Sandstone barn build

[Ghostwriter]

HI, During lockdown 2020 I decided to build a home for a 1938 ute I own, I am a Signwriter and have never attempted Stonemasory before, besides the roof capping It is all my work, I thought it needed to be in a style that complimented the age of the car. I tracked down some cheap sandstone from a guy who was digging out under his house a few suburbs away.

It has taken 2 years to get to this stage but I only work on it when I feel like it as I didn't want it to feel like a hard slog.

Nearly all of it was from recycled materials but all the sand, cement, reo, nails, bolts & screws are from Bunnings Kirrawee.  

Hope you enjoy, Brad

[Noelle]

Hi @Ghostwriter 

Thanks for your entry in the DIY Ideas competition! Your sandstone barn looks amazing, and what a terrific idea for garaging your classic ute.

It's a big project to tackle considering you had no previous stone masonry skills and I love your use of recycled materials - makes it very authentic.

Good luck!

[Dave-1]

Impressive! Looks like a really nice and stylish job!

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Ghostwriter. It's sensational to have you join us, and many thanks for sharing this amazing project.

Did you shape these blocks yourself from raw sandstone, or was the guy digging out the blocks? I'm already astounded by your craftmanship, but I can't even imagine the amount of work needed to shape those blocks.

I love the build's whole style and how you've created a structure to compliment your classic car. I'm also really impressed by the amount of work you've gone to here and trust you are very proud of the results. 

Well done!

Mitchell
 

[Ghostwriter]

HI Mitchell

Thanks for your interest and compliments. The blocks are sawn out of a solid shelf of rock, so if you could imagine a sandstone floor (under a house) into which a grid of saw cuts is sawn into with a petrol saw. to a depth of about 200mm, then the blocks are busted out with a pry bar. What you end up with is a pretty ugly block, some break out with a decent face but 80% of them need to be shaped or at least dressed to look traditional, some take 20mins or so (probably 1000 blows) to give the hand hewn look . I used a fossickers hammer with a chisel shaped point to chip away so that there was no sawn edges visible. Yes it was very time consuming and not something I would have attempted without the luxury of time that Covid lockdown gifted us.

Regards,,, Brad

[MitchellMc]

Many thanks for the additional info Brad (@Ghostwriter). It makes this project even more remarkable, knowing you played a part in hand-crafting those blocks. Truly amazing stuff!

Mitchell

[Noyade]

Wow again!

Hi @Ghostwriter 

"I am a Signwriter and have never attempted Stonemasory before."

Impressive sir. Do you think stonemasory could be a new career? Sounds like hard physical work?

[Ghostwriter]

Hi Noyade,

Thank you,,,I do enjoy it, "a lot", every where I go I'm looking at stone, lol, I even tried this while I off with Covid. As part of the barn... Regards, BB

  

[Noyade]

What tools did you use for "2020" - ?

The numbers even have a perfect looking centre line - in the cavity?

There has to be a big call for this skill for historic buildings - Sydney/Melbourne?

Wanna branch out into gravestones? Now there's a growing demand.

[Ghostwriter]

Hi Noyade

I don't know if you saw, but I am a signwriter so lettering is my thing. I drew it on with a pencil, then I roughly drilled along the centre line of each stroke with a 6mm masonry drill, this gave me something to chip towards, So then it was just a matter of using a small flat cold chisel, going around chipping from the pencil line in towards the centre creating the 'V" shape as you go. To be totally honest I was blown away by how easy it was. it only took about 20 mins per letter, which is a bit long, but when you know it's going to last 200 years it's nothing right?. Thanks for your interest,,,give it a try,,,regards,,, Brad