Notre Dame roof reconstruction

[Kevin Jenness]

My son Miles is in Normandy until August working on a crew fabricating trusses and other elements for the nave and choir of the cathedral. He is one of a half dozen American timber framers working on the project, which is being undertaken by two French companies https://www.remy-desmonts.com/ and http://ateliersperrault.com/ I believe there are 66 principal and secondary trusses 42 ft wide to be built for the nave and choir by Remy Desmonts, Miles' employer.

There is a large stock of oak logs 39 to 45 ft long and around 18" diameter at the small end to work with, all sourced in France. Apparently the working drawings are complex (and in progress) as each truss is slightly different due to vagaries in the wall layout. I believe the logs are to be sawn on two sides and hewn on the remaining two. The work will be done with a mix of power and hand tools.

I hope to be able to post some photos as the project progresses, but am not sure what the protocol will be. As well, my wife and I hope to visit in the spring - the opportunity is hard to pass up.

[derek labian]

How exciting, for timber framing, that's like the Superbowl.

I hope to be able to post some photos as the project progresses, but am not sure what the protocol will be.

Looking forward to seeing it.

[Tom M King]

Thanks for posting that!!

[Joe Calhoon]

That’s exciting for your son Kevin! Thanks for posting.

[Michael Drew]

I watched a documentary on this reconstruction project not too long ago. It was amazing to see the amount of work they are doing. They went through the process of sourcing timber for the trusses too. There was months of haz waste clean up performed, temporary roof construction, scaffold, etc. I can't seem to find the link for the video, but it was on YouTube. Definitely worth watching.

[John TenEyck]

I saw the documentary, too. Amazing what they've done just to get to this point. So how did your son land that job, Kevin? He must have some real cred. to have landed a job for that project. If you've never been to Paris I can think of no better reason to go. I look forward to updates along the way. Thanks.

John

[Mark Hennebury]

Once in a lifetime opportunity for your son! You must be quite proud. thanks for posting and I look forward to the updates.

[Kevin Jenness]

So how did your son land that job, Kevin?

He has worked on several projects with a group called Carpenters Without Frontiers https://www.charpentiers-sans-frontieres.com/, and I imagine he got into that through the Timber Framers Guild. On the first one in Maine a group of 20 or so French and American craftsmen started with a load of logs and built a blacksmith's shop frame in a week using only hand tools. One of the Frenchmen, Loic, came for a visit afterward, and as it turns out is a principal in Remy Desmonts. I'm not sure how the Americans on the project were chosen but I do know that they all have experience in historic preservation, which is the main focus of Miles' work. He has a crew of three working here so he will be quite busy between overseeing their projects and working his day job in France. Some of his work can be seen on Instagram under vtheavytimber.

[brent stanley]

He has worked on several projects with a group called Carpenters Without Frontiers https://www.charpentiers-sans-frontieres.com/, and I imagine he got into that through the Timber Framers Guild. On the first one in Maine a group of 20 or so French and American craftsmen started with a load of logs and built a blacksmith's shop frame in a week using only hand tools. One of the Frenchmen, Loic, came for a visit afterward, and as it turns out is a principal in Remy Desmonts. I'm not sure how the Americans on the project were chosen but I do know that they all have experience in historic preservation, which is the main focus of Miles' work. He has a crew of three working here so he will be quite busy between overseeing their projects and working his day job in France. Some of his work can be seen on Instagram under vtheavytimber.

Very cool, and a great experience. Timberframing is one of the things I do for a living so this has been a really heartwarming experience to see such a collaborative, international process to repair an amazing piece of history. I've been to Paris a few times, but never managed to see ND up close.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

That is pretty cool! Good on your son!

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Wow! looking forward to pictures. Any chance Dad will get to go over?

[Kevin Jenness]

Here's a Nova /PBS program on the overall restoration project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4_a-3FO8Fw

[Erik Loza]

Kevin, that is an awesome story. Thanks for sharing. My wife and I were in Paris in 2013 and happened to wander by the Notre Dame while some sort of interactive event with fire dancers (ironic?) was going on. Great memories and I’m looking forward to following this story.

Erik

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[Kevin Jenness]

One interesting aspect of the work is the use of the "scribe rule" as opposed to the "square rule" typically used in modern timber framing in this country. Square rule is mainly measurement based and rests on the idea that there is an ideal square timber inside each actual workpiece to reference the joinery and joints are laid out largely with a steel square. Scribe rule is adapted to irregular timbers and relies on actually stacking up related parts and transferring dimensions using plumb bobs, levels, scribes and so forth. They each seem to have strengths in different situations.

I'm not a timber framer so perhaps someone who is will offer a better description. In my cabinet and furniture work I almost always work with milled material. On the rare occasions when rough or organic shapes are part of the design I usually devise some sort of cradle to allow for machining joinery, but the scribe rule offers a different approach for someone using that sort of material on a smaller scale than a cathedral.

Here's a description with some photos of the scribe rule process.https://www.jrosecarpentry.co.uk/aofscribe-rule.php

A brief discussion of the two systems:

• Are the majority of Europeans still using the scribe rule? What was their reaction to square rule framing?
  
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  • vtheavytimber
    
    @huckleberryhillfarmvt They are. They thought it was interesting, and could see the upsides of it, but it wouldn’t work with how they build there. With square rule you have to do a really nice job hewing, or saw the timbers so as to have straight, planar reference faces. With what they do, the hewing needs to be much less accurate. I’m not saying their hewing isn’t very very good, but scribe rule doesn’t need square timbers, so they don’t have to mess with making sure the timber sits perfectly while it is hewn, and they don’t have to worry as much about spring in the wood. They also work with less of an absolute fascination of rectilinear shapes as we do. The curve is embraced. I think if one was to just use hewn timber, scribe would easier. Once you go to sawn timber, you might as well use square rule. <— This may cause some argument!
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    meulienbenoit
    
    @huckleberryhillfarmvt as a french timber framer , i don’t think we have to oppose scribe and square rule. None is better but each one is adapted to the architecture of the country and also the size of the beams. Square rule will be faster for american timber frame with mostly posts beams and braves but if you build european half-timbered houses or complexes trusses scribe is the way. I use the best of both world because each one has pros and cons. Each time i see scribe rule by americans it’s mostly for curved braces. Take a look at french « charpente traditionnelle » or uk’s Green oak timber frame and you will see that square rule is almost impossible to use or just for some parts of the frame. I hope my english is good enough. « Carpenters without borders » is perfect for sharing techniques.
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[Mark Hennebury]

Interesting to see the differences and makes sense, reminds me a little of doing interior boatwork and plotting everything with plumbobs and squares all off of a single stringline from stem to stern.