Puget Dude’s creations and fabrications (Random project thread.)

[PugetDude]

Framing coming along. Workmanship is top notch but glacially slow. It would be a lot further ahead if the crew didn't leave today at 1:30, because, well, Friday. ( but that doesn't explain 5-6 hour days Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday...)

Trusses pushed back to Tuesday. They could easily have humped it out and finished the walls today, but apparently they wanted to save that for Monday. Overheard one of them saying they're still waiting on the building permit for the next job... so apparently they are camping here in the meantime. ..

 

[Old Man Roger]

Wasn't Blue Lagoon a Brooke Shields movie in the 80's? I rather go fishing for her in a blue lagoon than some stinky pair of glasses!

She was 14 then.

 

[Jayman17]

^^^^ Forgot about that part of the picture.

 

[Chris F]

( but that doesn't explain 5-6 hour days Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday...)

Maybe they switched to the metric system?

 

[PugetDude]

Started another welding project; a memorial bench for a good friend and neighbor who passed away recently. He was one of the smartest, most accomplished individuals I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Earned his PhD in his early 20's, college professor for couple of years, then went to work for Standard Oil, did a couple of high level executive stints overseas, eventually retired as a member of the BP Board after the merger.
He had a 5000ft2 woodshop full of CNC equipment, built and donated church furniture as a retirement hobby.

Now that the backstory is over, on to the bench design elements.... first thing I needed to tackle was the Standard Oil torch. Got lucky that his tenure there was under the new simplified flame logo, not sure how I would have fabricated the earlier version...

Made a couple of paper patterns and cut the sides out of some 12 gauge sheet with the porta band table. 2x72 Grinder got them cleaned up and faired the curves.

Used some 2" wide 16 gage strip for the sides. A lot of fit-up, tacking and grinding to get the flame parts where I wanted them.
Happy with the finished weldments....

The torch itself was fabbed out of 3/8" rebar (of course, remember every bench gets rebar or diamond plate; this one is getting both...) and some rolled rings that I dug out of my architectural iron drop bucket.

Used a cast steel ball for the base, plan is to use this torch as one of the legs for the bench. The rest of the design is still percolating in my head.

More to come...

 

[Finallygotit]

So nice! In many ways actually.

 

[PugetDude]

Thought i would show some of the third-world bending equipment I use when bending smaller sections. Nothing here was large enough to use my homemade ring roller or 12 ton brake ( more on that later..) so it has been mostly brute force and ignorance on this project so far. Cobbled this little bending fixture together out of heavy scrap a few years ago and have been really happy with how it handles flat bar and smaller rolled sections. It's two-sided for different radius requirements. Most of the time I can bend what I need by hand but it's also BFH tested and certified. ⁰ The bending bar and the big bench vise is for heavier stuff that requires a little more oomph
More to come....

 

[PugetDude]

The reason every bench gets rebar is because....
1. I like fabricating with rebar. Rustic, cheap, and my welds look a lot like rebar anyway...
2. Our community entry gates are built with #6 rebar.

We refer to our little 47-lot slice of heaven as the "Rusty Gates" as opposed to the "Pearly Gates" with 24/7 guard-gated security at the swanky Country Club next door...

 

[larry4406]

The reason every bench gets rebar is because....
1. I like fabricating with rebar. Rustic, cheap, and my welds look a lot like rebar anyway...
2. Our community entry gates are built with #6 rebar.

We refer to our little 47-lot slice of heaven as the "Rusty Gates" as opposed to the "Pearly Gates" with 24/7 guard-gated security at the swanky Country Club next door...

Did you make the community entrance gate as well?

 

[PugetDude]

Did you make the community entrance gate as well?

No, those were installed 20+ years ago by the developer when the community was initially platted. It's a pretty unique location,. We have the same views and similar lot sizes as the country club, but we're not paying for 24/7 security, pools, golf courses, etc. We're bordered by a county park with miles of hiking trails on the south, the country club wall on the north, and designated open space on the west. Superstition Mountain wilderness dominates to the north.
Photo taken from the peak to the south of us. If you know where to look you can see my house....

The view out the front door is what sold us on this place when we moved back from Washington State.


The rebar gates were just a bonus...

 

[zmotorsports]

That is one hell of a view Scott. Spectacular.

