The first roof beam is installed in a front porch for a light clay/fibre home. Rafters will sit on two roof beams and a ridge beam as the base of the Japanese layered roof system.
The wood is Port Orford white cedar, a cousin to the cypress commonly used in Japan for timber frame building.
Tim took this photo during a Japanese timber framing course taught by Dale Brotherton and Robert Laporte. For more information, visit their websites at www.japanesecarpentry.com and www.econest.com