Watch every episode of the Woodland Life series here: kzread.info/head/PLxnadpeGdTxCwRkZTLMhjbT_EAu6bAIZy

In Finland and I assume in Scandinavia too it's normal to use tar to protect the shingles. Same stuff they used on ships and ropes back in the day. Some old churches and such are still roofed that way to keep them true to the originals. Smells awesome.

@BearTheManPk

Жыл бұрын

ah the smell of a stavkirke is the best

@D-B-Cooper

Жыл бұрын

Most people don’t realize that when you say tar it is referring to tree pitch and not bitumen tar.

@TheLarsPlay

Жыл бұрын

To make tar, you try to find dead pines, aspecially dead trunks and roots. When a pine dies it sometimes concentrate sap into the wood. You extract the sap as tar by heating the wood up without making the fire connect with it or the gasses it produces, since tar and the gasses are really flameable. As it heats, it slowely pours out of the wood as a black very slimy liquid, like a really thick paint. This is super water resistant and absorbs somewhat into the wood you use it on. Makes wooden houses and roofs last for ages.

@johnwalker7592

Жыл бұрын

@@D-B-Cooper bitumen tar has been known and used for thousands of years. to say it wasn't ever used on something like a roof- is silly.

@D-B-Cooper

Жыл бұрын

@@johnwalker7592 this is about Scandinavia and there are no tar pits there. Stockholm tar has been famous for thousands of years and that is what was used on sailing ships. I once watched someone repair his traditional gondola in Venice with it. The EU has banned the making of it because of carcinogens and pollution from making it as it is a byproduct of charcoal manufacturing. You have to make your own now. I am a retired shipwright. Moron.

I'm Western Canada we use Red Cedar My Dad and I did a roof on his cabin over 40 years ago. Still water proof . The best part was we salvaged the cedar from a logging operation that was 50 years old . The logs had 2 inches of moss on them. They were absolutely sound.

@escapetherace1943

Жыл бұрын

cedar is the best. I imagine with non-cedar and heck maybe even softwoods you would have a few to several good years of life on them. Personally I'd paint each shingle with teak oil, probably would make it outlive any of us

As a kid I spent the summers with my Aunt & Uncle in Oregon. And on my 13th summer I got the pleasure of splitting Western Red Cedar Shakes to reroof his home. A loud rumble was heard coming down the road and a huge logging truck turned into the yard and the driver rolled two logs off the load and after he left my Uncle showed me how to make the shakes and how to stack them so they got the proper air flow between them to dry as the temp was around 100 every day and hot at night so they dried quickly. I spent several days splitting them about 3 weeks after I finished on Saturday morning there were about 10 of his friends there waiting outside and my job was to keep everyone supplied with shakes, I wore a backpack that would hold a bunch of them and all day long it was up and down that ladder passing out the shakes. I think I fell asleep before dinner...it was a long day.

You guys are such woodland nerds. And I am too for watching every single video. Plus I like them and subscribe.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! I’ll take it as a compliment 😊

@alansimmonds9030

Жыл бұрын

Never heаrd of woodsmen being referred to as nerds before.....'Wood-nerds' perhaps.

I have seen several people make roof shingles before but I have never had anybody explain in such detail the ins and outs of the process, another excellent video.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Cheers James, glad you enjoyed it.

I'm glad he explained why he uses only one nail. It's cost and labor effective too.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Yeah it’s something that is easily looked over.

Ben really knows what he is doing and a very knowledgeable guy.

I worked as a colonial restoration painter in New England for 40 years and always had a deep respect for the craftsmen who built them with no power tools. Seeing Ben do this has really brought the skill and patience needed to reality for me. Thanks for sharing this with us.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Ben has a wealth of knowledge on woodlands and woodland craft. He’s a top guy!

@brain8484

Жыл бұрын

he used a chainsaw

@privateerwoodworksnmore

Жыл бұрын

​​@@brain8484 understand that using a chainsaw properly takes skill n craftsmanship. As well is absolutely part of woodland life. From your comment history I believe you to reside under those stone bridges

@mikecumbo7531

Жыл бұрын

and he likely drove a car/SUV to site, used credit cards and probably used a cell phone too.

BEN strikes me as a close family member of yours. He certainly has paved the way for outdoor living! This has been a fine tutorial for us!

23:19 hehe the birds are using your toilet mate. Love the steep roof, great design.

How aptly timed - I'm planning on building a thing in a woodland that will use shingles!

So nice birch leave tea!

I love it, your videos are relaxing and i watch all of them together with my mom ❤

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Appreciate it.

Thoroughly enjoy the videos you’ve made with Ben - you’re good at drawing the information out of him in a natural way and he clearly knows what he is talking about

That was the best video on the subject I've seen for quite some time. Very very informative in a low key way. Thanks for posting.