My wife said the view from our back deck is what sold her on our place. I know she didn't particularly care for the house, but that was more due to the original owners decorating with stuffed animals and the smell of dogs in the house. Once we ripped out all of the inside and started over with flooring and paint, she fell in love with the inside as much as the outside, at least I hope she did....

 

[PugetDude]

That is one hell of a view Scott. Spectacular.

My wife said the view from our back deck is what sold her on our place. I know she didn't particularly care for the house, but that was more due to the original owners decorating with stuffed animals and the smell of dogs in the house. Once we ripped out all of the inside and started over with flooring and paint, she fell in love with the inside as much as the outside, at least I hope she did....

When we were moving from Washington State back to Phoenix in 2019, my bride opined that she wanted a view of the Flatiron. Couldn't have found one much better, IMO. Our house purchase experience sounds pretty similar, it was a distress sale, the previous owner was an alcoholic chain smoker who thought letting dogs out to do their business was optional...she fell and broke her hip, laid in the hallway for two days, landscaper found her. Her kids dragged her out of AZ so she could live closer to them.
House sat vacant on the market for almost a year. Most potential buyers turned around just inside the front door. Smelled really bad.
Realtor friend called, knew we liked project properties with a real upside potential. This one fit the bill perfectly. Structurally sound. Great location. Priced right. Easy fixes.
It took us a couple of months to get it sanitized and back into shape before we could move in.
Turned out to be the best real estate investment of my lifetime. (We have owned 11 homes since 2001)
No plans to move anytime soon.

 

[zmotorsports]

When we were moving from Washington State back to Phoenix in 2019, my bride opined that she wanted a view of the Flatiron. Our house sounds pretty similar, it was a distress sale, the previous owner was an alcoholic chain smoker who thought letting dogs out to do their business was optional...she fell and broke her hip, laid in the hallway for two days, landscaper found her. Her kids dragged her out of AZ so she could live closer to them.
House sat vacant on the market for almost a year. Most potential buyers turned around just inside the front door. Smelled really bad.
Realtor friend called, knew we liked project properties with a real upside potential. This one fit the bill perfectly. Structurally sound. Great location. Priced right. Easy fixes.
It took us a couple of months to get it sanitized and back into shape before we could move in.
Turned out to be the best real estate investment of my lifetime. (We have owned 11 homes since 2001)
No plans to move anytime soon.

Sounds pretty similar Scott. Other than the fact that I was adamant that I did NOT want a project home. I professed it to the wife as well as our friend who was our real estate agent. I had put so much labor and money into the home we had lived in for 26 years that I didn't want to start over with another project, I just wanted a turn key house like what we were selling. I knew we would be busy enough building the shop, I just wanted the house to be move in ready like what we were leaving.

After nearly 9 months of looking, we just didn't find anything that came close. People just don't take care of things the way I feel they should so almost everything we looked at was either too far gone for my taste, OR the property just wasn't conducive to what I had in my head. I told our agent that I would be so focused on the shop build that I didn't want a house project and after close to 9 months he suggested we build because I was being too picky. My wife was ok with a few we looked at but they were more of a lateral move and I knew this would be our forever home and didn't want merely a lateral move.

When we pulled into the neighborhood to look at a different house, I didn't even want to get out of the car because I didn't like the 90-degree garage entrance, just not my taste to have the garage turned from the house's front approach. I realize why people like that style, if they don't want to see garage doors from the street, but they just aren't my personal taste. The agent had made an appointment but I didn't even go inside because I was dead set against it. The wife and our agent went through it and that is when I noticed a different house for sale in the neighborhood. When my wife and our agent friend came outside I asked him about this house. He hadn't seen it for sale so he pulled out his laptop and did some research and I discovered that it didn't hit our criteria because it was outside our price range that we set on our search. He walked to the front door to see if we could do a quick and unannounced walk through and I was hooked. The house was a mess, both inside and out, but it had been on the market for a couple of months and our agent mentioned to me that they were way high on the asking price and gave me a number of where he thought it should be priced in order to sell. I had him make a lower offer and after a month of back and forth negotiating we landed exactly on the number our agent gave me on that first day we saw it. Granted it was still more than I wanted to spend, but it was about $35k less than our search criteria and $44k less than the sellers were originally asking. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Like you, we have no plans to move as this is our forever home and our legacy to leave to our son and his family.

