More ply More ply Sunday Sunday

I have a special post on the other blog expskate.blogspot.com. Check it and consider. Once this thing is finished, I'll be posting on there. This is just for the construction phase.

I got up bright and early this morning, headed out of the city with the Calabro van and picked up the masonite. I picked up Callahan and paid $2.65 a gallon for gas! Yes people, Lowell, IN. So today, driving the gas guzzler was not so bad. Nick was there when we arrived and the three of us got to work. All was going well, I did mess up and had to cut down two rows of ply. I swear that I measured it all but master carpenter I am NOT!



We were making good time this morning and had one quarter pipe nearly done and I had just started the other side when Dave and Mike arrived. Dave pointed out the obvious (thank goodness). I did not arrange the plywood so each end was bordering on transition a transition template or support. We had them centered on each 2 x 4 but not on the seam between two sheets. The way I had it was more economical board and $$ wise but there was a danger of breaking through, even with three layers.



This was very difficult to do but we had to take everything off! But then we got lucky because Danny, Eric and Juan showed up and we had like 7 dudes and 7 drills and 14 hands!!! So, they got to work pulling the plywood off the ramp and I tried to keep up cutting the boards down. I had to cut them all down because I had two 6' wide Q-pipes and a 94 1/4" Q-pipe. It was a lot of extra work but now I can sleep easy because we did the right thing.



Once that initial pain in the nether regions began to fade it was buisiness as usual. We all did our part and put in 100%. I am totally grateful to all that showed today and yesterday. Thanks a big bunch dudes!! You all totally rock!



So we got cranking. My cuts were not the greatest but I did what I could. Juan had to do some surgery on one of the transition templates. I had a bump that was causing part of the seam to rise 1/2" out. So he took a hammer and chisel and chewed it back to about 3/16". I did sand the edges and when I had all the templates piled up they seemed to be true. I was really bummed about that one too. You do all of that work and when the plywood goes on all of the problems reveal themselves! Eric pointed out that I am not TEAM PAIN. And he is right, I actually felt better after he said that.




I did my best and you have to learn from each experience. I was working with a lot of donated/found wood that had to be dealt with as is and space limitations are in effect as well. So I couldn't just blast away with three true 8' Q-pipes and have it all work out. If I had to do it all over again, I still couldn't do that because the space does not allow a 24' wide ramp...




Anyway, everyone is stoked on the ramp now and that makes me very happy!! Dave couldn't help himself and jumped in on the ramp while we were still plying it! He was blasting past 2 x 4s, saw dust, drills and screws!! Pretty gnar. He rips it for sure! SO we were getting some little runs in as things were winding down. I know you are not supposed to ride with only one ply but these dudes were getting pretty jonesed out!





So for this week, we ended up with the first layer down. It should go much faster now since I won't have to do so many cut downs with the next layer. I will however need to get more 3/8s because of all the cutting but no biggie. Just more $$. ugh



I am really happy with the way it is all turning out. And nobody bonked their head on the truss, yet! I will have to figure out the bracing once the center board is cut out. More to come!

I have some footy of Dave with the first run!

50 sheets and ready 10/22-25

This week was all about getting the ramp ready for plywood. I got pretty sick on Tuesday so no work there. I was actually out there trying to do some work but the world was spinning and my breakfast kept flying out of my mouth. Not too fun!! But I am feeling way better now!

Thursday was spent doubling up the flat and getting more of the odds and ends tied up. Friday was very busy - had a Doc apt and then looked at an apartment which I took by the way!! Oh yes! Independence once again!



Friday afternoon, I went to pick up 40 sheets of 3/8" for the first two layers of the ramp. I had 10 already so I hope this will be enough. Most of those 10 are odd sheets though? I guess MR Karate used all the good and true 4' x 8' sheets to build the bank at the carwash?



Just as I arrived, a total down pour was in full form. I was so pissed that I just baja'd the van straight on back to the barn. (Not really but I was really worried all day that it would rain and then I would get stuck back there!) When I brought the first load of wood, it rained all weekend. I had to trailer it back with the lawn mower and a tarp. But luckily the ground was firm enough and the rain stopped for a bit!



So I got it all unloaded and ready for Saturday. My old buddy Dave Marevka came by to check out the ramp - he was stoked!



