Day three Rained out :-(

Well as it turns out it was a good thing we stopped for lunch because two hours later we had some good wind and tornado warnings, it would not have been good to have the trusses half done with that wind. To bad to have a crane like this just waiting thou.

Jan feeds us well :)She has always been to good to me.

Brother Bob and Dad, scatching his head with all those angles :)Looking good Bob

Myself,Ron, and Nephew kyle finishing the last part of the wall, and josh supplying material from the ground.

Jan's great rolls !!!

Final wall framing before the trusses.

Steve is getting a great start on the coupala!! I have always liked these on buildings and now was my chance to have one.

Well it looks like it is time for a nap,we finished all of the framing and are ready to set trusses. Then the rain came and doesn't look like it is going to stop anytime soon. Jan fixed us all some terrific cinnamon rolls for break time and another great lunch. Looks like I will have to get some inside work done this afternoon.

Day Two Taking Shape

Posts all set

Jan still smiling :-)

Brother Steve was helping to get the posts ready to set in the holes. We had to change the tops some to set the rafters in the middle of the post.

Ben was sizing things up:-)

Josh, Ben, Doug, Kyle, Ron

Dad, Bob and I

I may be getting too old for this kind of fun, but not too old to think it can't be done.

Another day of hard labor filling the holes back in that we worked so hard to dig out.

I have been talking about and dreaming of having a barn forever and I am always talking about the old barns out in the countryside. My family has looked at so many of these old buildings. Building the barn was actually Jan's idea, and it seemed like a good summer to do it, and help get everything organized under one roof.

The barn is taking shape today giving some perspective to the size it will be, overall it will be 26' to the peak. Added two new guys today, my brother Steve was able to come this morning and help with some of the posts and should be back tomorrow, and my Dad came to supervise and help with some of the side framing. Started framing a 4'x4' coupala that will add an additional 4' to the height of the building, bring it to a total of 30' tall.

Again today Jan made us a terrific lunch of ham, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, and root beer floats for afternoon break. Thanks Jan!

DAY ONE - HARD LABOR

This is what we have to show for 7 people x an average of 5 hrs.

20 HOLES 4FT. DEEP 16" WIDE THRU ROCK AND CLAY (VERY SIMILAR TO CONCRETE )

More machinery today with my Father-in-laws big John Deere tractor and A neighbor and friends power auger on the skidder.

LOTS OF GREAT HELP THANKS TO BROTHER IN LAW RON AND HIS TWO SONS JOSH AND KYLE,
SON BEN, BROTHER BOB, AND GOOD FRIEND TOM.
MANY THANKS TO JAN FOR KEEPING OUR ENERGY LEVELS UP WITH THE GREAT FOOD ALL DAY.

Sure Wish my new son-in-law was here so I could put him to the test and watch him sweat a little:)The new couple moved to Wyoming three weeks ago.
Its funny how their new home looks great and when they lived here it was hard to see the floor in their area:)

Heavy Machinery

More heavy machinery moving in, a person really just doesn't realize how many friends and resources they have accessible to them until the time comes and everything starts to come together. It will be hard to thank everyone enough.

Utilities are roughed in

100 AMP POWER FOR POLISHING THE CRUISER,WATER FOR WASHING THE CRUISER AND GAS FOR KEEPING HER WARM IN THE WINTER(SOMETIMES).

What a day,This was one of the biggest jobs I was not looking forward to doing, it is great to have the worst of it done. My Dad was here most of the day, it was great to have his help and company.
175' OF TRENCH 2FT. DEEP THROUGH ROCK AND CLAY AND TREE ROOTS. It went so much better thanks to my brother in law Ron's big John Deere skidder. This machine is just a tank, it would pick up the Cuiser with out a problem, thanks Ron.

Tomorrow I pick up a crane to lift all of the trusses into place. Then Monday Ron and my brothers will be coming over and the real fun begins:-)

Posts and Trusses are here

Posts and trusses arrived this week, I ordered the roof steel after the trusses arrived because the steel can be ordered to the correct length, I had to wait for the trusses so I could measure the the top cord and get that length correct. When the walls are up I will order that steel to the right length, it will save a lot of cutting and waste. If all goes well I will get a couple of posts in the ground today.When done the barn will be 24' by 40' with 14' sidewalls and a second floor for storing extra airstream parts.I am also leaving room on both sides for the additions later. With the bigger trusses the barn will be about 25' tall, should be enough room for the cruiser and maybe a friend to keep her company:-)
Jan's gardens are looking very good this year,I think they have gotten just enough rain. she has the yard looking like a park. We also did a little extra tree trimming in front of the barn.

The Cruisers new Barn starts

Now that Ellie and Isaac are married and starting their new adventures and the county fair is done we can get going with the airstream new barn/shop. To start, it will be 24'x40' with a second floor for parts storage. We are setting it up so we can add on to both sides if needed.

As soon as I got home from the fair and unpacked, I got to work clearing the brush and trees from the new spot. I hate cutting down trees no matter what kind they are. I had to take out 8- 50' tall trees that were under the barn or going to be leaning over it. We will get a lot of firewood from the trees anyway, plus a fair amount of cherry lumber.

On our way to the fair we spotted a barn close to the style we will be building. It was nice to look at and has full length windows just under the eaves on the south side that really light up the inside.