 

[rharman]

< snip >
Photo taken from the peak to the south of us. If you know where to look you can see my house....

The view out the front door is what sold us on this place when we moved back from Washington State.

< /snip >

Just for grins.... Second from the bottom, on the left. Correct?

 

[PugetDude]

Just for grins.... Second from the bottom, on the left. Correct?

Nope. That one belongs to a retired CPA from Minnesnowta

 

[rharman]

Just for grins.... Second from the bottom, on the left. Correct?

Nope. That one belongs to a retired CPA from Minnesnowta

Dang.....

 

[PugetDude]

Friday framing update...
Parapet walls and sheathing still need to be finished up.
Framing inspection scheduled for Tuesday.

 

[WoodsTruck]

Looking good.

But, with all the rain we have had in the PNW in the last 10 days, I can't fathom a flat roof.

 

[Mr.zippy]

Is the crew actually working, on a Friday!

 

[LXCam]

I’m a bit baffled Scott. I’ve only done a few resi builds and never a flat roof. Normally we’d need the roof sheeting nailing inspection done, all the mep **** in and the roof dried in then loaded before we could get a framing inspection. Is it done differently now?

 

[PugetDude]

I’m a bit baffled Scott. I’ve only done a few resi builds and never a flat roof. Normally we’d need the roof sheeting nailing inspection done, all the mep **** in and the roof dried in then loaded before we could get a framing inspection. Is it done differently now?

They're planning on finishing up the shear panels and nailing on Monday, not using concrete tiles, so no roof loading. This one is a flat roof with spray foam, same as the house.

 

[PugetDude]

Looking good.

But, with all the rain we have had in the PNW in the last 10 days, I can't fathom a flat roof.

You can get more rain in a single storm than we get all year....

 

[PugetDude]

When the framing crew left after lunch on Friday there was one wall left.... 63" long interior wall, not load bearing.
My first thought was " Seriously? You would leave one little wall?"

I decided I would frame it myself today. It was a little complex to accommodate the macerator pump in the utility closet behind the bathroom. I knew I wanted to hide the macerator pump.and plumbing so I end up with a "normal" looking bathroom. Really don't like the look of a white plastic macerator pump chamber sitting behind the toilet with exposed piping running up the wall. Actually glad I was able to build it the way I wanted.

Built the wall out of 2x6's to make it easier for the plumber to rough in the vent and drain lines.... (which may end up being me...). Sculpted the bottom plate to tuck the pump in close to the wall and bumped out a small section of the framing behind it. I will just have room for the door trim after the drywall crew covers everything up.

I'll build a removable access panel in the closet to protect and cover the pump after everything is installed. Big shiny piece of aluminum diamond plate in the sheet goods rack is calling out for attention.....

Putting in blocking for the sliding barn door on the office closet, towel bars, tp, sinks, etc. tomorrow.

More to come.

 

[Mr.zippy]

When the framing crew left after lunch on Friday there was one wall left.... 63" long interior wall, not load bearing.
My first thought was " Seriously? You would leave one little wall?"

I decided I would frame it myself today. It was a little complex to accommodate the macerator pump in the utility closet behind the bathroom. I knew I wanted to hide the macerator pump.and plumbing so I end up with a "normal" looking bathroom. Really don't like the look of a white plastic macerator pump chamber sitting behind the toilet with exposed piping running up the wall. Actually glad I was able to build it the way I wanted.

Built the wall out of 2x6's to make it easier for the plumber to rough in the vent and drain lines.... (which may end up being me...). Sculpted the bottom plate to tuck the pump in close to the wall and bumped out a small section of the framing behind it. I will just have room for the door trim after the drywall crew covers everything up.

I'll build a removable access panel in the closet to protect and cover the pump after everything is installed. Big shiny piece of aluminum diamond plate in the sheet goods rack is calling out for attention.....

Putting in blocking for the sliding barn door on the office closet, towel bars, tp, sinks, etc. tomorrow.

More to come.

Possibly some re-bar to reinforce it?

 

[Bob Heine]

No plans to move anytime soon.

Scott, my next home will be tiny, maybe a cylinder. Planning on having it installed underground so temperature will depend on my neighbors. Pretty sure it will be Florida-like but hotter and dryer than Arizona.

