Victorian Cast Iron Railings reclaimed and refitted

After a year wrapped up in, hidden from the prying eyes of scrap gatherers, I final got round to fitting the railings. It’s involved a fair bit of learning, discovering how they where originally assembled and fitted. It’s not nearly as simple as fitting wrought iron railings with bolts etc.

Its been worth it, buying direct from the demolition site was a lot cheap than going to a reclamation yard or architecture antique dealers. Fitting it myself has got to have saved a small fortune over using a specialist, I don’t think many regular builders would have had the patience or skills to do a good job.

 The results make an amazing difference to the look of house. The neighbours are impressed and it gives me more of nudge to get cracking on with the rest of front of the house.

Full details of how I’ve fitted these can be seen here – Reclaimed Antique Cast Iron Railings

Please leave me a comment if this info is useful, your reclamation, restoration railings worked out differently or you have any suggestions.

 Thanks, Andy

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It’s an fantastically successful design. A 100 or 200 year  lifespan is proven.  Compared to around 20 years for uPVC windows, the timber sliding sash window is a winner. 

In these days of energy conservation the traditional Double Hung Sliding Sash is unsuitable as a replacement window.  Unfortunately the tradition design is unsuitable for fitting the double glazing units that regulations stipulate. 

Many companies now manufacture alternative designs, some good, some in my opinion, very bad.  It’s obviously a highly profitable market, with strong demand and high margins. 

A couple of years ago, I embarked on project to build my own double glazed sliding sash windows.  No suitable plans where available so (as a trained designer) I set about  researching the subject in great detail. 

This post relates to the my Synopsis of  sliding sash window history.  Read the article over on my website.  

An understanding of historical window designs to inform 21st century developments

I’ve analysed the construction details of the Box Sliding Sash. (Available soon.) This has allowed me to fully understand the tried and tested construction. It highlights where, in the light of modern developments, the design can be evolved.  I’ll be publishing construction details and plans for an evolved, traditional sash window shortly. 

The final part of project will be available as a set of plans, details and explanations for a 21st century fully evolved sliding sash windows.  Combining technology with craftsmanship, these windows can be built in a shed with a minimal investment in tooling. 

Any comments or thoughts or INTEREST ? Please give me you feedback below. 

Historial Influences on the Design of Sliding Sash Windows 

Prototype  Window Build Blog

A Friend from Ireland has spent about 700 hr’s of hard labour to win a £20 bet from me.  He had to build his fantasy wooden bike before I finished my trike.

An amazing amount of fantastic craftmanship and inginuity has gone in to the build. The result is stunning. 

You’ve seen it here first. Expect to see it featured elsewhere very soon!  

A proud but insane man

If only the engine was running, I’d have handed over the winnings.

Have a look here for more details  and pictures

If you want to know more about this wooden motorcycle project , just drop me a comment / response and I’ll see what I can do.

Have a look to see if it’s something you fancy tackling. I’ve included all the design and dimensions for making the door. Written and videoed the processes for a step by step, how to make a door guide.

Follow these plans for victorian style door and the ‘how to make a door guide’ to end up with a door like this.  

If it’s been a lack a available traditional style door plans that has put you off in the past, my appologies, now you have no excuse not to make you own door.  

Timber Exterior Door Design

DIY External Door Design and Proportions

Door Tenon Theory and cutting

Door Mortise Marking and Cutting

Timber Door Fox Wedging mortise and tenon joints

How to make the raised panels with basic router cutters

Router cutting custom timber mouldings, again with basic router bits

Please let me know in the comments if you know of better/easier ways of making a similar door. Or if I’ve not included enough detail.

A  new year and fresh resolve to get some jobs finished.  I’ve bought the timber for making my sliding sash windows and got pressed in to another job. 

Whilst I was getting a big order for timber together, the wife asked me about the front door I said I was going to make. So I added a few extra length to order and now I’ve got another job on the list.

Never mind, I’ll enjoy it when I’ve started.   The trouble is starting, I’ve spent hours trying to get my head around Sketchup and only managed a visual representation.

Sketchup of Front Door

After spending ages creating this I literally went back to the drawing board. Within half an hour I had got all the proportions right and all the dimensions for the timber sections.  Paper and pencil, a fantastic combination.

Link to the full details Timber Front Door design details. Includes- using the Golden Ratio to get the proportions right.

I have already built one sliding sash window as a working prototype. It’s been installed now for for over a year and I’m happy with the basic design. For more details of the prototype build please visit my Sliding Sash Blog.

The next step is to have a bit of re-think on some of the details and make five more for the rest of the house. At the same time I’ll be recording, photographing and possibly videoing how to make them.

The intention is to provide the resource I was looking for when I started out on designing and building sliding sash windows a couple of years ago.  I would have been quite happy to buy the plans at the time but could find any.  Details are available of traditional single glazed windows but double glazing means quite a re-think.

The cost of purchasing modern sliding sash windows from a manufacturer or skilled joiner is way out of my budget. I’m also not convinced that all the design details they incorporate are appropriate.  It seems to be a booming market at the moment and I think there are some poor designs being manufactured and sold for a lot of money.  I want  design that will work for many years, that looks right and doesn’t cost the earth.

This leaves me with the only alternative to design and make my own sash windows.  

I have spent hours and hours researching and testing various ideas to come up with a near perfect design.  I’m hoping it’s going to be worth it. For a start instead of paying around £1000+ per window I should be able to build my own for less than £300 each. On Six windows thats saving me more than £4200. Certainly more than enough to pay for the extra woodworking tools I’ve had to buy.

On top of this I intend to sell the plans as a e-book to those who appreciate the effort I’ve put in and fancy benefiting from the time I’ve spent. 

