I like the new color

nice dog too

What are the Falkland's ceiling heights? Adequate for 6 feet or taller? It looks like a great place to knock back a few.

Was in Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem in Nottingham years ago and the ceiling was LOW.

Speechless. I have been watching this off and on for many moons and I just do not have suitable words. Mr. Ahab Sir, the quality of your build, and your wife and your life, and your character, are unexcelled. VERY glad you are sharing this with us.

Thanks Superduperman, your post made my day as I read it when I came in after a wet evening of digging last week

Autumn has arrived and the weather has been very wet, this is the reason why England and my house this time of year is so green :(

I've been keeping fit digging away in the evenings, lowering the driveway under floodlight and another full 20 ton grab truck load of my diggings gone 😎 💪 This is the before!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1605398448.jpg

Also used my 9" grinder with it's infamous diamond tipped blade to do tricky curved cuts on 3" thick flagstones so they fit neatly around our 'surprise find' dry stone water well. The gravel border against the walls is for drainage

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1605398597.jpg

The 'surprise' was all on me, years ago when breaking up a concrete path while building our rear extension, my demolition hammer fell into the well hole with me nearly following it 😲

Well is only 12ft deep as it's been partially filled in with rubble but I'm convinced it's a lot deeper as a neighbor's is 75ft deep.

I tidied up the dry stone well sides and started digging it out but got paranoid I was standing on a blocked plug of earth/rubble which was stopping me having a long fall to the bottom 😟 Still need to add spotlights and replace the temporary oak boards covering it with some thick glass

Why glass?

BTW, I've been following this thread all along. Simply fantastic!!!!

Captain, throw an old Roman coin in the well, and then call Time Team and have them excavate the well! ;)

When you showed that opening around that turret earlier, I was hopping that you were going to creat a nice planter to soften that area near your door.

Are you saying that there is a big hollow under that area?

Could you fill it with the diggings, then add some nice potting soil and nice planting, herbs, flowers, what ever to soften the all stone look.
Just a thought.

Carry on with your amazing project. You are doing great!

Cheers Richard

Any chance we can see the exact 180 deg shot of this from the inside (wood or no wood)? I'd love to see how it's incorporated into the inner space!


Ps - you two have done an amazing job, and I'm grateful you've shared this project with us!

Zeke, apologies, don't think I explained the well very well :D Behind the curved wall on the floor on the inside of my house is a 4ft wide 12ft deep hole. Glass cover is so you can see down the well with some discrete spotlights while standing over it

Glen, that's a genius idea, like your devious thinking !!!!

Richard, Mrs Ahab prefers the the flexibility of plants in pots so there will be some green thumb action going on there although I'm not sure what yet

daepp, not much to show on the other side as it's clutter with stuff

Excitement this week was 16 yew trees arrived, Mrs Ahab had them unpacked, holes dug, tree's planted with equal spaces and even checked they were vertical using a spirit level before the day was out :cool:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606088052.jpg

Should mature into a solid, ever green hedge which will add privacy to the garden and some grandeur to the driveway

I'm thinking of how I can design, make and attach a track so I can clip in a hedge trimmer to a sliding trolley/frame so I can trim it perfectly each time without it taking me hours to do

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606088698.jpg

In a few years from now we're hoping it will look like a more curvy version of this

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606088431.jpg

Driveway is now lowered, only have a small area under the drive through to do, lost count of how much I've dug up and shifted, must be easily more than 50 tons

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606664615.jpg

Access is now a bit tight so clearing up of the drive through is needed. A local farmer is all booked up to drop off a trailer next weekend so we can enjoy an afternoon full of healthy, family activities :D

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606664446.jpg

Bottom of the shed opening was only 6" above ground level, so I built a small retaining wall during the summer to go with the lowered driveway height. Added some teeth too! :D

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606664904.jpg

Still got a lots of 'keep fit' digging to do for the rain water soak away/pipes and before pouring the car turntable slab. Should keep me fit during the long winter nights

At it's most untidy.....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606665082.jpg

Not there yet but progress none the less :cool:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606665595.jpg

What a project.

You need to add some upper teeth.http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1606666107.jpg

What is easier to dig, wet or dry?

Is the indoor well so you wouldn't have to go outside for water?

The possibilities are nearly endless. There could be temporary 'expressions.' eyebrows, cheeks, moustache, lipstick.... In fact eyebrows hung from chains could be moved daily according to mood, even remotely. Fun!

It's not got off to a good start so far but I sincerely hope everyone has a Happy and COVID-Free New Year :)

Lots of man cave stuff done, lots more to do, so many more updates to come……

Almost 3 yrs into this now :eek: still enjoying our build most of the time but it's all starting to drag on a bit. Mrs Ahab deserves a finished house and I want my man cave :cool:

Only really 2 options for hurrying up progress,

easy route is buying in trades people to do everything
satisfying route is getting on with it ourselves and buying in a few trades for the trickier work we can't do ie electrical and plastering

No prizes for guessing which way 2021 is going to go........ ;)

I have been missing the updates from this thread...
Happy New Year to you too.

Pay through the nose, get substandard workmanship and regret not having done it yourself... BTDT.

Happy New Year!

Yes, Happy New Year!

Yes, Mrs. Ahab does deserve that.

It's your call, but there should be a photo portfolio upon completion. Your house belongs in a calendar. I have never had so much fun watching a Man Cave build. You were smart to create and maintain this diary of progress and photos, and we are the beneficiaries.

Really too bad you guys didn't video this whole build. Would have been a great TV series....

A friend of mine worked at a restoration shop that became a show.
It brought the restoration process to a snails pace.