 

[larry4406]

I like your closet detail with generous access panel for the macerator pump. I don't have any experience with that style. All of ours are a submersible pump down in a crock which is set into the concrete floor.

 

[WoodsTruck]

Do you have any idea where the majority of your building materials originate from, as it doesn't appear they are locally sourced?

 

[inphx]

Can you share make model on the macerator pump? I am considering a toilet for a pickleball build at the compound and need to gain few feet elevation to make it down to septic..

 

[PugetDude]

Can you share make model on the macerator pump? I am considering a toilet for a pickleball build at the compound and need to gain few feet elevation to make it down to septic..

Sanibest pump
Saniflo SFA

It's the highest rated pump I could find. There are lots of cheap pumps on Amazon, but this wasn't something I wanted to take a chance on.

List is over $1000 ; I paid $600 for it online. PM me if you want additional details.

 

[PugetDude]

Do you have any idea where the majority of your building materials originate from, as it doesn't appear they are locally sourced?

Sheathing and trusses came from RK Lumber, a wholesale distributor. Since this is a relatively small project the framing lumber was hand selected at Lowe's each morning. You can't leave PNW sourced framing lumber on site for any length of time in this climate, it will twist and warp quickly. SYP with wide growth rings is a no go due to instabilty in our desert climate. Most of what they picked out at Lowes is from western mills and stamped KD Heat Treated so they have a fighting chance at straight walls if they get them framed up shortly after the bands are cut on the bundles.
The mills are cutting 2x4s and 2x6's out of pecker poles these days so it's kind of a crapshoot on 2x lumber no matter where you get it.

 

[inphx]

Also had a good experience with RK Lumber, i don't recall c grade slipped in and a truss confusion got a field engineered fix - they made it right.

 

[WoodsTruck]

I'm quite familiar with PNW green lumber. The mills are pretty specialized on what size logs they need to match the maximum output of their set dimensions though. Very few mills run a wide range of lumber output anymore.
Looking at the lumber in your pictures, there doesn't appear to be too much edge wane or oversize knots. The 2x6's have some decent growth ring panels so they can't be cut from anything too small. I'm still not a fan of edge knots though, I always hated bending nails.

 

[PugetDude]

Also had a good experience with RK Lumber, i don't recall c grade slipped in and a truss confusion got a field engineered fix - they made it right.

Contractor screwed up on the truss count. Rookie mistake, one of his guys forgot to include the starting truss-on each of the four sizes...so, four trusses short.
They discovered it at 9:00 AM, called RK in a mild panic and got a call back at noon that they could come pick up the four trusses. 3 hours later, all four were custom builds with parapet extensions.

Incredible customer service.

 

[inphx]

Contractor screwed up on the truss count. Rookie mistake, of his guys forgot to include the starting truss-on each of the four sizes...so, four trusses short.
They discovered it at 9:00 AM, called RK in a mild panic and got a call back at noon that they could come pick up the four trusses. 3 hours later, all four were custom builds with parapet extensions.

Incredible customer service.

I visited their truss manufacturing. They had projectors laying the pattern down on a giant work table. I think if spec/data entry is right the process is somewhat fool proof.... but i have seen some fools in my life.

 

[PugetDude]

I visited their truss manufacturing. They had projectors laying the pattern down on a giant work table. I think if spec/data entry is right the process is somewhat fool proof.... but i have seen some fools in my life.

I figured they probably had a CNC saw and a auto-set assembly table. Just pull up the relevant files, arrange the pieces on the table and stomp the tie plates in with a hydraulic press.
Either way, very impressive recovery.

 

[PugetDude]

I visited their truss manufacturing. They had projectors laying the pattern down on a giant work table. I think if spec/data entry is right the process is somewhat fool proof.... but i have seen some fools in my life.

If you’re ever down that way again, highly recommend the chicken fried steak at The Mesquite Grill, you pass it on the way in to RK'S truss plant.

 

[Mr.zippy]

Merry Christmas Scott! May all your dimensional lumber be true and straight!
Thanks for the updates, love this thread.

 

[zmotorsports]

Merry Christmas to you and your family Scott.

 

[Boosted1]

That garage addition is going to be really nice. Looking forward to your updates.
This thread has so much cool in it.

 

[zanyad]

Merry Christmas!