The Hall of the Mountain King Restrat

[Thomas Wilson]

Thomas:

....
Quick question - how did you attach/support the horizontal members in your wood rack to the large wood columns? It looks like it's carrying a huge amount of weight, and doing it well.

I used solid 2x6 on the sides and cut 2x6 pieces between the 2x6 cantilevered beams. It is bolted it all together with 4 carriage bolts per joint to form a mortise and tenon joint. The horizontal beams have 1/2 shoulders to resist the torque. It was cut very precisely and the beams were very level unloaded. I should check again now that it has the lumber loaded. I used the same design in my previous shop. It held the same wood for a very long time.

[Bob Betker]

That workshop is absolutely magnificent looking. You should be very proud and happy with it.

[Thomas Wilson]

That workshop is absolutely magnificent looking. You should be very proud and happy with it.

Thanks Bob. I walk about 6 inches above the ground when I go in.

Yesterday, my two granddaughters built a wooden box with me. Really special. Plus their moms, my daughters, got some rest time. We are all at the lake house which is near the shop and it was raining.

[Thomas Wilson]

Some big milestones have been reached this past week so I thought I should update this thread. The biggest milestone dollar-wise is paving the driveway. The gravel driveway was washing into the street which I thought was unneighborly so paving has fixed that. For those curious about current prices for paving, I paid about $2.80/sq ft for regrading the existing gravel driveway, additional stone, compaction and paving in the hills of East Tennessee.

Here is the driveway smooth and compact, ready for asphalt. This was end of the first day.
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Here are a shot of paving. They used the paving machine like a box for smoothing the original gravel and for laying down the new gravel. Versatile machine for a small operator.
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A few shots of the driveway. They almost finished paving on the second day, about 10 ft short (out of 1000’ of driveway).
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I give up on getting rotation right. On my end, every shot is correct orientation. For SMC, I rotate every shot 180, save, and the rotate another 180 and save all using the Apple Photo app. If I correctly select the spun version, the orientation on SMC is correct. If I select the original, it is 90 degrees counter clockwise. Only problem, in my photos, both versions look the same. The Info on the photos does not give a clue for last modification. So turn your head sideways for that third photo.

[Tom M King]

Looks great. I gave up on getting photos oriented correctly here too.

[Thomas Wilson]

The second big accomplishment was the garage door. I had to finish the dust collector ductwork and the contractor had to finish sheetrock and painting and trim. And, the door had to be ordered and manufactured before it could be installed. Each of those steps took many months. Now I will be able to back the truck in the garage to unload. This is huge because when I unloaded from the steep driveway, the load wanted to unload itself. Now unloading will be safer and easier, and a cart or trailer hitch crane can be used so I won’t have to lift and carry.

The door is an Amara Designer Choice 3200. It is 8’ x 10’. The size is necessary if I want to store a ski boat in the basement. The insulation value is R-19.
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The door finish is a durable Sherwin Williams acrylic latex, but I will repaint it with the Benjamin Moore trim color used on the rest of the house. I will use a chemical deglosser to prepare for painting because of the embossed surface. Regardless, I will have voided the warranty on the door’s finish.
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The opener is a Linear Door LDCO801. It is belt driven. The door’s counterbalance spring is torsional.
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[Thomas Wilson]

The basement of the shop is mostly finished now. The contractor’s trim carpenter finished the stairs recently. They look good. By my measurement, the handrails are only 32” above the nose of the stair (should be 34” to 38”). We shall see if the inspector notices.

Here are some shots of stairs and room.
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[Kyle Stiefel]

Amazing place!

[Jim Becker]

Looking great Thomas!!

[Thomas Wilson]

Thanks guys. I can hardly believe it is almost finished.

[Jim Becker]

Um...it's NEVER "finished"...

[Thomas Wilson]

It almost has its certificate of occupancy. But yes, the list is long.

[John K Jordan]

It almost has its certificate of occupancy. But yes, the list is long.

OK, I really need to pencil in a date for a visit, still overbooked. maybe this winter if we have a rainy season?

[Thomas Wilson]

OK, I really need to pencil in a date for a visit, still overbooked. maybe this winter if we have a rainy season?

It would be great to see you anytime. I think we can count on rain.

Edited to add: If anyone in the East Tennessee neighborhood wants to drop by, let me know. We can have a party.

[Ron Selzer]

very nice place. that driveway will be much better now, can't wash out. any snow will melt off quickly
Ron