When all else fails...... Fuch it and make it yourself!

[Zeke]

You and your buddy can probably make these and sell them all over the place. I'd say take one to the local flea, upscale if you can, like Costa Mesa.

As you know now, installing is a completely different game. Just when you think you've got the hang of it, along comes a curve ball slider. I'm talking about serious jamb alignment issues. It's really handy to be able to 'read' a jamb before you even take the old door off the hinges. I can't explain this w/o devoting a chapter and then on site experience is needed.

Lately for grins and giggles I have been watching YT vids on hanging doors. Every one is missing something. Like looking at a door to see which way it's bowed. They all have a bow even if very slight. If the door has an outside and inside then there's nothing you can do but put it up outside facing outside. Given a choice, you would put the bow so that the top and bottom edge hit the stop first. There's a reason, but that's in the chapter.

If the thing has any kind of twist, you're in for a long day. Most exterior jambs are rabbeted while interior ones have applied stops. Easy peasy to move applied stops to accommodate a door's idiosyncrasies. Not so much with exterior types of jamb.

We have a situation sometimes when a jamb is "walked" or "scissored." That's when the top jamb is not perfectly parallel to a straight edge run across the bottom of the opening from L to R. That's a beotch.

Advice? Make doors — don't install them.

I get people who want to buy a salvage door and take it home to install in their frame. Good freakin' luck. It can be done, but that's one situation where I'd first make a new jamb to fit such a door and install the thing as a unit. This is how 90% of new doors are installed today. No one wants to fuss with hanging in an existing opening.

Now, ol' Tex....

[legion]

That's impressive. You could sell some $10,000 doors.

[PRE-H20]

Legion- thanks brother... thats what i was thinking! hahaha.

compared to the 8k doors i have seen, they arent even close.

[serene911]

Great job and out of the box thinking. Successful attempt at creating the rustic look
you were after. Another alternative that many people overlook is to order what we
call a store door. That is a wood door with the full glass lite. You order the door open
without the glass. They usually run anywhere from $300.00 to about $750.00
depending on the size,type of wood etc.. Then hire an accomplished glass artist to
design and fabricate a leaded ,beveled panel or etched / carved glass for the door.
You will end up with a custom door that is designed for you at under the crazy pricing
you were originally looking at. I'm a glass artist and have taken this approach for my
clients over the past 4 decades. Every client loves the results. In your case maybe the
glass approach would not have given you the rustic look you were after, but generally
it offers alot of options. I'm sure Zeke knows what I am referring to. Again congrats on
a great effort !

[PRE-H20]

thanks Serene911........ coming from a craftsman like you, that means alot...... both you and milt have made my day........

i am continuing to get some very positive remarks on the comedy of errors door in differnt platforms.....

i was joking about my mother in law wanting one....... after she saw it, she was floored and i think my father in law is gonna pull the trigger and ask for one. wow.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by Zeke

You and your buddy can probably make these and sell them all over the place. I'd say take one to the local flea, upscale if you can, like Costa Mesa.

As you know now, installing is a completely different game. Just when you think you've got the hang of it, along comes a curve ball slider. I'm talking about serious jamb alignment issues. It's really handy to be able to 'read' a jamb before you even take the old door off the hinges. I can't explain this w/o devoting a chapter and then on site experience is needed.

Lately for grins and giggles I have been watching YT vids on hanging doors. Every one is missing something. Like looking at a door to see which way it's bowed. They all have a bow even if very slight. If the door has an outside and inside then there's nothing you can do but put it up outside facing outside. Given a choice, you would put the bow so that the top and bottom edge hit the stop first. There's a reason, but that's in the chapter.

If the thing has any kind of twist, you're in for a long day. Most exterior jambs are rabbeted while interior ones have applied stops. Easy peasy to move applied stops to accommodate a door's idiosyncrasies. Not so much with exterior types of jamb.

We have a situation sometimes when a jamb is "walked" or "scissored." That's when the top jamb is not perfectly parallel to a straight edge run across the bottom of the opening from L to R. That's a beotch.

