains I am using 2” X 6” rafters to bear the snow load. I am also putting a floor in my blacksmith shop, as with long winters this would save on the mud problem in the shop. In the days that my building was built the lumber was cut rough and to exact size. Now, with that said, find on Google Books a carpentry standards book for your time frame and follow the standards within that book. They are free and downloadable at Google under the 'other' menu. I am also going to use corrugated iron for the final roofing material, but will use 1” x 12” sheathing on the roof first. Overkill yes, but am including so you get the practice. I also will be using a concrete poured foundation on this model. I am going to do this entire building out of wood stock; if you use plastic stock the directions are exactly the same. (SEE NOTE BELOW ON JIGS)
Before we start work on the board-by-board construction we need to discuss jigs and templates, as we are going to use both for this project:
Webster’s defines a jig as a device for guiding a tool or for holding parts in place while fabricating. In this project we will use 2 different jigs; one to make the rafters for our building and another for building a 2’ X 6’ wall for our project.
Webster’s defines a template as a device to replicate cutting patterns used in making something accurately. So our “Chopper” is really set up to be a template and can be changed quickly for another project, but I also make templates our of 5” X 8” cards to get the exact shape of a roof to apply shingles to. I have in the past used a brass shaped jig fabricated into an exact piece for the front and rear end pieces of a 1:20.3 scale Plymouth locomotive frame. We will be using a template for developing the angle of the roof and constructing our rafter jig.
I always make my jigs out of a different material than the material I am working with. This would mean plastic for my wood build model. But those of you working in plastic would use wood for your jig. By using material different than you are building the model in eases the likeability of your glue sticking to the jig (though with judicious application of glue this will not happen, but it does at times).
Let's start by building our rafter jig. First, we need to determine the angle of our roof. Using a protractor (I use an Incra protractor as it is designed to take a .05 pencil lead and is quite accurate (photo A) and extending the lines of the roof we determine the angle to be 47 degrees. I then make a template of the roofline on a 5” X 8” index card and draw the 2 angles of 47 degrees. I then determine the distance from the peak of the roof to the top plate of the walls, which measures 6”9”, and draw a line across the bottom of the rafter where the lower chord intersects the rafters (see photo 1), and then cut out the portion for assembling the rafter jig (see photo 2). Now, using the stock you have chosen for your jig, build a wall around your template. I used a 1/8” thick piece of plastic cut to accommodate the template you have just constructed for the rafters. Then use scrap or dimensional lumber to build a wall around the rafter template. I used plastic scale 2’ X 12” stock. It must be noted that the roof and rafter line on this building is not of standard construction. The rafters are only 4” longer than the width of the building, but that is how the plans are drawn. The finished jig is shown at photo 3. Note I have labeled the jig as a rafter jig at 47 degrees. I save all the jigs I construct for reuse if needed and include them in the packet of descriptions for the contest entry form.
Next we will build our jig for the wall studs, sole plates, and double top plates. First, let’s think about the construction. We are using rough cut size lumber and our studs are on 16” centers so, the distance between the stud edge to the next stud edge is 14” (that includes 1” for ½ a stud and another inch for half of the next stud. That gives us a distance of 14” as spacers. I used a 4” X 12” and a 2” X 4” stock glued together to attain a piece 4” thick and 14” wide. This process is quite - simply set your end piece insuring it is exactly at 90 degrees to sole plate line (I used 4” X 12” stock for these stops). Then place a 2” X 6” next to the end stop and glue a 4” X 12” stock up against the 2” X 6” stock and add a 2” X 4” to the 4” X 12” piece making sure everything is tight and square. Continue along until you're done with the length of the building. A productive hint is to make the length about as long as any building you will be making in the future. I always make the spacers longer than needed as I may build a building with 14’ or 16’ ceilings. Leave a space between the sole plate line and the spacing material, as we will need to place a sole plate or top plate in between the studs and the stop material (see photo 4 of the finished jig). You will note that I have extra length in my bottom material to add more spacing material if I need a longer building. This is going to be a jig you use quite often so take you time ensure it is square and it will accommodate your use for years.
Cutting Material:
I am placing your material list here for convenience (you will need a couple of bags each of 2” X 12”, 2” X 6”, 1” X 12”, and 1” X 2” dimension stock). Boards have been offered in 12’ foot lengths for years and I always try to cut my stock to 12” lengths and then some for the rest you need. It makes a nice touch for the judges to see a 12’ board butted against a 6’ board to achieve the required length of 18’ rather than an 18’ long board, yes one can scribe the 12’ line in but the staining has a better effect with two boards.
