Roof is currently being tiled, in the next couple of weeks I want to build a pair of softwood ?garage? doors.
Height is 2085 (82?) and width 3302 (130?) for the pair ..~ 1650 each
Been getting my original thoughts together ? as per this sketch:
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an outer frame which is rebated to take a tongue & groove ?infill?, I would make my own t&g using full length loose tongue splines, all well glued to each other, and into outer frame. I would horizontal brace (on inside) at hinge handing points, and fit a diagonal strut between the braces for racking strength ? as per this pic:
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initial thoughts on sizes of timber to use, and how to do it are in the drawing
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interested in views on sizes of timbers, in particular the top/ bottom rails and the side stiles, joints etc.
Also not sure if cross brace should strut against horizontal support & verticals as shown, or horizontal only as I have seen in some carpentry books. See:
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no real idea yet on how to joint in the horizontal braces ... seen dowels suggested in one book, other option I suppose could be a half lap joint ?
What you have planned is nice. All your joints should be morticed, with pins or dowels through them for a bit of added strength. Glueing all the joints is not necessary, in my opinion, as the joints should be left to weather and move. Fixing them will cause cracking and splintering. If you want joint fills, use silicone, which allows the joints to expand and contract with the temperature variations. It might say weather-proof on the glue pot, but the timber itself isn't.
The cross bracing should be inset to both the horizontal and vertical timbers. Remember the 3 X 4 X 5 method of finding the angle. The hypotenuse is equal to the square of the other two sides. So find the right angle (3 X 3 = 9, 4 X 4 = 16, 9 + 16 = 25. 5 X 5 = 25). The corner of your bracing should be following the angle of cut. Which means the mortice from the horizontal into the vertical is extended by the mortice tongue of the brace lap. Which then means, more on the vertical than the horizontal to get a nice tight secure joint.
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Might help explain it.
You might also think about a sacrificial timber on the bottom of the doors. Something that can be replaced when they start to rot through. It helps to have something that is easy to remove and replace instead of having to cut lumps off the doors to repair them. The bottoms of outside doors are notorious for collecting rising damp from the ground and splashing, and you might think paint is a good preventative, but it ain't. :-)
But your plans look good. They'll be nice when they're finished and hung.
What are you waiting on? Get on with it. LOL