teaky

Nice strong boxes there Plasicbasher. Just one comment if I may. I bought an unboxed loco (a blue Hornby A4 coincidentally) off ebay which came well wrapped. I regret leaving it in the bubble wrap though as it now looks like it has been attacked by an octopus. I think it is going to be difficult to rectify the damaged paintwork. This specific aspect of storing stock has been covered elsewhere and after several recommendations of acid-free paper I was heading down that route until someone suggested pieces of well washed cotton sheets. That is what I intend to use once my round tuit arrives.

Not much to report today. They finished the odds and ends on the rafters, spent time doing some careful measuring and putting in some temporary bits of timber to facilitate instalation of the steel beams. Whilst it would have been nice to see more visible progress I'd prefer the steel beam instalation to go smoothly so that's OK with me.

I appreciate this post doesn't qualify for the " Things that make you " description but Manna's amusing question caused me to realise I didn't actually know how the Romans did multiplication. This struck me as a nice clear explanation.

Especially when you can't be certain which character is the multiply symbol.

Rain stops play. Both steel beams have been delivered and are now sitting up on the scaffolding. It is too wet to open up the roof to haul them inside so the builders have now left. With luck things will be dry enough tomorrow to get crackgoing again. Edit: To change a word and not tempt fate!

No. If they do that then the BCO will probably want to inspect them which would mean I'd need structural calcs. and probably end up with huge steel beams supporting them after he misunderstood what I meant when I said they needed to support 1930s mainline steam locomotives.

The excitement (or is it fear?) is tangible this morning as three builders and three scaffolders await the delivery of some large pieces of steel. They are adding to and adjusting the scaffolding arrangements and setting up the Genie lift as I write.

Well they almost made it. Just two rafters to go (or is that two halves of one rafter?). Oh, plus the bad news I will have to break to them tomorrow morning that two of the existing rafters are in the wrong place. I asked for them to put the new rafters on the outside of the existing ones at the point where the front gable roof meets the main roof. This is to avoid narrowing the gap too much where I will be putting an access door/hatch. So instead of a 560mm gap I currently have a 410mm gap. After taking a second look after writing the above, I may have to compromise on moving only one rafter and having a 485mm gap in order to avoid a clash with a window on the opposite face of the roof. Anyway, I'll see what they say tomorrow. Access is important but won't be used frequently. I managed to take a couple of photos, more for the record than anything but they give a good idea of the relative dimensions of the old and new rafters.

I don't know if it will answer your question John but have you looked at Edwardian's Castle Aching thread? He has used some perspective modelling on there.

I agree, but I'm a little concerned about that the water might be leaking out onto your windowsill from the top left.

Yes, I know Paul, but in the cause of a little humour ...

WTF

Fear not, they can use the cabinet just along the road.

Not as smart as the Zeller one above but I cobbled something together using the Direct Trains Spares rollers, a couple of connectors for power and some leftover pieces of track and MDF.

Perfect coordination first thing this morning. I was just unlocking the gate and moving my wife's car when I heard the delivery lorry reversing down the road (we live at the end of a cul-de-sac) and just as he reached the drive, the first builder turned up. The builders have installed about three quarters of the new rafters on one side. Given that getting the angles of the cuts right on the first one takes a little care and that there are a couple of awkward ones on that side, it suggests to me that they are in with a good chance of finishing the rafters tomorrow. I might take some photos later or wait until tomorrow.

It was an exchange of emails with Chris P Bacon that prompted me to discuss the padstones with the structural engineer. The original calculations specified the more common concrete ones but they would have intruded into the first floor bedrooms by 150mm or more and getting them into place without damaging the bedroom walls would have been challenging to say the least. The steel padstones specified were 10mm thick but there was a small mix up with the ordering at the steel fabricators and when the builder went to check yesterday he opted for 15mm padstones using some otherwise identical material the fabricators had in stock. I reckon I can afford to loose the extra 5mm. The steel padstones are longer (wider left to right when looking at them in situ) so the load is spread across more of the supporting blocks than with concrete ones.

Well, I completely ignored Chris P Bacon's advice and ventured into the loft. No tears were shed. A lot tidier than I expected. Apart from four holes in the inner block work of course. Despite my poor photography you can see the steel 'padstone' at the bottom on which the steel beam will rest. I also couldn't resist climbing up the ladder outside and walking around the house at gutter level. Quite interesting. I'll have to pop up there later in the week and pay more attention to the views. It gives an idea of what the view will be like once the windows are in. Clearing out the gutters this year will be a piece of cake.

Not much so far. I think it is helping that the builders went in directly through the roof and the loft hatch has remained shut. No doubt there's plenty of dust in the loft itself where they have been cutting holes but it is contained. I'll check what they've done once they finish for the day and see how much debris has been left.

All go here, I'm pleased to say. Three builders and scaffolding team were all here by 08:30. My guess is that the scaffolders will have their work completed by lunchtime. The builders have already made a hole in the roof so they can get themselves and their gear in. I have to confess there's something slightly disconcerting about standing upstairs and hearing someone sawing above your head. I couldn't help but be reminded of one of those Roadrunner cartoons. They have now started to cut channels for the steel 'padstones' to be inserted into. Imagine going to the dentist for a filling and finding he's plugged his drill into an amplifier and you should get an idea of the noise. This is probably the noisiest part of the whole job. It's quite exciting to have things get underway properly.

I think you've over done the camber on that second one.

I lived to tell the tale. I filled a huge plastic sack with most of the debris and took it outside, and was just vacuuming the last of dust from the edge of the carpet when she walked through the door. Phew! Brownie points balance unaffected. Since it is now after 16:00 here and that is the traditional time for workmen to down tools I'm going to quit whilst I'm ahead.

Hmmm, well er thank you for your helpful advice chaps.

I need your advice please. How many brownie points will I need to cash in for this? My wife is out and I thought I'd make a start on what will be the bottom of the stairs to the loft. Do you think she'll notice anything when she gets back?

I warned you! The scaffolder hasn't returned today, so I expect he'll be back on Monday to finish. There may also be a few adjustments to the first photo because the builder will be putting his Genie lift somewhere near this corner in order to get the steel beams up.

What is scary is that the cost of large timbers means that any little off cuts (triangular pieces from the ends of rafters for example) can actually be costed in £s. Hmmm, I wonder if I should make something out of them?