The Last Wall

 Ha ha! This photo came out upside-down! Well, anyways. I had tried once already to put a piece of paneling up around the last unfinished wall, the curved bathroom wall. But I cracked the first panel I tried to use because I just assumed that it was thin enough to be able to flex around the curve. That was sort of a good thing because I used it to finish the walls and nose compartment in the kitchen. That inspired me to build the cabinet cases, which have made my world a lot nicer and more organized.. but today was the day to finish the initial project: paneling the last wall! So this time I marked and pre-cut the piece to fit, including the hole for the hallway light, and trapped it in a curved position with weights for a day to give it the right shape.

 And then I wedged it into place with some boards and some brute force (what little I have), screwed it to the frame and cut out the openings for the bathroom vent and the loft bedroom foot steps.

 Nice smooth curve! No more catching my clothes on the exposed steel, no more bumping into the insulation and making it fall out...no more paneling to buy (which always means getting a ride to transport it). Trim, caulk, and paint and then it's done!

My friend Ken is coming to visit me tomorrow, and he has been with me through pretty much every phase of boobie-trap my house has been: from jagged edge to tiger pit...so I really want him to be impressed by all the progress I have made, despite bike vs car near death, bone vs waterfall set back, and drunken neighbor antics over the past year!

Fixing the running gear

My friend Randy came over today and, with great patience (seeing as I was pretty nervous at times !!) helped me jack and block my house up. It took 6 hours of work, at a weekend  pace, but none the less, what a generous thing to spend your Sunday doing. Thank you so much Randy! After we got the whole house jacked up, blocked and leveled  we disengaged the shackle mounts from the chassis, letting the axles hang free. They are only attached now via the brake wiring, supported by blocks.. I am glad I left some play in the wires.

 These bolts were not the right kind of hardened bolts needed for such a important job!!! And the shackle mounts need to be welded also, and in the right place!!! The two people who assembled the running gear in an afternoon ( as a surprise for me when I came home from work) really didn't do the best job. They drank beer and put it all together with the idea in mind to really give me a great surprise, and I had not the where-with-all to question anything, or weld the shackle mounts on in place. I guess I am glad that I didn't in the long run because they are not placed right. One of them is a full 1/2" off! Well, time to fix it now so I can move on with my life! Next step, to redesign and install the shackle mounts. Maybe I can make them taller so I won't need smaller tires after all. That would definitely be cheaper, but I would probably have to redesign the hearth inside to lower the wood stove and chimney pipe so it wouldn't be too tall. Problem solving as I go.

and the shackle mounts themselves off.

 The axles totally free.

Flames! Fire in the wood! Box elder cabinet Cases

I have been on a building spree. Fast gratification + cheap project to work on. All I needed was wood glue. Satisfying to get the rough sawn box elder out of the way by building with it. I will have enough to use it for the visible case panels for the upper kitchen cabinets, the bookcase/window seat/desk and the corner office cabinet on the opposite side of the bathroom wall. The rest of the case frames are made from recycled pallets, and the face frames and doors I will make out of cedar.

 Matching kitchen upper cabinets, screwed to the wall

 and then inserted the painting for the back.

 Screwed through the kitchen cabinet frame into the back of the bookcase, which wraps around the picture window.

Such beautiful wood.

 The frames have rabbit joints where the sides and back comes together.

  Pantry cabinet glued, nailed and clamped.

Pantry cabinet installed and with two coats of Danish oil.

Port side kitchen cabinets installed side by side.

Flames in the Sun!

Fire in the wood!

I can't believe the red in the wood.

Case with and with out painting back.

Sun shade and flames in the wood.

 Stick building a knee wall. Panel and case in the clamps, and then fitting the pieces into place.

The case is attached to the floor and the wall with L brackets,

 I just can't get over how beautiful this wood is once the finish is on. 

Light installed.