These days, timber framing encompasses not only traditional approaches/designs, but also an large variety of hybrid designs. Hip roofs aren't common in traditional timber framing, but they occur regularly today. This script was designed around a common approach, housing the jack rafter, clipping the acute angle of the jack's plumb cut, and setting one or more structural screws from the side. These are countersunk & plugged usually, although faux pegs can also be used.
Mods
Adjusting insertion defaults are the only recommended user modifications for the JackRafter script. There is an option in the script to extend the cuts on the jack in order to accommodate less than perfect calibration of the CNC machinery -- any error in calibration is compounded @ steep angles. You can adjust the amount added, currently 1" extra is hard-coded.
Here a green jack rafter is connected to a maroon hip. Although not desireable, frequently the height of the plumb cut of the jack is taller than the plumb height of the face of the hip, the script includes an option to clip the jack so that it can be supported by the housing. When selecting to clip the jack you must also specify a housing offset for the cut to be made. This allows the designer to immediately specify the amount of wood remaining below the housing.
Insertion defaults can be customized to your most common settings. Here the default housing is specified as 1/2", and the 1 in iHogNum sets 1 screw as the default number of fasteners.
Line 40 defines the amount of extra length added to the top cuts of the jack. The amount will be added in the direction of the beam axis for the cut @ the face of the housing, the cut @ sharp point of the jack, and the relief cut if it's selected for.
Caveats
- The script displays penetration depth, but does not set screw length automatically as some of my scripts do. You need to set the screw length manually, and check up on the penetration depth in the OPM.
- When you select to do a relief cut in the jack, you must also enter a housing offset in order to see the cut on the jack.
- There are no options for the housing on the hip currently, it is cut with a "minimum" approach with the assumption the housing will be finished by hand later.
- Steep saw cut angles can result in length errors on Hundeggers, as small calibration problems are magnified. In order to address this problem, there is an option to "Extend Length" in the OPM. Make sure the production end of your company is aware of this if you choose to utilize this option.
