I was always taught to cross brace from the free swinging corner into the bottom hinge. This transfers the load and lessens the stress on the stiles and rails.
Your right, I think the brace is just for looks at this point. The current braces buts the hinges in tension, the other way would put them in compression
Hi, there! This was exactly my first thought seeing this. This gate looks beautiful and is well built but the cross brace has the wrong diagonal. Glad to see I am not allone. Regards, Etna.
I disagree. Putting braces under compression is a bad idea because the brace will creep deform into a bow under the load. With the deformed brace the free hanging corner can drop aswell. This way is the correct way. The hinge is designed to hold the load so it has no problem doing so. If you really want to optimize it, you can move the middle hinge into the upper third of the door. That way you maximize the effectiveness of it because of the lever principals.
This just popped into my recommended, and honestly I'm a fan. Just a real nice comfy vibe. Something just mesmerising about talented craftsmen calmly talking you through their trade, as you watch raw materials be transformed into elegant and functional products.
I have been viewing your videos since just prior the construction of your present wood shop. Like yourself, I have the same kind of interest in older woodworking equipment. My shop is less than a fourth the size of yours so I envy your setup. Recently I built a CNC router and now in the process of setting up the software and wiring. I am a draftsman/carpenter contractor/now retired, so this CNC thing is all new to me. Never too old to learn. Keep up the good work Frank. You are quite an asset to the design build world.
Frank, I understand that the cross brace is usually set with the low end on the hinge side, as a sort of support. In the North of England we call that type of latch a"SNECK" or latch and sneck, it used to be fitted to the kitchen door of almost every house. Nice job though.
John Sanley this brace is meant to work in tension, think of it more like a cable. Technically I guess it would work in compression like ur suggesting. They both do the same thing
@@GrahamDIY EXACTLY thank God someone else knows.A compression brace works better in wood . A tension brace is if you use a steel cable.With a turnbuckle to shorten and remove stretch.
I subscribed to your channel back when Calvin was just a little kid. It's a shock to see him all grown up now. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
Ive only hung a few doors, but found that if i can disassemble the hinge and attach the parts to the door and frame then place the door into the frame then place pins it went very smoothly. Otherwise i was putting a lot of stress on the first few screws while i tried to balance it all and drive screws at the same time. Gate looks great.
I've been watching these videos for years now, and it's crazy seeing your kids go from children to teenagers. It's kind of melancholic in that "time goes by so fast" kind of way.
Beautiful gate Frank however I must be honest the cross braces just don't look right... especially where they cross over the window area... The color of the gate came out lovely!
Don’t worry Frank, I’ll handle this… Never comment on this channel again. Take your 82 traitors with you as well. Criticism is one thing, but this is illogical hatred you are spreading in your comment.
As for me...I'm not sure how I feel about the cross braces. They are interesting. Makes it a special door. There's only so many things you can do with a door to make it stand out.
Nice work! So hard to make wood weather resistant. Every stress point will sag and stretch over time. But you chose right with cedar. Wish we could just make all fences out of stainless steel with same cost and ease of fabrication of wood.
Thanks for the video. As always I really enjoy your videos. Personally I loved the handles. I hate to tell you this, but you put the cross brace in the wrong direction. You want the top to be on the free swinging top corner and the bottom to be towards the bottom hinge. This transfers some of the weight from the top of the gate into the bottom hinge and the post, with the brace in compression. - OK just read that everyone else has told you the same thing. It will be worth your while to go back and swap over that brace because it will probably sag otherwise. You could put a dome cap on the holes left behind to turn it into a "happy accident" feature.
I do the same thing, and worry that I am going to build something that won't fit in that thing I just measured no matter how much I measure. Making a template helps insure I make it right and I don't worry as much. I didn't recognize Calvin, he has gotten so big. I am still waiting for the part 2 of his train table.
Came to see all the arguments between compression and tension door bracing and wasn't disappointed lol I'm sure I once read wood in compression and metal in tension somewhere, but happy to be corrected
So satisfying to watch you work, Frank. And the story you tell is always compelling in a real way. Thank you for - and this is not hyperbole - for making the world a little bit sweeter and smarter and patient and skillful and just darn better.
Great build, Frank, as always. The brace obstructing view through the window and the lower sign not being centered made my body itch a little. But what the hell, that's a good looking cedar door for sure.
I was a little bummed that Matthias Wandel wasn't part of the challenge, but then what happened was I found a couple creators I wasn't familiar with, so now I have a few new additions to my subscription list, so Thank you!
IMHO there’s no point buying a cordless drill unless you’ve got two batteries. One in the drill and one in the charger. Few things more frustrating than running out of juice with your last screw half way in!!
Bravo, Frank. I admire you for the way you tackle projects, figuring it bit by bit and being so humble in the process ! My two cents about the hinges; from what I understand, the middle hinge should be locted closer to the upper one and not in the middle.
Measure the gate in fall, remeasure the gate in spring, start buying the lumber and building/installing close to summer. Wow, that's the exact same speed I work! :)
Making a good door requires a commitment to excellence. Exterior doors are exposed to the elements so the design needs to be very robust and the materials need to be the best available. Don't cut any corners, rails and stiles should be made of straight grain laminated lumber or finger jointed block core that is laminated on the outside with clear grade straight grain wood. If you are making big doors make them thick, 3 inches would not be overkill for a garage door. If your doors are exposed to direct rain and sun you will need to put a coat of finish on them every 2 or 3 years. Study old doors to see how they were made then practice before you try to make such a large project. Good luck. Have fun.
