Moving Inside

The dark spots are thin layers of ice from outside storage.

Today, the interior started.  It was 16 degrees outside when the work began, a temperature that undermines the longevity of the trustee battery saw, so I reserved the saw use to 45 degree angle cuts and used a hand saw for the right angles.

The first step was to make sure the necessary nailers were in place, and for the first time, I used a new 2 X 4 on the building.  This felt a little sacrilegious even though it would be fully encased and invisible, but it was available wood and so I went for it.  16 degree weather also helps prioritize convenience.  The photos depict the work completed in four hours. The good news is that the timbers will still be exposed, but this also creates a ton of extra cuts to work around the angle bracing.

I also made a few decorative pieces for the one exterior wall that has some uninterrupted mass.  Originally, the wood used to make these was going to be for a piece of furniture.  I thought it was walnut, but as I milled it from its original three by seven stock, it quickly became apparent that it was heart pine impregnated with creosote.  Again, this piece came from the train station and was milled in the 1890's, so it had been sitting, absorbing the creosote all the way through its girth for 123 years.  Creosote is nasty stuff; clearly the furniture option was out, so I quickly banged out some shapes to break up the wall.

All in all, a good start to what will be a lengthy process.  The wood interior will be nice for creating tool storage inside the barn.  I'll need to think carefully about interior layout to maximize the small space.