Broad Ley Greenwood Structures

08/02/2026

Following on from preparing
two poles for a porch restoration I have fitted/scribed them in to the existing structure.
I also replaced other timber members too that had disintegrated and fell to pieces in my hands. Carefully manuvering heavy poles by myself over a 12 ft drop either side required
some concentration and fore thought and patience. Particularly guiding in tenons on the return rails. As simple as it looks it was a milimetre by milimetre
slow process. Thankfully experience prevailed.
All done. The next stage is too replicate the ornate oak benches inside
Happy days. Andy.

24/01/2026

Hi all. I have spent the morning
shaping these 2 roundwood posts to replace a pair on a porch locally. One is Oak from a nearby wood and the other Cornish/Lizard elm ( a variety of English Elm found only on the Lizard according to some experts ). The Elm
is particularly useful in Construction as it has a
large diameter heartwood ( visible in the tenons ) which will readily receive a metal fixing giving any structure good
integrity. I use a mitre box/Gig for accurately measuring logs and poles in their natural state. Also these posts are the last of a batch ( 5 years felled ) and consequently pretty hard. My tools are now in for a good sharpen!
Cheers. Andy.

30/12/2025

Hi there. Myself and Davy Luscombe finished cutting out this Oak garage before Xmas. It was pleasing to get stuck into some green oak again after being involved in site work. It felt great to be under cover again in a workshop as the weather grew wetter towards the end of the year. Mind you we did get fairly damp and buffeted by the wind raising the frame outdoors. We both loved the proportions of this particular one. It now just needs cladding on the gables. I'm keen for another. Anyone out there requiring a timber structure please call.
Cheers. Andy. 07856 07856 227404.

14/10/2025

Hi there. I was recently discussing this construction with a friend who I also work on projects with. I was one of a small team who cut this one out and raised it in coronation park in Helston. It is at first glance a large joinery
kit bolted together but the method we had to resort to was more akin to that I would adopt
for a bespoke scribed frame. Although factory manufactured, the glulam curved beams were all very different in shape which caught us off guard. We had to take a new approach to ensure that every timber member would fit together on site. 700 bolts later and had we succeeded. It was extra special taking part in this as I knew it would be for public use and entertainments. A very positive feel good factor....

17/09/2025

Hi folks. Here's a few pics of my latest project. The structure can be viewed in the drawing and the braces that will be used within ( shown as straight in the drawing ) were shaped by me recently. I am using 4 year air-dried Oak,
Holly & Sweet Chestnut from my stock, all sourced in local woodland. The posts and main rafters will be cut from Douglas fir and on show. When the build has progressed a little I will post further pics. I am always on the look out for future projects so get on touch if you are thinking about having a garden room or outdoor office, a barn or a shed. Whether it is for recreational/domestic use or just a plain old functional workshop, give me a ring on 07856
07856 227404. Oh and I've added a picture of my apple press safely housed underneath a covered area of a shed I built at home. Cheers. Andy

17/09/2025

17/08/2025

Hi there folks. Few more pictures of some of the more general and conventional work I do along side Specialist traditional timber framing.
As a trained bench joiner I still turn my hand to making bespoke doors and windows for sheds and out houses and garden rooms as well as designing and constructing the buildings themselves. I use ' off the shelf ' building materials as well as natural cladding and natural hardwood posts mainly Oak, Elm & holly sourced locally....

16/07/2025

I've just helped Wil Gilchrist to finish cutting out this porch for a customer on the Roseland. Back in the Trengayor woodworks workshop after an absence of nearly 4 months. Much of what I am involved in happens under this roof.
It became home from home for many years.
See also the final raised frame that I have been working on for 3 months with Rob Cox at Tree Structures Ltd. I wasn't able to travel to Monmouthshire with the team due to family commitments but I'm sure you'll agree it looks wonderful. Cheers.

25/06/2025

Here's another structure I created 14 years ago. A water stand at Chyan cultural centre. I used Jarra. An Australian eucalyptus from which the old Falmouth docks were constructed. The larch roof is still solid. No chemicals used due to the fact that this species contains natural preservative. True greenwood building. I stamped the nordic runes/symbols for 'Water' and 'Life' into the front tie beam....

07/06/2025

His peeps. Another stage complete. It's not the usual procedure to erect a frame before transporting it to site. Our methodology ensures that the whole building will fit together without having to resort to this. However, certain types of frame with a complicated geometry require us to do so......

26/05/2025

Hi folks. I am currently helping out Rob Cox ( Tree structures Ltd ) with this Douglas fir timber frame with Larch curves. We are 2 'X' frames into the project which will eventually be raised in Tintern ( Wye valley, Monmouthshire ) in proximity to the Abbey. Rob has come up with a beautiful design. Our experience in hand scribing and bespoke traditional greenwood carpentry is in use on a daily basis
currently. This is when i find my speciality craft most enjoyable and where my experience comes into play.

18/03/2025

Here are couple of pictures of some braces i retrofitted into a 15th century Tudor barn on the Lizard last year. I cut them out of two Oak logs with a chainsaw then planed two flat surfaces on each.
As simple as they look, it took me one and a half days to fit each one by myself. The old frame was full of old nails and various bits of metal some of which i guess are possibly a century or two old.
I had been instructed by the architect as to where to position new mortices to receive the tenons on the braces. I spent an inordinate
amount of time with hand tools removing metal from 400 year old Oak which is almost as hard as the metal itself. My arms hurt afterwards.....