Lots of tractor time yesterday and Sunday!
Finished spreading base gravel under and around the barn. Then, had to bring power in power. 2 legs of 120 V, w/ 30 breakers. Always good to have 240 V in a barn. Now I started building in earnest. First, I found the DK45 has a loader reach of just shy of 9'. With the forks tilted up, I can make it to 9' easy enough, but never to 10'. I had originally planned on building the ceiling at 10' and the loft floor at 11', but since I'm building this by myself and the ROPS is 8' and the forks can only reach to 9', the ceiling is now lowered to 9'. No biggie. Gives more loft head height. See new drawing.
Yesterday, after nailing off the pressure-treated skirt boards around the base, I started w/ some of the beams. For you hydrostat nay-sayers, this is the greatest. You can *crawl* w/ a hydrostat to perfectly align and set timbers by yourself. I'm using 6x12 laminated timbers to support the roof. The gussets tying them to the posts are from 5/8 plywood. The 6x12's that support the loft are plywood "microlams". Only got 1 of those set before dark, and the last picture is pretty grainy. Oh, and I got a cheap framing nailgun from Harbor Freight -- big time saver. Enjoy the pics!
Electrical panel. The outlet is temporary, but that's where the breakers will stay.
For now, water (1" PVC) is stubbed next to a post, w/ a ball valve shutoff underground.