I am staying in the city all week cat sitting. So I had to head back to Bryn Mar after Man-Night at Eric's place. A very long day! I got back around 9am Saturday morning. I was kinda out of it, I could not sleep last night! All I could think about was the ramp. I was a bit worried about the truss situation again and may have to support the 3 inner truss once I take out the center beam.



I got a bunch done early - tying the north deck all together with the ramp and finishing all of that off. I also double braced the lower most transitions. I started to get worried about that. Mike Callahan showed up around noon and Pat sk8 appeared soon after so I got some great help today!! Thanks!



After much piddling around on my part I finally got the first layer of plywood going. It was really slow at first but once we got going it began to flow well. We got the flat bottom plyed and a few of the drills went dead and we were running out of time for the day. So, I called it. But we did take the form off of the concrete coping!







It was like X-mas day! only EVIL! The pour came out pretty RAD. There is only one spot where the 'crete did not separate properly and I have some pitting from the rocks falling out. I will patch that part up but the rest appears to be good. I'll have to do some polishing and grinding but for the most part, the coping seems to look like it should! I am gonna dream about that coping tonight!



So it was a good days work and more dudes are supposed to show tomorrow!! SO I hope we can get more progress 2mro!!!!! Thanks again to Mike and Pat!

Pour that coping FOO! 10/19

Finally the moment I have been dreaming about!! Let me tell you I lay awake many nights dreaming about doing some concrete work!! I so wish that I could score a summer job next year working for one of the crews out there and just pouring pools! Well, this is my first so hopefully it will work out!!

I got up bright and early this morning with one thing in mind, pour that coping boy! I got my wheel barrel out, a shiny new bucket, an empty 1 gallon milk jug and a stack of Quickcrete! I was ready to go! So the first batch well, it was windy and half of my material went across the land. SO I got smart the second time around and closed the barn door! It gets windy out here.



I mixed up according to directions and then added a little more water to get that nice workable mud. I hooked up my ladder so it was right next to wheel barrel. My plan was to shovel the crete into the bucket and carry it up the latter and dump the crete into the form. This went very well. It would have been less taxing with two or three guys there but for a one man show all was well!!.



I had fun using my little concrete trough and giggling the concrete into place. I had to shake the ramp and pound on the form with a hammer and 2 x 4. I eventually realized that if I ran the jigsaw on the edge of the ramp, that would get the vibrating feel a bit better to consolidate the crete. I'll do that next time I guess.




But all in all it went well. I did run out though, I was one bag short, so I had to rush out and get another. But the air bubbles started to come up and I giggled it again and it seems to be setting up pretty well. I just hope it stays up there and doesn't crack up and send little rocks flying everywhere on the ramp...

Build the forms - cook it up! 10/18

I must say that I have been feeling it all week. I think that with work, we are just finishing week 8 (midterm) and I am feeling that wearyness as well as all the work I put into the ramp and then skating on top of it all!! I just wish I had more energy and more time! I need to make art and play my guitar too!! I am looking forward to finishing this goliath so that I can get back to it all!!


random northewest

For Saturday, I finished up some odds and ends on the decks and suddenly realize, shit, I gotta get to working on that coping!! I got up really early, borrowed the carry all and headed out for supplies. 4 bags of commercial grade 5000 PSI Quickcrete, 12 2 x 4 x 8s, two boxes of screws and two 2 x 4 x 10s. I am in the nickel and dime-ing stage where you just get this here and that there and you spend 100bucks!


oregon

I spent the rest of Saturday building the form for the blessed concrete coping on the south end! I guess I wanted concrete coping on the south end so I could make an ode to Slayer every time I slash that shit! "South Of Heaven" is the entire embodiment of a frontside slasher on concrete coping!!

I got a bunch of info from this dude who goes by TheCreature on Concrete Disciples. Big thanks to that dude, whoever, where ever you come from!! That is the cool thing about the web! I also looked some stuff up on Old Man Army. There is so much good info on both of those sites. I am forever grateful!!



So I tried to use the best ideas from all the sources I had. I went with the 5000psi high early strength Quickcrete. I was reading all kinds of stuff about how stuff doesn't set up or it chunks out as if you ride it too soon. I got the Commercial Grade because it sounds like it might be strong? But it probably is just for fast setting shit. I just hope it doesn't chunk out. We'll have to just shred it and see I guess.





