As temperatures drop and winter weather threatens, Peter and Supi are toiling against the onset of winter. They’re taking advantage of shop work when possible, fabricating post bases — piece-by-piece — painstaking duplicating our boathouse‘s existing post and railing details while ensuring the most hardy, weatherproof construction possible to ensure the longevity of these handsome architectural elements that will be installed in the most challenging conditions on the entire Rosslyn property. It takes master craftsman to to marry these delicate aesthetic details with such a demanding, punishing environment. And there is no other way to describe the conditions endured by the boathouse and the boathouse gangway.
The trim molding is being shaped, one router pass after the other to match the existing details. These will then be secured to the railing posts above the bases being fabricated below. Piece-by-piece the carpenters are transforming a vision into a railing. And today sections have been handed off to Erin who has begun installing the first coat of primer to cure, be re-sanded and re-primed. Once primers are properly cured we will begin to paint, again building up to well cured coats in a controlled, heated environment so that when these elements finally reach their destination along the shore of Lake Champlain, they will be not only beautiful, but well protected from the Adirondack Coast winter elements.
Piece-by-Piece Mashup
In keeping with the spirit of previous updates, here’s a quick remix of Peter and Supi’s painstaking, piece-by-piece post base fabrication for the historic rehabilitation of Rosslyn’s boathouse gangway railing.
What do you think?