Rugg Manufacturing - SRMW Kit 170

[vinceg]

Time to do the planking. Notice that the card says you should do the planking in the cubby area first ("Plank and test fit this section first" on the card). I want to do that, too, but I wanted to make sure that the planks didn't end up skewed  with respect to the building - especially in the bigger part of the deck that is closest to the view. So, I put in one long plank first to make sure it is square with the South Office and Warehouse (the closest buildings with the clerestories). Then, I'm planking my way into the cubby. Test fitting every couple of courses. If something is too big, I can flip the deck over and use a single edge razor blade to trim it down.



There are no guide lines to help you make sure the planking is square. So, I'm using the joist array to help with that as you can see in the picture. What you can't see is that I have a very heavy rectangular weight at the bottom of the picture helping me keep the deck registered to the paper template. Normally I would tack this down again but since I want to do frequent test fits, I'm not doing that.

BTW, to color the wood, I'm doing two different things: (1) Inkahol (2 tsp/pint) - multiple coats, and (2) black/brown chalk with clean alcohol wash. I'm using a lot less brown this time so that I get less of a zebra effect. (Look back several pages to the discussion on the back wall of the stucco building to see what I mean).

So, we're up to date. I'll be back when the planks are all in.

[vinceg]

Hi Vince:

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! so far. Love it.

Karl

Thanks, Karl. Gettin' close. Can almost taste it.....

Need to start thinking about the scenery part. I already have a frame set up where this dio will go. But, I am expecting that I will go back and put in a backdrop and perhaps rework the land forms. Might have an impact on this scene. Soon, I'll post a couple of pictures of what is going on there to see if I an solicit some help.

[postalkarl]

hey Vince:

I'll be watching.

Karl

[ACL1504]

Vince,

Very well done and documented. As far as the decking, isn't there a template/narrative on how high to cut the deck support posts? I see on the template where it shows stairs. Of course, if there is no support post template, it would still be an easy fix.

Tom

[vinceg]

Vince,

Very well done and documented. As far as the decking, isn't there a template/narrative on how high to cut the deck support posts? I see on the template where it shows stairs. Of course, if there is no support post template, it would still be an easy fix.

Tom

Thanks Tom,

Maybe I missed it, but the only thing I noticed in the instructions is that the example build has the deck up "on pebbles." I didn't find anything formal that described a repeatable process.

Since I wrote my previous note last night, I have discovered that the deck seems to be low by about 8" or so. I can easily raise the deck that amount by placing it on another set of 4"x8" beams (or fragments of them) set on edge. I'm considering whether I want to have the view under the deck open or blocked off. If open, then I need to put some dirt or gravel under there. Another option would be to have the supports stacked so that it looks like a cribbing sort of thing and the space under the deck would be invisible.

I'm continuing to play with this as I finish the planking. Quite a bit of work -- especially when you can only do a couple of courses at a time during short work breaks.

[vinceg]

Here's the finished Deck:



I experimented with a little gray chalk to represent wear at the door entries and at the top of the steps. I don't like the effect - the color isn't right....need to try something else. Maybe a little light sanding to bring out just a little more of the natural wood color. I will probably also try to put a little more chalk across the entire deck to tone down the color variation a little bit.

You can see that I rounded off the edges a bit where two plank ends butt up against each other. Without that, the individual planks were a little difficult to see unless there was a large color variation. I do think I like that effect. I think I overdid it at a few joints but like the effect overall.

Finally, I have a little more sanding to do to square a couple things off in key places - in particular, the short right edge at the bottom of the deck where the small set of steps (2 maybe?) will go.

[vinceg]

Here's the deck in place. Note that I have also temporarily put in some 4"x8" spacers underneath to prop the deck up. I think that level looks OK.



As I mentioned a couple of notes back, I have to decide how to do this permanently. I think that no matter what, there will be a little visibility under the deck. So, I'm thinking that the best bet will be to keep it simple -- using these 4x8s, for example, only more of them. I can glue them down to the base and then put dirt/gravel in between them. Then I won't have to worry about an uneven base making it difficult to site the deck (a problem I had in the past when putting short leg posts on decks first and then trying to glue them down on top of a base that already had dirt on it).

I'll sleep on it and figure something out tomorrow. In the meantime, I see that I still haven't touched up the ink wash on the board ends where they were cut. I'll clean that all up and report back.

[rpdylan]

You could what I do,,,,, I put weeds/foliage/ barrels/  junk in front of my decks! Cuts down on the visibility of areas! Great work, BTW!

[vinceg]

Great idea, Bob. I need a chance to try out my shiny new static grass maker, anyway. NNGC should be a good opportunity to buy some good junk.

[postalkarl]

Hey Vince:

Looking good so far.

Karl

[vinceg]

Thanks, Karl.

And, thank you for giving me the opportunity to make my 500th Post!

I don't think Modeler's Hero is appropriate -- maybe "Spends Too Much Time On The Forum Guy" works.....

[postalkarl]

Vince:

You are quite welcome. Enjoy your build.

Karl

[GPdemayo]

Congrats on #500 Vince.....and I really enjoy keeping an eye on all these great builds.....neat corrugated roofing. 

[vinceg]

Thanks, Gregory. And thanks for following along.

[Opa George]

Vince,
Deck looks great and the slightly rounded board ends here and there are a novel touch (and look really good). I particularly like your idea of gluing supports to the ground and applying dirt/ground cover around them to get a better fit to the ground. Don't know why I never thought of that, but that's the reason I follow the experts on this forum.