Advice? Make doors — don't install them.

I get people who want to buy a salvage door and take it home to install in their frame. Good freakin' luck. It can be done, but that's one situation where I'd first make a new jamb to fit such a door and install the thing as a unit. This is how 90% of new doors are installed today. No one wants to fuss with hanging in an existing opening.

Now, ol' Tex....

I was smart enough to hire a real pro to hang our new solid core front door, and storm door. I am so glad I did. He even hauled away the old ugly steel door. It was fun to watch. Like watching a chef in the kitchen, he never stopped and had to go back for a missed step. He never even looked at the instructions. He of course had to remove the old jamb, and put in the new jamb. Long heavy duty screws into the 2x4 frame of the house.
Many years later the front door unlocks and locks perfectly, without having to push or pull on the handle. It opens and closes like it should and is very solid. He did it the way is is supposed to be done.

[PRE-H20]

"I was smart enough to hire a real pro................." hahahaha.....

i stopped reading after the 1st line..... we were NOT smart enough!...... then again we thought it was going be a piece of cake to build, the hanging was challenging.....

i we didnt do anything the way it was supposed to be done (fishing line technique) butttttt..... i cant complain, im pretty happy with all the missteps along the way..... had a good experience overall and my buddy and i have some stories to tell now.

at the end of the day i think GH85Carrera way is a better way for sure! sure as heck would have been easier.

i hope to have the same luck you did brother, but i suspect ill have to do some adjusting in the years to come.. i guess thats ok too and to be expected.

[Zeke]

RE: the fishing line. You know, it's real but at the same time it's folklore. You can do the same with a 6' level. Even a straight edge. It has to touch all the hinges from one side and from 90º to that. 3 hinge doors, 4 hinge Dutch doors or big doors with 3, 4 or 5 hinges. A steel rod down through all the hinges would be science, but how do you get it out?

You don't.

[billybek]

Great thread and nice job on the door!

A friend of mine is a very good carpenter and had taught me the basics of hanging a door.

I am slow as molasses in January doing that work but I am satisfied with the work that I do!

Like Zeke said, a quality 6' level is required and I used a crap load of shims to keep everything square.
If I was doing this and being paid by the hour I would be making about .50 cents per...

Talented carpenters are worth paying but doing it yourself has a great value too. Depends on how much time you have.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by billybek

Great thread and nice job on the door!...

If I was doing this and being paid by the hour I would be making about .50 cents per...

Talented carpenters are worth paying but doing it yourself has a great value too. Depends on how much time you have.

+1....been following it too.

I'd love to make .50/hr....but I refuse to cut corrners and rush my projects...learning as I go

Simply awesome work!

[PRE-H20]

try and make a frame, molding, and door stop?

so my buddy (who happens to be my neighbor, litterally across the street) and i were talking about a couple of the tweeks we need to make to the door and we started talking about the old door stop and frame on the outside of the house, then we started in on the inside of the house.......

oh dammit... here we go again.

off to home depot and we bought some REALLY rough planks of wood. we cut them the size last night and dialed 911 on our phones in case the place went up in flames like last time.

we started to burn the pieces for the look we got on the door....... slathered some of the sealer on and wammo! same look as the door.....

tonight, the second coat of sealer goes on and tomorrow we mount the whole set

Lets see how THIS fiasco goes..... hahahahahaha

[PRE-H20]

so early on in this thread i mentioned i had been doing some small upgrades to my house...... since i was showing the door, i would also share some of the other things this summer brought. im glad its almost over.....

started with the "PATIO" and made it into a "Living Space" at least thats what my beloved wife calls it..... hahaha








we went from that......

to....................

[PRE-H20]

TO THIS!

super cool audio system with directional speakers/tweeters

52 inch TV

in wall heater with LEDS that change colors (not my idea hahahaha)

[PRE-H20]

Then onto the yard......

[PRE-H20]

[PRE-H20]

cant forget cold beverages!