building a yurt for the winter...

[njtool]

Thanks guys,
I don't want dangling nails either. I was thinking about putting the heads on the inside. You make a good point about breaking the lath.

I didn't want to tie 2000 knots but maybe I should reconsider. As for bolts... way to expensive and time consuming for me. Lol

[Jafo]

My concern with the nails would be ripping the wall fabric. What about rivets?

Traditional yurts use rawhide, but I understand they need to be replaced periodically so keep that in mind.

[njtool]

I will look into finding some quality paracord and try to get up the nerve to tie that many knots

[Jafo]

Hahahaha.. That does sound daunting. Let us know how it turns out.

[njtool]

More work on the platform today. The base for the platform is finished. Next I have to cut 2x6's to make the platform. Lots of mill work.

Here is my home made circle jig. It did a great job. Now I can get a feel for the finished space.

[Bob Rowlands]

Building the wall and assemblng hundreds of connectors takes patience. However what REALLY challenges that patience is finding out you screwed up and made them too tight, or that the washers rattle in the wind. I enjoyed building my yurt but tweaking all those bolts, and especially pulling hundreds of washers, and cracking some laths in the process, now that part just wasn't any fun at all. If your laths are thicker than 5/16ths you are less prone to breaking them.

If I was doing this again, I'd use 1/2" or thicker laths, and steam bend them. Tying with cordage is the way to go. Quiet in wind, plenty tight, strong enough, easy to fold and unfold, and easy to replace if necessary, wall erected or down.

Initially I built my yurt with perfection in mind. I wanted it on the money, everywhere. Perfectly tight wall, taught cable, no roof flex, everything exacting, because that's the way I am. But in fact it IS a tent. Tying works fine. I now know yurts don't even need a cable. A rope around the perimeter would be just fine, just like they do in Mongolia. Those folks really do have this stuff all figured out.

[Bob Rowlands]

There are a few Youtube videos of Mongolians assembling their traditional nomadic-not Americanized- yurts. They aren't pulling wrenches to assemble anything. The entire tent is tied/lashed, including the ring supports (bagana) to the ring. If I was doing this again, I'd go Mongolian. Tie the lath crosses, lash the wall sections together, lash the door to the frame, and tension with a rope, or cloth band. Plenty good enough. Running threaded bolts through skinny laths, not so red hot. Live and learn.

You're doing good. Keep it up.

[Bob Rowlands]

There are also photos and video of Mongolian yurts that are made with pole rafters, and shoot/ sapling walls. I'm no yurt scholar, but in my estimation, the first yurts were made with local materials requiring no machinlng or machined precision. Yurt walls, rafters, door was all natural materials, and all bound with cordage or rawhide. Todays Americanized yurts as as different from that as ilf carbon limbed olympic bows are from selfbows and self arrows tipped with knapped heads.

[njtool]

I finished milling the 2x6's for the floor joists. 5 logs gave me over 400 running feet of lumber. Next is the layout...

[Bob Rowlands]

This thread has become superb dude. I really like guys that do it all themselves.