So I got it all formed up on Saturday. I cut a piece of 2" PVC in half with a circular saw. Then screwed each piece from the inside to a long strip of 3/4" plywood. In the future I would go with 1/2" cause that shit is heavy.



The ironic thing is the plywood I chose was originally used to form the foundation of my parents house! I love putting that personal shit into construction of ramps. As I said before, I have wood from the original ramp from when I was a kid in this thing (just a piece or two).



I am using 2 x 4s to space the form out from the ramp surface. I have not put the plywood on the ramp yet so this plus a layer of 1/4" masonite gave me 1 3/4" of coping off the lip. SO when you subtract the surface of the ramp the coping should stick out somewhere around 5/8" - 3/4". I hope!!



Once I got the form built I used the old wood clamps to get the 2 x 4 x 10s up near the lip. Once they were in place I screwed them in. It is so nice to have clamps around when you need a 3rd and 4th hand! Clamps rule!!



I had to use the tie downs again to actually repel the form off of the lip! It was just dangling there. The funny thing about the weight was that since the already heavy 3/4" was used to pour the foundation, it was impregnated with concrete. The shit is soooo heavy that I could barely get the form up on the deck!



But as you can see, it all worked out in the end. I screwed it all together and it actually turned out Ok!




I have a nice bed to lay the concrete and form up some GRRRRALP!

all decked out 10/16

I have been working on the decks all week. I started on Tuesday and worked all day Thursday and Friday. With afternoon/evening sessions at Wilson of course! It has been a bit of a draggy week though. No big sessions or anything. Kind of a bummer, more of the same as the outdoor season dies down. I keep missing the morning sessions so my buddies are no where to be seen!!



The decks were pretty straight forward. I did have to cut them down a bit. I stretched out the flat bottom to a true 16' but I had assembled them before I made that decision. The north deck is screwed into the 6 x 6" posts that are part of the barn frame. I made a joist hanger out of 2 x 6" and have the back rail laying on that. The rest of the frame is supported by vertical posts. The decks are made out of 2 x 6s that I had laying around. Mostly scrap wood or old wood but it is sturdy.

The south deck was a little tricky. I had to hang it up with tie downs and slowly swing it into space. It was too heavy to prop up and with only one body and two hands I couldn't do it all at once. So the beam and roll up door rails came in handy. I am glad that I didn't cut them out just yet!!



I used these 3" x 7" rough cut cherry beams for the vertical supports. My father got them from somewhere 30 years ago. We had a bunch more but one of his work buddies bought them off of him years ago. The shit my dad used to have, he either gives it away, lets it rot or burns it. Strange!



SO after I got all that together, I realized I had one sturdy but ugly ass deck! The old posts are gnarly as hell, even warped and bowed out. They must be 100 years old!! But they are so strong still! I think I am gonna cover them up because I used brandy new wood for everything else and the frame looks sooooo sweet. It is solid though so no worries people!

Well, I finally got the frame together. After many weeks I can look at the ramp and get a true feel for what it will be. I spent the morning leveling off the North end of the ramp. I had some trouble though. The metal shelves were taking up about 1/2” that I needed. The frame for the barn was sticking out a bit and left no room to move the shelves back. SO I had to notch them out. This took about 2 hours.



What a big pain, especially because I had to work with the barn closed up to avoid another allergy attack. It was like really hot in there today. Especially working with the grinder and getting in an enclosed spot under the transition.




After all that, the flat bottom was easy enough to level off. I will have to do some shifting though. The North Quarter pipe is shifted about 1 1/2" to the East. Close enough though, I'll just have to mush it over a bit.

So for next week, I’ll have to finish getting the bricks in throughout the entire frame. I also need to figure out the 8’ sections of flat. I was not anticipating the raising of the whole ramp. I’ll need to do some bracing. I may double brace every two or?? Research.



I hope to have the decks installed by the end of next week and begin pouring the coping and getting the metal coping together as well. Then it will be time to get the plywood and masonite. I’ll need some help sheeting the ramp so whoever can spare some time – chime in…