When I’ve finished this batch I will have the plans, construction details and methods completed.  These will be formatted as a step by step guide to building your own Double Glazed Sliding Sash Windows. 

I’ll also but some articles together that covers the subject of sliding sash windows, double glazing in timber and the rational behind the design that I’ve put together.

Draughty door

I’ve draught proofed our problem front door. I had tried in the past without much success due to a wonky door, frame and floor.  After putting my mind to it, I came up with an easy and cheap way of draught proofing.

It might not be for everyone, some simple wood work  is required along with access to a router.

Have a look at details HOW I DRAUGHT PROOFED MY DOOR on the cheap

The kind of questions covered:

• What timber / wood to buy?
• What is Redwood?
• What is White wood?
• What grade of timber to buy?
• What do timber grades mean?
• What is rough saw, PSE, PAR?
• What Timber sizes are available?
• What to look for when buying timber?
• Where is the best place to buy timber?

When you’ve got your wood you don’t want to dive straight in and make something. The timber needs preparing and acclimatising properly. This is another area that doesn’t seem to be covered in an easily available format so I’ve covered the basics:

• Preparing timber for final seasoning and acclimatising
• Acclimatising timber and How Long for?

The final stages gets the timber flat, straight square and true using a bench / table saw or band saw and planer – thicknesser.

• Cutting and planing timber to final sizes
• Cutting and planing warped and distorted timber
• Planing twisted, winding, bowed, springing and diamond timber

I hope you find this guide useful -

 < Beginners Guide to Buying and Preparing Timber>

Please use the responses / comments below to let me know how the guide works for you, suggest additions, corrections or criticisms.

Thanks

Andy

We’ve had an idea for a Trike for a few  many years now. A friend has bet me £20 he will finish a wooden bike before I’ve got the Trike done. So now the race is on.

The Trike is unusual as it’s bike based but will carry 3 passengers. It’s also going to have suspension!

Here’s a quick look at how my working  wooden model of the Trike suspension works. Bungee and beer can shocks. Hee Hee.

Thanks Dave for the rough road simulation.

With my friend concentrating on “Safety First” I think I’ve got a good chance.

Wooden Skid Lid

I plan to put more details up, let me know if you want to know more. I need some encouragement.

I’ve finished building a staircase up to loft conversion in a style to match the existing stairs and banister rail. The original Victorian stairs are, I think, Canadian red wood. It’s been stained dark and varnished many years ago.

Victorian Stair newel and spindels dark wood finish

Replica Victorian Newel and spindles, bare wood

 The grain on the original is really well defined with contrasting deep amber against almost black.

To get this same coloring on modern yellow timber is something that DIY sheds don’t cater for. If you use common products straight from the tin the results will be bland areas of patchy color.

 Now I’m going to put you off the modern products that the regular DIY outlets sell. The varnish you commonly find is advertised as “Quick Drying”. It’s acrylic based, it does dry quickly but isn’t particularly hard wearing, with little resistance to moisture. For a quick tarting up job it’s fine but I want a finish that will last. It’s available in various colors but using it to get a consistent finish that the beauty of the wood can shine through is a nightmare. It doesn’t flow as the drying process starts so fast, brush strokes are almost impossible to eliminate and you can’t keep a “wet edge” on anything but a really small job. Without a “wet edge” you end up effectively adding a second coat to parts of the job and so you get an ugly patchiness.

 That’s my opinion anyway, please free to comment and disagree if your experience is different.

The Varnish you need to find is “Polyurethane”. It’s the stuff that can up to 24hr to dry, this means its workable for longer so you can get an even finish. The brush strokes can also disappear as is flows into an even finish after it’s applied. The down side is, it can run if it applied too thick. The trick is: Thin coats well brushed out.

I had to find polyurethane varnish/stain on-line as it’s not available in my local shops. I found “Rustins” is widely available, the supplier I found was www.Tools-Paint.com

The other product I’m using is Wood Dye (This did confuse me a few years because when I was lad it was called Stain. Stain is what they now call colored varnish). This stuff is a thin colored liquid that soaks in to the wood, unlike varnish that sits on the surface. There’s good and bad versions of this about. I think cheaper versions have the color more as a solid in suspension that doesn’t soak in properly. The dye I’ve used is from Wickes and has Napilia as the solvent.

The Method

1. Prep the wood. It has to be bare wood and well sanded and clean. Take some time over the prep, make sure all traces of glue are removed from the surface.

2. Apply the wood dye. I use a brush to cover the surface and get in to the nooks and crannies

   

   Dark Oak Wood Dye on yellow softwood

3. After about 5 minutes letting the dye soak in, wipe off any excess with a cloth. ( The dye soaks in to grain of the wood, the more open the cell structure the darker it gets. The dense part of the grain takes very little of the dye, so the contrast is enhanced.) Lookin Good! The “Dark Oak” stain is almost black at its darkest but still nearly yellow on other parts of the grain.

4. Open the windows up and come down from the solvent based high…. Joking – make sure you’ve got good ventilation coz it’s powerful stuff.

5. When fully dry. Apply the varnish. I’ve used Mahogany colored, to give a rich amber colour to the lighter parts of the grain.

   

   Newel part Dyed part Dyed and varnish Stained

6. Finish off with a couple of coats of clear polyurethane varnish, not forgetting a light rub down with wire wool between coats.

 This is how I’ve achieved the result I wanted, after some testing. Addition coats of dye and or stain would modify the results.

 It’s a lengthy process but the results are spectacular and long lasting.

 I hope you find this technique useful. Let me know how you get on.

If You want to comment on environmental issues to the product I’ve used, PLEASE DO.