Floor: 2” X 12”
2” X12” X 12’ – 48 – (4) header joists (44) flooring
2” X 12” X 6’ – 4 – Header joists
2” X 12” X 11’ – 17 – Joists
2” X 12” X 14” – 24+ - Bridges
2” X 6”
2”X 6” X 12’ – 2 – sole plate
2” X 6” X 11’ – 2 – sole plate
2” X 6” X 11’ – 2 – sole plate
Walls: 2” X 6”
2” X 6” X 12’ – 12 – (4 sole plate) (8 double top plate)
2” X 6” X 6’ – 6 – (2 sole plate) (8 double top plate)
2” X 6” X 6’ – 60+ - studs
1” X 12”
1” X 12” X 6’6” – wall board
1” X 2”
1” X 2” X 6’6” – battens
Roof: 2” X 6”
2” X 6” X 8’ – 30 - rafters cut at 47-degree angles on both ends
2” X 6” X 10’3” – 15 - lower chord cut at 47-degree angles on both ends
1” X 12”
1” X 12” X 12’ – 14 – sheathing
1’ X 12” x 6’ – 14 – sheathing
The rafters will all be cut with a 47-degree angle as shown in the drawing below:
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This is the proper cut for the angles for all three rafters - 2 short and 1 long (see photo 5). Note that I have drawn the 47-degree angle on my Chopper pad and align the stock with that angle to cut. PLEASE: lift the cutter to its maximum height and use a stylus to maneuver the wood into position. I have numerous cuts from the Chopper and they are a nuisance that can be avoided (photo 6 shows all the cut wood).
Staining:
Since the stain seen is mostly on the inside where it is protected from the weather I used a brown stain. The brand of stain, if I am not mixing it myself from Lincoln Brown or Black shoe dye and alcohol, is the Builder’s in Scale brand available from CC Crow at
http://www.builders-in-scale.com/
They have Silver Wood, which works excellently for a weathered bare wood gray, Black Wood for a severely weathered bare wood, Brown Wood for an aged protected bare wood, and Dead Wood for dead trees etc. The Brown Wood stain (photo 5) is the one I used in this case - it gives just the right tone of that has been protected from the ravages of weather but has had water run down it and is not gray but brown with black/brown stains on it. I use this stain at full strength and leave the wood in the stain for 1 minute. I place the stained wood on a paper towel that is doubled to dry; when dry we can start assembling our model.
Model Assembly:
Look at photo 6 to see how I use the wall stud jig. I have left spaces for my door which I measure and add the studs later. There should be a double top plate at the top and a single sole plate on the bottom. By making the jig correctly and to specs the wall can be assembled quickly. The glue I use for wood parts is Titebond III, which holds strong, is water resistant and dries fairly quick. When the 4 walls are done (two 18” and two 12’), they can glued at 90-degree angles with the 12’ walls being the outer wall when glued, thus we have a 12’ X 18’ framing of our building. (Photo 7 shows the gluing of the 90-degree angles). When the 2 corners are dry glue the structure into its correct shape (photo 8). Note that the door studs are in - I also add extra studs for the windows adding them and then cut the opening adding the top and bottom window plates.
The assembly of the rafters is shown in photo 9 - remember, judicious gluing helps with clean up and a model that will get higher points in the Achievement assessment.
When the rafters glue has dried I use the 16” center stud jig to get them aligned and a sheathing board glued down to secure them (photo 10). Since we want the roof to be removable we do not want to glue the rafters to the top plate. Photo 11 shows the roof with all the sheathing in place.
Conclusion:
That concludes our model building for this session, if anyone has questions, needs help, or has ideas to help this column I am available at 307-672-8471 or sarge9@bresnan.net. I will also be at the Convention so stop me and I will try to answer your questions or take your advice. We will continue the flooring and sheathing of this model in the next column.
I have received questions on what my model room looks like so I am including a picture of my 11’6’ X 12’ model room. I use a desk for a work table, a TV stand with plywood on top for further work or storage, the file cabinet holds plans, research, catalogs, etc. Some may ask about the stereo and the flat screen TV, I have them so I can relax or watch TV while paint or glue is drying. You can see shelving that holds kits and material the shelving at the right is my collection of magazines. Numerous parts bins holds part and pieces use in my modeling. Yes, it seems to be disorganized but it works for me. (Photo 12).
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