This was great, Mike! I love in-depth learning like this. Thank you and thank Ben for me as well. Two excellent teachers.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

Yes mate ya Neighbor Ben knows his woods skills. Side axe and a throw

That’s so cool! I love watching and learning about traditional crafts.

Mike I really enjoyed this. It certainly goes to show the amount of effort required when using natural materials and hand tools. Very important skill share. Thanks for making the video

Very knowledgeable, Ben.

Really interesting and informative! Thoroughly enjoyed watching the process thanks 👍

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Cheers Steve!

Hi Mike, really good to meet you briefly this afternoon out with the dogs. Good to see you back in this part of the world. I enjoy these videos - learning from experts and sharing knowledge. As we both know education is so important! ATB Jon

Thanks for sharing this with us Mike. 👍😁

to think the number of guys n gals in here, that would benefit me myself included, from just spending a day with folk like yourselves

So, I understand his explanation of the corners cut for the outhouse.... its still an over-engineered bush-dunny! Love it!!

Great video again Mike, I love the dedication and work ethic you both have. It must take many hours to create the shingle tiles. Thank you for sharing. Best wishes.

as a young teen i spent weeks packing cedar blocks out of the bush in bc canada,,then more weeks spliting and trimming shakes for my dad.

Love it. It’s a beautiful structure, even though it’s shape is completely functional.

Amazing, I just learned a lot, and the wild flowers are beautiful....

In my portion of the USA (Northern California), we call that a shake roof. We would split them out of Redwood, my dad enlisted my labours as a child to help him trim them. It’s been a few decades since I have pounded a froe with a mallet, now.

this is very high quality cinematography. You're really good man.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Cheers! I appreciate it.

Great video, I love it.

Thanks for the upload Mike 👍

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Cheers!

Keep bringing it Mike always enjoyable

Aspen, pine, spruce and oak all work beautifully for this as well

Fantastic natural looking out house and great to see these skills being kept alive.

Fantastic video! Great tutorial.

This guy was interesting. More with him please. Great video.

That's incredibly cool.

Amazing 🤩

Really neat

In the Pacific Northwest in USA we use cedar for shingles. They wear well usually lasting at least 50 years and turning a beautiful silver grey colour with age.

OMG first man since a long Time i see using this natural cut technic ! Well play . Love that. Nobody do this anymore . 💪💪💪👍

Super beautiful

Dont be afraid of using your humanure! Ive been using a compost toilet for about 8 years and as long as you compost it long enough and let it turn into nice rich dirt its great for growing vegetables in the garden! Humanure handbook is the book i read that got me on thos pathway.

Cozy! ☕️

Great vid, very well explained and look forward to trying it out one day.

Really fascinating. Your friend is cool as by the way

The japanese make shingles very similarly, but instead of splitting out whole diameter width ones, they make the first split across the log, then take the half long and split THAT in half, so it's quartered. From there it's successive radial splits, which helps minimize any problems presented by branches. Yes, they're narrower but you get more of them..... (spliting with a froe like this is called "riving") I was shown how to make shingles by my grandfather who showed me using oak or cedar, and was done by the radial rive out method. I found out years later it was actually the japanese technique.. I've always wondered why there are some subtle differences in methods between East and West...Have to wonder if some of it comes from the limited availability of the wood itself.

@escapetherace1943

Жыл бұрын

that isn't unique to the japanese, in fact I believe that's how they traditionally made shingles in the west, too. This guy's technique isn't bad but it's not the common way.

@steveplace1232

Жыл бұрын

It very much depends on the diameter of the tree chosen. For smaller logs this works fine. The quartering method is also traditional in the UK as well.

Awesome video! I WISH I had the energy to do that!!! 👍👍

Nicely done

Very good stuff! That guy is a good teacher fairplay.

Great explanation and really brilliant watching how to make roof shingles. That clamp idea was really neat. 👍

Love this!

Great lesson in reading that grain similar to mauling good to know Peace to you n your family

Anda sangat kreatif dalam membuat bangunan di hutan, rumah itu sangat nyaman dan di fasilitasi beberapa kebutuhan dapur,, anda sangat keren

Thanks both Mike & Ben, seen this done a number of ways and certainly other timbers, but always interesting to hear alternative views, using what you have locally is something we should all consider more ! I keep mashing up "beetles" using them on my froe so perhaps I'll try a copper hammer too - should point out - use copper, aluminium or brass not steel or you can deform the top of the blade in time !

Hi you dont need to reply or read but i just want to say i love your content and you are so inspirational...keep up the good work

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! Really appreciate the kind feedback.

