Anyone ever attempt this? They’re 8″ x 12′ boards. Just wondering if anyone has come up with a way to do it alone?
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Replies
Yes , I've done it . It is time consuming but I did'nt mind it , after all it was my own house . With 71/4 " exposure , at one end measure up 71/4 '' .Just above your mark nail in a box nail about 1/2 " . This will hold one end while you take the other end . Put a nail in your end at the proper elevation , then goto the middle and keep on goin . Make sure you carry your stock on EDGE not on the flat .
Mike - Foxboro , Mass.
P.S. The nail that you used to hold the board . Because you put the nail above your mark . When you nail that end the board should be covering the hole you made with the nail .
Excellent. I guess I was so concerned about what to do after the first board. Seems two brains are better than one. Appeciate it!-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"It is so, because Piffin tells me it is."
Buy a pair of these:http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00009YUMG/ref=pd_sr_ec_ir_hi/102-5577732-2972163?v=glance&s=hi&st=*Others probably sell them too.
I am just finishing the trim on about 500 sq, ft. I did on my own house. I bought a pair of those little clips you see advertised by The Labor Saver (http://www.thelaborsaver.com) and they work pretty well once you get past the hard part, which is getting your starter strip on and the first plank nailed straight. I used a Hitachi siding gun for most of the nailing, which mostly allows you to have some use of the other hand, etc. These gizmos will give you a 7in. exposure for your 8 1/4" planks which is what Hardi recommends. Some say they use roofing nails but here I opted for Maze, Hot Dipped galvanized siding nails...we get lots of water and some of it is wind blown as well.
I just dedicated a blade on my 12" DW 706 and cut away...much quicker and easier than trying to do the cross cuts with a circle saw and clamps, etc...although you can gang cut the stuff. You will have to do rip cuts or angle cuts with the circle saw or a pair of shears, etc. The 12' blade will cut an 8 1/4" plank clean except for a tiny (like 1/8") sliver which is easy to break with the hand. I used ripped pieces of Hardi for starter strips, but others use treated wood ripped to correct dimension for the kickout.
I will say it is a real PITA to try and handle 12' planks alone, and especially so if you are trying to use a ladder rather than scaffolding...they can break easily if not handled correctly as well...but it IS do-able...and I had quite a few runs where the 12 footers had to be shortened anyhow, which helps. Your vocabulary WILL increase during the project for sure! Get a good mask...the stuff does produce dust that can do bad things to your lungs.
Use a story pole for layout, snap a line for the first plank (I used felt under the siding) nail into studs or sheathing only, and be danged certain not to blow a nail into your AC coolant line! Do not ask me how I know that! :-) I used the Harditrim but next time I think I will opt for something that looks a bit better.
Good Luck
Thanks. Jeez I "forgot" that I will have to be ripping pieces. Looks like i'll be buying two blades. One for the 12" and one for the circular.
I didn't think about the dust, I'll get a new mask as well.
I'm actually going with cedar trim. Now I just have to decide do I want to go rough or smooth side out.
I believe i'll be installing approx 65 12' boards +/- most of my cuts will be just ends. I only have one window and one door.
Thanks for the input.
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"It is so, because Piffin tells me it is."
Edited 1/7/2005 11:15 am ET by sailfish
I can second all that. I am doing the siding with Hardi and the big problem is working with the stuff at heights. The major thing that I would mention is that Hitachi makes a blade for Hardi that I found on ebay for about $20. Also feel free to contact your Hardi rep - He can out to the site for me and gave me some very helpful hints and thoughts.
Interesting I am building in NH with a standing seam metal; roof with out gutters and he mentioned that I should not use Hardi siding next to the deck and the runoff will splash on the deck and saturate the Hardi board and then rot the sheathing! Still looking at options there.
Ron
Sailfish...I just installed a little hardie plank. It was just a cantilevered chimney box. 18'' pieces onthe sides, 49'' pieces on the fronts. I cut and ripped with my dewalt 18 tooth carbide framing blade. I'm still using the same blade for framing.
As long as you don't push it, the blade will hold up fine. You don't need special blades. I once tried a special diamond blade recommended by hardie. I hit a thin staple on the second cut and the blade was RUINED! I went back to marathons and have never given it another thought.
Of course...since I bury most cuts under the corner boards and rake boards...I don't even use a saw...I just karate chop it with my hammer claws and it breaks.
blueJust because you can, doesn't mean you should!
Warning! Be cautious when taking any framing advice from me. Although I have a lifetime of framing experience, all of it is considered bottom of the barrel by Gabe. According to him I am not to be counted amongst the worst of the worst. If you want real framing information...don't listen to me..just ask Gabe!
The Hitachi diamond blades are worth the money if you have more than 50 cuts. Carbide starts dragging after 25 pieces, and it will be useless after 50. But as you noted, Hardi blades don't cut steel worth a damn ;-)
Edited 1/7/2005 7:16 pm ET by TJK
I agree with the use of cheap marathon blades for cutting it.We tried a diamond blade and it cut slo and was hard to control (skidding nad climbing the cut)Buy a cheap saw and just dedicate its use for hardi board cuz it will grind out the bearings.The $ u save on specialtiy blades will buy the saw.I made a jig for the boards to sit in with a sled for the saw to crosscut on .I put a little view window along side the kerf so u can line up the cut.
In addition to what Ikor mentioned there is a powered shear made by Pacific International Tool & Shear. There are three models. Best of all no abrasive and choking dust to deal with Web site is: http://www.snappershear.com
Bing
The shear makes less dust, but the cut is pretty ragged compared to a blade. It also tends to delaminate the boards in curves and with sharp corners. They're probably OK though if the cut edges are hidden under trim boards or brickmold.
Yea. I've done it. I made a hook shaped thingy out of a pieces of strap framing anchor (terminology?). I thought I was oh so slick... although it was still time consuming... Then I graduated to using it for fascia. Man was I cool. Then, on one particular project, I forgot to remove the hook before fully nailing the board. Of coarse this was my last piece of fascia for the job... No spare boards. Took me about a 1/2 hr to get that booger out without tearing the board up. Moral of the story: get a helper - you will be able to work 3x as fast - with less frustration!
Edited 1/7/2005 8:27 pm ET by DIRISHINME
When there were just two of us siding (one guy walking the plank, one guy cutting), I would set a nail For 8 1/4" Hardi, I use a 7" reveal. I've used the Labor Saver and it works. The Malco works better and these work the best http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000AQKA2/qid=1105153897/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1_etk-tools/102-0931137-7484152?v=glance&s=hi&n=228013
For some courses, I'll just trust the guage. If it has to match at a corner, then I lay everything out, but for gables, the Geckos work really well.
Also, while a carbide blade will work, it gets really hot and warps when gang cutting siding. Get a hitachi blade and use and old Skil and you can cut 7 peices at once. I'll cut 8 and you just bend the last peice to break it at that joint. It is not a hack thing to do when it's covered by caulking.
I would like to try the scoring knife. Next time I side, I'm going to try one. Right now we are working with HardiShakes and I HATE them.
Have fun :-)
Those Malcos are on sale at Amazon.com for 14.99. That includes the siding tool and guage. I ordered two sets and the shiping was free. Evaluations by customers were very positive. You can get to the site easily by following your link and then moving down and viewing the area where it shows what other customers also purchased.