Log Cabin in the wilderness

[doublejj]

The fall of 78!

The fall of 78!

By 1975 my wife was studying to be a nurse & I was learning how to keep factories buildings & equipment working at Boeing. That's when my buddy Greg got laid-off from his job at Boeing, & we hatched a scheme for him to live in the cabin & grow weed.
We did pretty well the first year, we grew on my land, we bought a bigger roto-tiller. Second year we grew in the National forest, & we bought a small tractor. Things were going good. It was the 3rd year that disaster struck!
I knew Greg was in trouble, the night the police came to my house asking if I knew him. They caught him in the patch!
They traced him to me because he was riding a motorcycle that belonged to me.
If you've never had a loved one/friend, lay down their life for you, "fall on their sword" for you, you'll never know the feelings that come over you! Hate!, Anger!, Guilt!, Shame!,......
He wouldn't rat me out, so they threw the book at him. Greg was black, they gave him 15 years!
He did 9 at Walla Walla.

It was hard to look at the cabin the same after the fall of 78.

doublejj

 

[wolfhoundaddy]

back then

back then

I missed the draft 1971 (lottery) with a # 98.

I had to skip over your letters that you posted from Nam. I didn't go and you would not believe how many times I have been thankful. I can't describe the melancholy feeling I get when ever I dwell on that era.

It was a tough time in the states. And this country has hit the skids big time since then. Not just now, but SINCE then.

We don't need material things to feel accomplished, we need a sense of wellness.

I wish you well.

I have a '70's bride too. 1978

Peace

 

[Hash Zeppelin]

this thread is awesome. you are one cool guy doublejj. also sorry to hear about your friend getting 9 years. that's harsh. He is awesome for sticking to the growers code. "If your pinned and your friends still got a chance then you gotta just take the charge. If they had everything they needed for a solid conviction they wouldn't even talk to you in the first place. Make the prosecutor earn that conviction."

 

[dmtcorey]

hey doublejj

thanks for offering me some addvice on building the cabin!
now that you say that ,one thing i was wondering about is drying the logs before i start to build with them ,is this something that should be done to stop them from warping or do you think they would be ok to build with fresh !
been you tubing about some building techs but never came across any talk about this !

 

[dmtcorey]

oh and what do you think about mixing differnt types of logs ,i cant see anything wrong with this do you ?

 

[doublejj]

Dry is better

Dry is better

Heay dmt, the logs get a lot lighter after they dry out. Maybe 50% lighter. But you can build with green logs. It depends on how big of logs you use, & you'll have more shrinkage to deal with in the end.
Same thing with mixing logs, it becomes a size issue. We found it was easier to build with logs that were all about the same size.

Good luck bro, building a log cabin is a very rewarding experience.
I'll be right here to help you all I can.

doublejj
P.S. Also, 'peeling' the bark off is much easier when the logs are green. Harder to peel dry bark. (I had to make my own bark peeler's, they don't sell them any more.)

 

[MJBadger]

The world would be a far better place if we all had friends like Greg .

The peace & solitude you had in the woods is a dream you made true . I hope them nightmares are gone now & the smokers making me drool .

 

[doublejj]

Frightened my wife

Frightened my wife

Greg's arrest really upset my wife. A bit too close for her comfort.
She told me she had a reoccurring dream, that she saw me as a grey old man walking out of prison!

She wouldn't even go back to the cabin for vacation, she didn't enjoy it there any longer.

doublejj

 

[Hash Zeppelin]

cool folks.

cool folks.

^it would be scary.

She seems like a really cool lady to go out there and try that with you, and you are a really cool guy for sticking by her when she wanted to return. In this day in age to see a couple that sticks together like that is one of the most amazing things of this thread. Out of all my child hood friends only 2 of them still have married parents, and I know because I talk to all of them on FaceBook still, lol. I hope to find a good woman like her one day. It is hard to find a good woman as a grower because they dont like growers usually. most of them dont understand that even if I made a million a year I would still grow because I am a peace loving johnny apple seed over grower till I die or there is full Earth wide legalization. If I had kids though I would consider at least keeping it out of the house, but stop growing my own meds. never.

 

[trichosaurus]

Fantastic story. Great thread. Nice fish.
Thank you for sharing.

 

[doublejj]

25 years in Folsom Prison

25 years in Folsom Prison

Little did we know at that time, my wife's dream would come true!