As a Theatre Carpenter, I hang many a door, dear Frank :) You are absolutely correct, install the hardware to the frame first. And then install the door with shims to allow for the spacing. From there, depending on the frame and door, adjust til you are happy. A few critical points I have learned from repetition, install top to bottom. And use as few screws as possible when adjusting. It was taught to me that hinges have multiple sets of holes because no one ever installs a door perfectly the first time ;). install all the screws once its perfect, or half as many if you are going to be dealing with it in the near future. Hope this helps!
Saw your post on Instagram, so we went to Jenkins Estate over the weekend to take a look. The door looks beautiful! It’s pretty neat seeing your “making of” and the finished product too.
Another fantastic project, Frank. The new design is perfect for its surroundings. I think keeping the old signs was a good choice; they are charming and show the age and progression of the garden. 💚👍
Bit of a tip for people staining doors. That have never finished or stained a large door before. If you sitting it on stickers, and you rush you will get marks from them. So either support the first and last quarter inch of the door, since its generally hidden. Your mount something to the top and bottom of the door. So no finished part of the door comes in contact with your table/stickers. The shop I worked in, had a vertical roof track system. Where we would screw a roller to the top of entry doors. Then roll it infront of The spray booth filters for laquer etc. Staining was always done semi flat. It made working on some of these large bulky doors a quick process. On average it took us 2- 5 minutes to stain and entire entry door.
Good job, looks lighter (weight) and more elegant than the original I think. Usually when I hang/rehang doors I attach the hinge's on the door first and use the hinge in it's open position to position each hinge so they are the same, then use a wedge on the bottom opposite hinge side of the door, fix the very top screw in the top hinge to allow adjustment of the angle of the door by moving the wedge in or out, then fix the very bottom screw on the lowest hinge, and like you did check the swing of the door to make sure nothing binds, and check that the other hinges line up. I've found it's important to make sure the hinge's on the door itself are in line with their pivot centre points to avoid binding.
Jenkins is a beautiful spot. I was just there for the rhododendrons in full bloom. We went to see the garden and the gate was locked for COVID. I had no idea at the time it was your handiwork! I can't wait to have another visit and check that gate out in person!
Very pretty results honesty to me it looks more like a door you would find inside a Motor Yacht instead of a Garden gate btw most people do put the hinges on the door first but it doesn’t matter as long as you get it working in the end i prop the door bottoms on Shims and use a pry bar operated with my foot to make fine adjustments to align the hinges to the jamb
if door sagging is a concern, you could double up the top hinge. put another hinge right below the top hinge. looks kinda odd, but for out door gate, it does help.
I have very similar gates at my house and my only suggestion would be to put a copper cap atop the gate. Otherwise, with the end grain exposed to the elements it will swell and lead to cracking over time.
Frank! This one send me down an interesting path. I googled Jenkins Estate and was looking through the map and pictures thinking "this would be a great place to take my kid when things reopen" - the third pic on their site of the house then reminded me.. I've been there! We did our kiddo's 1 year old photographs there! Either way, thanks for the reminder of a beautiful place and memory. Oh and of course, nice gate. :) -Chris
No, imagine the gate is just the outside frame, the non-hinged side would want to drop down and the brace keeps it up. You could install it the other way, but then as it tries to drop down the brace would push the top corner away from the hinge
"So is this what you do for a living or do you just do it as a hobby?" Ma'am, he teaches, inspires, and entertains with his woodworking and video editing skills. And then he talks cantilevers and I remember that he could teach architecture as well.
That comment for some reason sat really poorly with me. My wife is an artist and it just seems like a really rude way to phrase that question. "Do you do this full time?" is probably a more appropriate way to word that question.
'hinges on the frame first, or door fist' I install on the door first. Set the door - with hinges installed - in the opening and mark the hinge positions; then split the hinges and install the frame plates on the frame; position gate and insert pins. I usually put the cross member to hold the weight from the lower hinge to the top outside of the door - so the weight is pressing INTO the bottom hinge.
Very nice, Frank~! Not that I would expect anything less. :-) I'll bet the shop smelled great as you were milling up the wood for the door. Ahhhh, cedar~!
I really enjoy watching the videos. It's entertaining. I learn something everytime. The CNC router gets allot of use, thanks to it's huge size. This is my favorite RU-vid channel, and I look forward to new episodes.
I must say I enjoyed Yours videos for years. Construction of this kind of doors was part of my my apprentice training in seventies in Europe ,..... so That little bid if tenon is call ,,key" it should prevent warping of boards , especially at foot of the doors, witch should be at least 10" wide since there is possibility to be timed as well as is happen. Also respectfully, tenons should be longer .... 4.5-5" that will assure enough surface for glue and will hold doors square much longer with inside expanding shims . Since cedar is light, it is easy done by chisel. I would do floating panel thong and grove to prevent warping...... if my choice, Diagonal brace is lovely detail . Nicely done!
Great work! As the hinges only work one way, I would have been tempted to not put a handle on the outside. Whenever I see a door with a handle I try to pull it before I push. You'd have to add a spring to have it auto-close, you can get hinges with that built into them, but maybe it was a requirement (for access) that the gate not auto-close
Nice enough gate, though I was surprised you didn't CNC the brace shape partly into the frame so they'd sit a little more flush within the gate. I can't help but think that the big gaps behind them will trap dirt and moisture and encourage rot more quickly. I was genuinely expecting you to do that after you CNC'd the braces.
It does go the other way, so if the top hinge comes loose, which happens from people pulling on the gate, it will put pressure against the bottom hinge so it will not come loose too. This way if the top hinge comes loose, the extra weight will pull the bottom hinge out.
Hell yes, a good cordless drill is a great investment. Out of everything in the video that resonates with me the most, haha. My most regrettable tool purchase is my shitty drill. You use them so much, you really do need to invest in a good one.
