The Sawtooth handcrafted log house, a full scribe log home from Caribou Creek, will make you fall in love. Full scribe style, also known as Swedish Cope or Scandinavian full-scribe, is a construction method that craftsmen use to transfer the contours from the lower log onto the upper one. Then, they cut the upper log to fit snugly. To prevent bugs from entering your log home, a layer is added to the lateral joints of the logs as they are being assembled. This style does not require chinking and fits together very tightly. Logs will settle to adjust to their final environment. This is normal and makes the log homes even more compact. These construction techniques account for settling and work with natural wood movements to allow for this movement. The builders will work closely with your log home contractor to help them determine the best methods for finishing a log house made from live building materials.

Preparation and wood selection are the first steps in building a log home. Each of the Caribou Creek custom log homes, timber frame home, dovetail homes and log cabins starts in the same way. They hand-select each log for the log house structure. The next step is the debarking. After that, they are placed into the kilns for drying. The logs are dried in their own kilns, which allows them to control the moisture content and final quality. To minimize waste, craftsmen select logs that match the log members they are building.

Next, the logs will be brought into the construction yard to be hand peeled. This will remove any bark and give the logs a clean, smooth surface. Hand-hewing and hand-scoring are options for timber frames or dovetail homes made from squared timbers. This texture is very popular, as it gives the timbers an aged look and adds unique character.

There are many log surface textures available, including skip peeling, rough sawn and circle sawn. Cedar Creek uses Hand Peeled for all its log projects. Each log is hand-peeled with an axe and a drawknife, giving it a traditional texture. The skip-peeled logs can be hand-peeled with a drawknife to leave streaks of the darker inner bark for a rustic look. This rustic look is reminiscent of old, rustic cabins. Rough Sawn, the standard for all timber projects, is timbers that are rough sawn using the band sawmill and leave behind straight saw marks (this is most common option).

Circle Sawn timbers can be rough sawn with a circular blade. This leaves behind curved saw marks. Hand-hewn timbers have a rustic look and are hand-hewn. Axe Hewn timbers mimic the look of logs, and are hand-hewn with a broadaxe to give them a rustic, heavy appearance. Antique timbers are rough-hewn, then media blasted in order to raise the grain. This gives them a weathered appearance. Smooth timbers are planed on all surface visible for a smooth finish.

You can find more information about this story at: Caribou Creek Log Homes Inc.