Katy Dickinson

Lumber Dimensions Have Changed Since 1916

Between church events last weekend, John finished filling in the hole a prior owner cut into our 91-year-old caboose's wall. WP668 was made from first growth fir in 1916. Except for the hole, the walls and ceiling are in good condition, as is 1/2 of the floor. The other 1/2 of the floor needs replacing.

One of the problems in restoration is that standard lumber dimensions have changed since 1916. The original exterior boards are 2" x 6" and the interior boards are 1" x 6". Boards now for sale are called "two by six" but actually measure 1-1/2" x 5-1/2". Similarly, "one by six" boards now measure 3/4" x 5-1/2". This little difference means that John had to add slim filler boards to make the new tongue and groove slot firmly into the old.

WP668's original boards were also thicker than standard boards now sold. Fir in the size we wanted for the interior boards was not readily available, so John ended up buying unsanded redwood boards and having them milled into tongue and groove since those were closest to the 1916 thickness. First growth fir has almost no knots because the trees they were cut from were bigger. That is, there was more interior wood so fewer boards had scars from branches (knots). The redwood John bought is good lumber but each board has at least one knot. All of these differences will eventually be hidden under the paint.

WP668 looks like its interior was sandblasted at least once. Some of the soft parts of the wood boards have been scoured away. Also, we have found sand between the walls. We are discussing whether to paint over the boards as they are or try to sand them more level. My preference is to leave the dark honey colored ceiling as it is (stains and all), paint the walls white and refinish the boards on the floor once the damages there have been repaired. The problem is that about 10' (1/3) of the ceiling was painted white after it was sandblasted. (I keep wondering what the story is behind the white paint since WP668's original interior paint color was light green.) I am going to experiment with sanding away the ceiling paint to see how the wood looks under it. I am concerned that the sanding will change the color and surface texture. We will see.

Here are some photos of WP668's ceiling from last year before we put on the new roof:

WP668 caboose ceiling wood and paint:

WP668 caboose ceiling long view:

Images Copyright 2006 by Katy Dickinson

Posted at 03:24PM Jun 11, 2007 by katysblog in Caboose Project and Other Trains  |