The Historic District

I've used a few different species on my screens and storms. First ones were 5/4 redwood but the lumber hard I got that from closed. I bought "dragon trim" from another yard and liked it.

http://www.nilco.net/index.php?option=c ... &Itemid=72

http://www.asiabm.com/paulownia.html

This is supposed to be rot resistant and stable and is also 1" thick. Then last year I had some white oak left over from other project and used that for a storm window. The problem is that it was too hard to push in the points and I ended up cracking a piece of glass. Also that small storm is very heavy.

Recently I made some screens from 1" thick pine stair tread. The other day I stapled the screen down and had to hammer in each staple.

You want a rot resistant wood that easy to work with.

So I guess the test for some of the lumber I have handy would be to see how easily I can push a staple or glazing point into it. Thank you for your feedback, and this thread will be put to use for me soon - I have zero woodworking experience - but hopefully that is going to change in the next month or so. I will likely be back with more questions. Or perhaps I should start a new thread, to keep this "how to" thread more tidy..? Thanks again!

When I started restoring my windows I realized that originally they had not put a bead of glazing putty in the rabbet bed, so after I did, then put the glass in & seated it, my holes for the glazing points no longer matched up.

Instead of trying to push my points into the new spot, I (seriously) took a steak knife & laid it as flat on the glass as I could & pushed the tip into the spot where I want the point to go. I then slid the point in & pushed the rest of the way using a pair of curved needle nose pliers.

I've probably done this on about 40 points so far & have yet to break the glass.

Just a little idea on what has worked for me!

I like the knife idea. I'll use that next time I have trouble getting my points in.

Here's a little how to on pocket screw joints like I used to make my screens and storms.

http://www.familyhandyman.com/video/dev ... 1758O29K0c

I use an old chisel perpendicular to the glass to get the triangular points in. If the wood is really hard I silde a hammer across the glass and gently tap the chisel. Otherwise you need a proper glazing hammer but I don't have one.

I have an aversion to mixing metal and wood. I use a centering jig and shoot 38" dowel through the stiles and into the rails.

Sashguy wrote:I have an aversion to mixing metal and wood. I use a centering jig and shoot 38" dowel through the stiles and into the rails.

You mean 3/8", don't you?

I would use mortice and tenon joints for the corners, it isn't so hard, you can cut them on the table saw.
for the wood I would use old fir, Old because it is stable, dry and won't warp. One easy place to find the wood is an old door. look at the grain and if you can find pieces with fine grain , this is from big trees that only grew a very small amount each year. Lots of what I see is so fine like maybe 50 lines(years) to the inch.
wood like that will be stable and strong and fairly weather resistant. Reclaimed flooring is another easy to find source. lots of times storms had holes in teh bottom edge to stop them from steaming up so I wouldn't try make them fit water tight.

dont' use green lumber, or you'll do a fine job only to see it twist like a pretzel as it dries.

I think they look amazing you did a awesome job:-) My Father was a woodworker...who did things simple....the K.I.S.S. = Keep it simple stupid Making a old home's draft free and all buttoned up.....can cause problems in some. Old wood houses need to breathe, plain & simple...yes worse for the power bill but if you love old house, you should know they cost more to run than a Mc Mansion:-) One of the reason our 1848 house is not full of rot (one reason it's all heart pine) the other is it was never sealed like we seal up our homes now. We had a architectural historian from Clemson University come by and he also agreed with my take on the house having to breathe:-)

I bought a window making router bit set (two individual bits actually) to make replacement sashes for my house. I used the bit and some cedar 2x's I planed down to 1" to make a storm the other day. I don't have it finished yet, but I will write a post when I have all my pics. I used a doweling jig that uses a stacked dowel pin to assemble the corners. I will admit, I have way more invested in tooling to build mine, but I needed an excuse to buy another tool

Looks great by the way, I would have not thought to use a pocket jig. I have one, I just don't use it as much as I could.