Log Building Course

Log Building 101

Are you thinking about building your own handcrafted log home or log cabin? Fancy a career change? Or just want to try something different?

Log building requires a completely unique set of skills from selecting the logs and stripping off the bark, to scribing and cutting them out accurately and efficiently.

At BLC we want to share our skills and knowledge to help expand our industry in the UK. We want to bring handcrafted log construction into the public eye, and help it to become a more mainstream building method.

The materials that we use are sustainable and the structures we build are solid, stunningly beautiful, and last for hundreds of years. Log building is great fun whether you want to learn the skills to use in your own project of whether you want to make a career out of it.

In 2021 we are running another log building course covering the basics of log construction. Once you have completed the two-week course you will have the knowledge and basic skills to be able to build a simple four sided log structure with a post and purlin roof system.

The is run over two weeks and covers:

Log building hazards and safety

  • 1. Log selection
  • 2. Log stripping
  • 3. The principles of building from log centres
  • 4. Cutting your half logs
  • 5. Rough scribing and scribing
  • 6. The Scandinavian saddle notch
  • 7. Post and purlin roof calculations
  • 8. Post and purlin roof cutting
  • 9. Cutting and preparing saddles
  • 10. Chainsaw techniques
  • 11. Axe techniques
  • 12. Cutting out (Chainsaw)
  • 13. Cutting out (Axe and hand tools)

Pre-requisites

Pre-requisites for the course are:

  • 1. Chainsaw ticket (CS30 - maintenance and cross-cut minimum)
  • 2. Supply of your own chainsaw appropriate PPE
  • 3. Passion to learn new skills
  • 4. A reasonable level of physical fitness
  • 5. A reasonable level of physical fitness

Course Info

There is a lot of information to cover in the two weeks available as most of the skills covered are entirely unique. The course is a great introduction to building handcrafted log cabins.

On the course you will learn the unique skills involved in traditional log building from stripping logs to scribing as well as accurate chainsaw skills and axe work, all using the Scandinavian saddle notch method as approved by the International Log Builders' Association.

We will work on the construction of a small handcrafted log cabin using Douglas Fir or Western Red Cedar.

The next course dates are:

4th August 2021-15th August (excluding 9th & 10th)

The price of the 2021 course is £2,000 + vat

This includes:

  • 10 days instruction
  • Exclusive written course booklet
  • Professional Log Builders to teach and supervise the course
  • Logs for practicing select skills and for the construction of the course cabin
  • All tools and fuel
  • Certificate of competence upon completion

Please note

Log building is an inherently dangerous practice.

All participants on the course will be required to sign a waiver before being allowed to take part.

A £1000 deposit is required to secure your place on the course with the balance due 4 weeks prior to the course start date. Due to high demand places will be reserved on a first come first serve basis.

The course will take place at our yard in Welshpool (your own transport will be required as our site is remote).

Accommodation is not provided but there are hotels, B & B’s, campsites within the local area.

If course enrollment is low for any reason (such as a pandemic) and the course is cancelled by us, you will receive a full refund of your deposit. If you decide to withdraw from the course the deposit is transferrable to a subsequent course or to another participant, but unfortunately cannot be refunded.

TOP