"I swear, Warden....I was Framed!!"..............

[Tina]

Okay, the hard part of the framing inside is done. Those 2x4's were purely exasperating trying to get them up without a helper. My arms were screaming murderly.

I am going to hafta to do the 2x2's between the 2x4's because of the length of the 2x4 run. As soon as I took down the support lifts the ceiling sank in the middle a bit. So, hopefully the 2x2's will stop that from happening.

I did some toe nailing and did angle brackets on one. And this wood splits easily. I like the angle brackets, my toe nailing is cumbersome even trying to pre-drill, and there is no spare money for one of those tools/kits to drill the holes.

It's always nice to have a day of no injuries, even minor. Not a drop of blood, No smushed hammer thumbs, didn't drop anything on my feet or my head....however....I did have a boo boo. One of the support lift boards fell and went right through the screen. I purposely opened windows in there....just in case because this very thing worried me. I have the tools to replace a screen, but windows are another issue.

oopsy....

What else did I get done...let's see...filled some little pinholes as I saw them. Took out some more rusted screws from the channeling. Cleaned up some more dried rot wood in the cabover, getting ready for that area tomorrow with a test on something.

I also got all of the old 3 layers of ceiling tile out from under the air conditioner frame. That stuff was screwed into that frame. That's up tight against the ceiling now. I'm not sure how I'm going to frame around that yet with the new ceiling being dropped a bit. I hope to come up with a brainstorm on it. I did make sure I put the cover on it inside and drew around it so I know where not to put any support framing that might get in the way.

All in all, a very accomplished day...and my aching neck and back say so. Well...they HOLLER so. LOL

Hope everyone enjoyed their day. :)

[Tina]

Thank you Ken.  I will definitely look into that in the morning after I do a thorough search of house/basement/barn and property for anything that might be useable.  Much better if it's free. LOL

I like the fast shipping for sure, and that ugly green isn't going to be seen anyway.  ;-)

[Ken and Cindy Haney]

Looking good Tina. You might think about a product called Uni-Strut. You can get it in different sizes and all sizes would be very ridged and already has slots manufactured into it. It will be a bit lighter than square tubing. They also make all kinds of brackets to go with them. McMaster Carr sells it on line and is very fast shipping. It comes in everything from stainless to galvanized to painted. Ugly green is the cheapest.

[Tina]

Okay, I'm searching like a good lil' student for piping. The dock piping is looking promising....something will get decided on and it's not a big deal to take anything down right now.

Thanks guys!

[Tina]

There is nothing that can't be undone at this point.  I like that metal tubing idea.  Is that expensive and where would I get it?  I did the 2x4's based on what my Dad and brother suggested that they had done with their previous restores, but in looking at what happens with that ceiling in the center, I no likey. The more I thought about it, the more I felt those 2x2's weren't going to help much.  So your comments were very timely and appreciated.   LOL

Narrow side up in the boards is going to take way too much head room away, so I don't want to do that.  

So, if I get the metal tubing, should I run that around the perimeter walls as well, or can I just attach the tubing to the 2x2's I put up there?

[Russell E Johnson]

You made some good headway today, Tina. Personally I would not have used 2x4s for the roof/ceiling supports. I would have gotten metal tubing, 1.5 square for that and screwed 2x2s to the tubing to attach the lauan. I am a feared that those boards are just going to sag and the roof will become a swimming pool for birds. Of course you could just build up the sides and turn the whole roof into a swimming pool for yourself when you are parked. LOL

Good luck, you are doing great.

[Lakota Wolf]

Looking good,,, but can I add my dollar three ninety eight?  You do know, 2x4's dont have structural strength layed flat? Hate to be a buzz kill, but a perfect example is look at a wooden fence with the boards (framing) layed wide side up,, the boards sag,, but narrow side up, they hold the structure.... Hope I didnt ruin your day....