My wife graduated with her BS in Nursing in 1980. She got a job in her chosen speciality (ER, Trama nurse) at the biggest hospital in Seattle, Harborview. By 1985 she was Charge Nurse, in charge of her rotation shift in the ER & highly respected.
She was recruited by the California Dept of Corrections to be the Head Nurse at Folsom Prison
While she was interviewing at the prison, I started looking at the job flyer's for openings in the prison personnel office.
I applied & because of my experience at Boeing, I was offered a position in the License plate factory.
About 6 weeks later & after 1 week of orientation, we were both working inside one of the most notorious & violent prisons in the US.

My wife would last 8 years before the stress got to her & she quit.
I retired last year after 25 years inside Folsom Prison & my wife got to see me walk out of prison for the last time, as 'that grey old man'!

doublejj

 

[SneekyFarmer]

Doublejj.. Hey bro, have you ever considered writing a book about your life? I think you should! You have a way with words and I bet you could make a fortune off a book! You should atleast think about it, I would buy it! Thanks again for sharing with us bro.. You seem like a really cool guy!

 

[MummyCat]

What happened to the job at Boeing?



.....you even look kinda like the most interesting man in the world

 

[doublejj]

California paid more!

California paid more!

Between what my wife was offered & what they paid me, we almost trippled our annual salary moving to California.

My job a Boeing was some of the best traning & experience I could have received for my carreer as the prison factory Superintendent.

doublejj
P.S. I don't always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer DosEquis!lol!

 

[Bonzo]

thanks for sharing!

 

[dmtcorey]

Heay dmt, the logs get a lot lighter after they dry out. Maybe 50% lighter. But you can build with green logs. It depends on how big of logs you use, & you'll have more shrinkage to deal with in the end.
Same thing with mixing logs, it becomes a size issue. We found it was easier to build with logs that were all about the same size.

Good luck bro, building a log cabin is a very rewarding experience.
I'll be right here to help you all I can.

doublejj
P.S. Also, 'peeling' the bark off is much easier when the logs are green. Harder to peel dry bark. (I had to make my own bark peeler's, they don't sell them any more.)

thanks for the reply doublejj and the kind words

might be a good idea to cure the logs first by the sounds of it .just picked up the chain saw yesterday so im exited to start playing around and see what i can come up with!
i guess i was not vary clear when i said mixed logs in the other post ,what i was meaning to ask was if its ok to use and mix the different speicis of tree,s in the build?

 

[doublejj]

Size issue

Size issue

I don't think mixing species of logs would be any problem, it's more of a size issue.
You may find that different species logs have different taper or shape. I was fortunate enough to have access to all "Lodgepole pine". By using logs of about the same size & rotatng the fat & skinny ends, I was able to come out within 1/2" at all 4 corners.

I think finding logs that are all about the same size is more important that what species they are.

Good luck & do yourself a favor & buy some good gloves.

doublejj

 

[MummyCat]

What were the logs sealed with? How were the pier blocks poured? Did you have a concrete truck deliver redi-mix or did you mix it and pour it on-site? If so how?

How did you figure the thickness of your structural beams?

Thanks for this thread, you're the man

 

[doublejj]

Overkill

Overkill

I hired a equipment operator to cut in the driveway from the county road & level the building site. He also backhoed the pier holes.
We set & leveled the forms & burried them. The equipment operator rented a portable cement mixer to me. Hauled it in & picked it up. We hauled water from the creek on the property. I couldn't get a cement mixer truck up there.

We sealed the logs with linseed oil (just like gunstocks). The logs averaged 12" at the center with a couple of inch taper at each end. We used brick mortar between the logs.

This was a long time ago & a very rural county. Building inspection was just a formality to get you on the tax rolls!
If you were willing to live in it, they would be happy to take your money.
The local building inspector was an old man that lived in a house he built himself out of rocks!

I just went beyond overkill building everythng. I really only needed 1/2 the roof rafter poles & floor joist's. The flooring & roof were made with 2"x6" tongue & groove pier decking. You could drive a forklift in there!

doublejj

 

[doublejj]

Water level

Water level

We didn't use an optical level to set & level things.
I made a water level, kinda like this. A bucket with a long hose attached. This is how they did it in the old days.

Once you set the bucket & mark it, everything is leveled from that. You could drag the hose around to the other side of a log wall & check level anywhere. Works slick!

doublejj