I’m building a couple of radius balconies overlooking the foyer in a very large house. I’m using 6×12 joists, cantilevering them into the floor joists (of the second floor) and running them wild a foot or so. Then I’m going to mark my radius on them and cut them in place. I’m wondering if anyone has any suggestions about what tool to use to cut the radius through such large stock. I have a 10 1/4″ Big Foot saw, but that won’t make it all the way through (two passes) because of the miter. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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I would suggest cutting most of the way through with yer Big Foot then finishing with a sawzall and grinder. Are the ends of the joists going to be finished and exposed? If you are comfortable with a chainsaw, that may work too. Cut close to the line, then finish with grinder and belt sander. (That may be the log-dog coming out in me, if that disgusts you , I'm sorry)
Good luck.
Actually, I left out some details. On the balcony I've already completed, the joists had to be fastened to a ledger, as it was impossible to cut out the rim joist and run the balcony joists into the floor (due to electrical and plumbing issues). So, on those joists, I cut them on the ground using the Big Foot, Sawzall and grinder. However, with the joists in place, the spacing between them is very limited and I'm not sure I'm going to be able to work the big saw in between them. That's my main concern, but probably the only alternative. I was hoping someone knew of a tool (I pictured a portable band saw that could cut through a 6x) of which I was unaware. Anyway, thanks for your suggestion. At least it confirms that my initial approach was a sound one.
you took the words from my mouth. i was going to guess some log-home backround before you mentioned it.
Why 6 x 12? Seems more difficult than necessary.
We did a radiused balcony off one side of a steel beam. Used I-Joists, same as the floor on the other side. 12" O.C. Traced the radius on rosin paper on the floor. Used that to mark the cuts, and cut it with a skill saw. They attached to the beam with Simpson hanger, with a Simpson strap connecting the balcony joist over the beam to the floor joists, which provided the tensile strength at the top. Needed a filler block in the beam for where the balcony joists would press against the beam at the bottom. Ran the subfloor so it spanned the beam and worked with the strap for tensile strength. Finally, used three layers of 1/4" OSB, nailed and glued, to form a rim joist for the balcony. It was all engineered. Worked perfectly. Pretty easy to do, too.
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Do you have a place where you've got lots of pix of your "old" house posted? DW and I keep seeing these tantalizing bits!
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I'll put some links back in "The Deed" thread, so as to not muck this one up.
Edited 1/13/2007 2:13 pm ET by CloudHidden
Hmm..
I wouldn't have thought you could build a wooden structure balcony without either cantilevered joists or a post below.....learn something new every day...but-
the picture looks nice, but I'm picturing it without the post, and thinking that looks a lot nicer....
The posts were unrelated to the balcony and needed to support a beam that held the leading edge of the top floor. Could have hung them from the ceiling/roof, but liked that less. Could have designed a floor plan to better hide them, but the engineering happened a bunch after the layout. Too late by then to reconfigure all. I've learned better since how to anticipate those things.>I wouldn't have thought you could build a wooden structure balcony without either cantilevered joists or a post belowIt's all about balancing tension and compression, and worked really well. Much easier than handling massive beams.
I figured the posts were supporting a beam....wondered why the wall below couldn't have been a bearing wall, and the whole balcony cantilevered from that?
Find a Prazzi beam cutter in FHB index of advertisers. A chain bar that fits a skill 77.
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We've used chainsaws to cut close to the mark and finish with a 15 amp grinder with the coarsest sanding disks we could find to complete the rough shape.
Beer was created so carpenters wouldn't rule the world.
Why not mark the line, measure the angle and set your saw? Then cut one side, continue the cut line to to the other, and then cut the other. We do x6's that way w/ a Mag 77 and it leaves about a 1/2" to hand saw. Clean up w/ a sander if necessary. But you already have a big blade. All this assumes your joists aren't closer than the height of the saw.
which is the case. only 5" between the joists. thanks for the reply