Chickens, and things related

[TBDonnelly]

bmac,

I've been following along on your chicken coop project and it is looking just great!!! You should be very proud.

Pretty soon you'll have your own chicken ranch!

When you first embarked on this project I mentioned a weathervane.
Well....here's a prototype I came up with.

Don

PS: It's sort of the precursor to the chicken weathervane.

 

[bmac]

Don,

You better patent that design soon or I'm going to steal your idea. That's great!

Thanks for the kind words. I'll be glad when this project is over. I never imagined it would take me so long to build a 10'x12' building. Kind of sad, actually. Most of you folks would have had this done in a weekend.

 

[tony123]

You're right bmac, I'd have had it done in a weekend. It would have had gaps, duck tape, missing pieces, nothing square, etc. Don't sweat the time its taking. I envy the patience you have to learn and do it the right way.

 

[bmac]

You're right bmac, I'd have had it done in a weekend. It would have had gaps, duck tape, missing pieces, nothing square, etc. Don't sweat the time its taking. I envy the patience you have to learn and do it the right way.

Tony,

Trust me when I tell you that I have gaps, missing pieces (as well as extra pieces), mismeasurements and out-of square issues. Although I haven't resorted to duct tape yet, it could eventually come to that. You may have noticed that all of my photos are from a distance. There's a reason for that.

I'll try to take some pictures of the "warts" before they get covered up.

Thanks for the kind words, though.

 

[EddieWalker]

bmac,

There is a very real reason for the term "rough framing." It's not finish work and it's not meant to be viewed as the finished product. As the builder, you see and know about flaws and imperfections that will have no bearing on the integrity of the building. It's why an ugly 2x4 is perfectly fine for framing with, since it will never be seen. As the builder, you have to realize that every home, barn, shed and anything else built has imperfections in it. It starts with the lumber and fastners, and is part of the process. Your job is to finish it off so it looks nice on the outside after making it strong and secure on the inside. This you have done, and have done well.

Eddie

 

[Tororider]

I second what Eddie had to say.

 

[bmac]

Eddie and Toro,

You guys are just too nice. Thanks for the encourgement. I still wish it were done, though.

Not much accomplished today. Front door and 1 rear window hung - then the rain came.

Good news is my somewhat belated birthday present - a table saw. Wish I'd gotten it when I started this thing - but better late than never.

It seems to be set up well right out of the box. Rip fence is nice and square and the blade seems to be trued properly. Haven't made a test cut yet, but to the eye looks like few, if any, adjustments will be needed.

 

[Tororider]

Heres some pics of the new chicks

 

[bmac]

Tororider,

The new chicks look great. I don't recall reading what breed you have there.

Here at the ol' chicken coop factory, we had a good day, despite the heat. As usual, we didn't accomplish what I had hoped - but we never do so no surprise there.

First thing this AM, I had to make a couple of additions to the nest box and then my wife put some primer on the areas that will be exposed to the elements. While she was painting, I had to make yet another trip to Home Depot. Boy, those trips for materials not only take a consioderable chunk of time but also interupts the momentum. By the time I got home, everyone was ready for lunch.

By the end of the day, we had the remaining 3 windows and the back door hung and I also set the nest box in place. I still have to cover the exterior of the nest box in T1-11 and make a lid for it. For right now, I've just covered the top of the nest box with plastic.

Tomorrow, I hope to have the interior trim work done on the windows and the roosting boxes made. Once that is done, I'll get back to the exterior of the nest box.

Here are some photos of the exterior - front, nest box side and rear.

 

[bmac]

Here's the nest box from the inside. The plastic you see at the top is just temporary and the 2x2 perch has not been cut to length nor attached.