HOW TO CUT A RAFTER.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 135, 10 June 1927, Page 17

HOW TO CUT A RAFTER.

The simplest way to out a rafter is to draw a centre line down the side. The projection beyond the eave is onlv 2 x 2, which means that the rafter is ripped along the centre line up to the point where it intersects with the outside comer of the plate. To get the cuts suppose that the building is 24ft wide and third pitch is used. That means that the run of the rafter is 12ft or onehalf the width of the building and that the rise is Bft or one-third the width of the building. A good plan is to make a fence of Ix 2 material with a korf ripped down at each end to take the two ends of the steel square. Two short screw nails will hold the fence firmly on the square. Set the fence on the square so that Jin mark on the tongue and the 12in mark on the blade come exactly on the centre line that lias been drawn on the rafter. Beginning at the top mark along the tongue. This will give the ridge cut. Then tick off the centre line at the 12in mark. Tfck off 12 times and the last tick will be at the outside corner of the plate. Mark along the blade of the square from this point to the bottom edge of the rafter. This will give the plate cut. The bevel for the lower end of the rafter heel is perpendicular, the same as the ridge cut and is made in the same way. It is better, however, to make the heel cuts on only the end rafters until after they are all nailed up into position. Then stretch a chalk line and mark each heel by it after which they are cut off. This will leave the finished roof perfectly straight along the lower edge.