The great thing with wood is that no matter how hard you mess up, _you can always use it to stay warm..._

I've worked on 100 year old cedar ,but the oldest roof I helped with was 150 year old cypress. My employer had flat tipped nails made because pointed tipped nails spread the fibers of the grain and split the shingles, where as the flat tips punched a clean hole. Now you know how to get flat shingles no more pie wedges like on the pizza oven 😅

Really informative and a great watch

Nice video!! Nice way to show it and cool way to interview. The place looks incredible, so cool! Great job :)

BRILLIANT.

A lot of the r or shingles shakes are cedar here in the north east of the United States

Ah another video to watch while relaxing

I’ve been making sweet chestnut ones over in Italy. Absolutely beautiful wood for making them. Splits perfectly you can almost pull the shingles apart they’re so easy to split. I use the pizza method though

Impressive👏🏻

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

It sure is!

Thanks again Mike.🔪🎸

Roof tiles. We call wood shingles shakes here in Oregon. I never heard them called tiles before. I learned something new today. Thanks.

Wonderful.

There’s another man with the same first name who’s very skilled and inspiring when it comes to forest management and traditional building, and that’s Ben Law. I guess you may know about him already, but if not maybe you could try and get in contact with him. I believe he’s somewhere in Wales.

🎉 I say that looks pretty nice and also very peaceful😊... JJ... Jonjon...

Using a farm tractor jack and an attachment point for the splitting blade would help make that job less taxing on the body. But great information you and Ben shared. Thank you very much.

14:31 good traits to learn you are teaching a lot of people bushcraft skills.

Okay, I loved that.

Nice collaboration. I learnt a lot from this.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! More to come

@user-kr3zb2re1c

Жыл бұрын

@TA Outdoors I'm looking forward to it. Ben seems the type to have gained his knowledge through past experience. This form of experience and knowledge I find most beneficial because it's based on tried and tested methods on getting the job done most effectively.

8:02 great idea

Great vdo

Very nice

There’s a chapter in the original Foxfire book, about the old ways of living in Appalachia, that details log cabin building. I read that chapter recently and was impressed to read that a good shingle maker could make 1000 per day.

Brilliant. I've always wanted to know how to make them and from what wood. Thank you for the information.

Can you also make a video on forest management? Replacing trees and wild plants in the woods?

Most interesting part of the video is 1 nail, I think you could use a longer frow blade so you can drive it a bit deeper? Thanks for the info though👍

One of the first six Foxfire books covers riving shingles.

Very good video, thanks from the colonies.

That is just the absolute best content for me. Combined with your style of filming and everything else, I truly enjoyed this. Thanks to both of you. P.S.: I‘ve honestly been in love with wooden roof tiles as long as I can remember. Now I might just know enough (as far as crafting the tiles, and wanting learn more goes) to some day try making my own. Oh and… does Ben have his own channel?

To improve the rot/water durability you can can also lightly char the wood shakes. The Japanese call it the Yakisugi method and vikings also used a similar approach.

Making things in and from the woods is an ancient skill. Is Ben what is known as a "Bodger" or is that another type of woodland craft ?.

Never would have thought to use ash as a shingle...here in Canada we would use Cedar for any roof and even some exterior walls.

@TAOutdoors

Жыл бұрын

Yes, first time I have seen it too. But as Ben says, Ash is really an interior wood. The only reason it is working in this case is because he has put such a steep pitch on his roof. So rainwater does not have a chance to sit and rot the ash away. Cedar is also really popular over here too, but it is all made with machinery.

@robreesor5011

Жыл бұрын

@@TAOutdoors yes cedar shingles are made in a shingle mill here...in my early twenties I used to buy loads of firewood from the shingle mill as well as the telephone pole mill for $5 a load and cut/split I sold it for $150 a cord lol made really good money back in those days doing that. Also used to help out hauling what they call cedar shakes to town...was loaded up in 1 cord blocks on a 5 ton truck and delivered to that cedar shake mill...hard work but well worth the pay haha.

can further weather proof them by charring the outside. also makes them a little fire resistant.

Great video, if you haven't done a video on how to make saw horses in the wild I would like to see a how to video

With that speed of workmanship, I guess you can deliberately race against an approaching storm!🤭

Herrs potato chip has a Historical site in Willow Street, Pa. and the shingles are Red Oak... Too & Fro !

Brilliant, such a helpful video for someone thinking of making something similar! Are the topmost shingles just laid on their side?

Alaskan red or yellow cedar makes great shingles.

That's one high-end, executive dunny.

rust and boiled linsead oil was commonly used in the american frontier as an antifungal coating/sealant. the linseed oil polymerizes and basically acts as a water repelling epoxy/enamel. the iron oxide /rust was naturally antifungal and stopped the breakdown of wood. thats why the barns were all red in the US... atleast before paint came available

here in the southern united states, shingles are split from cypress. it has nice grain and splits easily and is rot-resistent.

If we ever need to start a civilization from scratch, I’m going with this guy😂