Greetings from the Pennsylvania Wilds

Welcome Bill. I too was a stalker for a while before coming out....I'd say you're likely more a contributor then an asker....beautiful work and the fly rod case is down right gorgeous. So, will the garage ever be a garage or is there a proper shop to be built in the future? Back when I was doing HVAC, mostly design build zoning systems, I had a customer from Canada that bought a house for his retirement home. His western windows faced the Blue Ridge Mountains and was a fantastic view. The house while having great bones was something that required a great deal of work. He hired a New Zealand boat builder which I though really strange.....until I saw what he could do.

While most of the work was done with minimal power tools and my part of the work was being done in stages as the house progressed....very slowly, I was blown away with the joints he was using for things like the trim around the windows. They were mitered but differently as he would do for his boats. The flooring was cherry as was most of the bathroom and kitchen.

In the course of about 2 years the house had gone from what I had thought would have been better to bulldoze to a masterpiece. Every detail was carefully planned and executed to perfection. I'm sure he knew of a few mistakes but only he would ever know where they were. The spindles for the staircase were all turned by him as were the stair treads carefully hand picked and placed. Made my job of designing and installing an water source geothermal heat pump system with 11 zones look like child's play. Each zone of course had it's own schedule and set points for heating and cooling. Sometimes I miss those days until I think of the attics and crawl spaces I've been in.

The home you guys built look every bit the craftsman's home and not your typical builder type. Again welcome to the group, looking forward to more pictures.