Before Sketch Up and other CAD programs, timber framers brought a low-tech but highly-skilled approach to layout. Techniques varied depending on geography: German, French, Japanese, and American methods all differ. Using the techniques he learned in German trade school, instructor Gerald David will lead students in the building of a 10’x16’ cabin with a distinctively German look and features. A few lines snapped on the shop floor will provide enough information to lay out the walls of rough-sawn timber, though significantly more lines will be necessary for the layout of the hip roof. This is a perfect opportunity for students with prior experience in timber framing to learn a new style and approach, or for beginning timber framers to pick up a chisel and get started. The finished project will be available for sale at a fixed price at the end of the course. In the event that multiple students are interested, a drawing will be held on the final day of the course.

Instructor Gerald David spent his young adult life in Germany and learned his trade as an apprentice and traditional journeyman on the ‘Wanderschaft’. The style of layout he will teach uses a minimum of mathematics, instead drawing two-dimensional plan views and elevations full scale. The relationships between them will be explained through geometric principles and exploited to yield the layout lines for all the compound angles.

You will need the following tools for this class:

All required tools/materials are provided by your instructor and North House and will be available once the course begins.

drawknife
adze
skillsaw (7 1/4″, 10″, 16″)
Mortiser
power drill
hand saw
2 ft square
combo square
12 inch square
mechanical pencil 0.9mm
eraser
knee pads
hand plane(s)
personal protective equipment (eyes, ears, knees, feet: NH has safety glasses, hard hat