Fox Maple School of Traditional Building

Summer 2024 Timber Framing Workshops Series at Fox Maple
Intro Timber Framing, July 1-6, at Fox Maple, Brownfield, ME
Adv Timber Framing, July 8-13, at Fox Maple, Brownfield, ME

If you've ever wanted to take part in what has become the longest running timber framing program on the planet, now's your opportunity to reserve your spot in what will mark the 42nd consecutive year of teaching Perfection & Grace. Of course, we all know what perfection & grace does, no?

If this has eluded you to this point in your life's journey, it may be a good sign you should attend, so as to understand first-hand what has sustained this program for so many years, and why so many students return time and time again to fully immerse into the grace of the Jean-Claude Killy Effect.

With just a couple of months to go, it's time to put this workshop on your schedule. After all, 42 years is a long time to be engaged in a single effort, and who knows how much gas is left in the tank. The idea of surfing full time is becoming more and more appealing. Just saying!

Hope to see you in July.

More info at: foxmaple.com

vive Jean-Claude,
Steve Chappell

Costa Rica 2024 Timber Framing Workshop Update
Revised dates: November 23-December 1, 2024

The Lifeguard Tower Workshop in Nosara, Costa Rica, is now set to take place this late fall from Nov. 23-Dec. 1, 2024.

This will be a Community Building Initiative workshop, where we will be teaming up with the Bomberos de Nosara, to build their main tower and lifeguard headquarters. The bomberos are a locally organized group of dedicated volunteer firefighters and lifeguards.

Working alongside the lifeguards who will man the stations, students will cut and erect a pentagonal tower with an eclectic, flying hyperbolic curve roof system. From the ground, the roof design bears a striking resemblance to a bird flying. From a birds'-eye-view, the roof plan looks remarkably like a Green Sea Turtle, who have nested on this beach for millennia.

Over the years we have had many families accompany the registered students in our past Costa Rica workshops so as to make it a family vacation. We have scheduled this workshop to fall during Thanksgiving week with this in mind for a few reasons.

1) The four-day holiday will allow students to attend while minimizing taking days off from school or work,
2) The flights to and from Costa Rica are generally at their lowest cost of the year flying into and out of Liberia, the week leading up to and after Thanksgiving week, and
3) The high season begins in December and the Bomberos of Nosara will need the tower up and functional for the high season.

There is usually a good swell at the end of November, and since we'll be raising this tower directly in front of one of the most consistent waves in all of Costa Rica, why waste an opportunity like this when the waves are small. As well, late November provides a better reprieve from the cold than mid May. Take your pick as to which one works for you:)

For more information, check out our website: www.foxmaple.com

Register Now: https://foxmaplewebstore.company.site/products/Costa-Rica-Timber-Framing-Workshop-Fall-2024-p620868051

Costa Rica 2024
Timber Framing Workshop Update

Design details and logistics have demanded revising workshop dates tentatively to begin May 6th. Final dates will be posted shortly, or contact for updates.

Fox Maple will be returning to Costa Rica in April 2024, to conduct its first CR workshop since COVID. This will be a Community Building Initiative workshop, where we will be teaming up with the Bomberos de Nosara, to build their main tower and lifeguard headquarters. The bomberos are a locally organized group of dedicated volunteer firefighters and lifeguards.

Working alongside the lifeguards who will man the stations, students will cut and erect a pentagonal tower with an eclectic, flying hyperbolic curve roof system. From the ground, the roof design bears a striking resemblance to a bird flying. From a birds'-eye-view, the roof plan looks remarkably like a Green Sea Turtle, who have nested on this beach for millennia.

The teak Timber Frame will be worthy of the headquarters and principal lifeguard tower on the main beach entrance to Playa Guiones. This workshop has all the makings of a life-changing—and potentially, life-saving—community building experience.

The workshop will be conducted in Playa Pelada, at the beachfront retreat and learning center, villas Ecositas Nosara. Villas Ecositas is retreat center developed over the past several years with Fox Maple students in workshops. The workspace will be under the Triple Reciprocal Pavilion, built in the last Fox Maple Costa Rica Workshop, in 2019. The property is a short 15 minute walk along the beach to the construction site in Playa Guiones. The joined timbers will be trucked to the site on the final day for the raising.

A limited number of partial, or full scholarships, will be available.
To apply for scholarship funding please send an email query stating nature of request.

For more info check out foxmaple.com

Check out the ever growing library of Chappell Square YouTube videos explaining how to use the Chappell Universal Square.

To date, 6 new videos have been posted, so be sure to check them all out. More videos will be added on a regular basis, so check back in, or subscribe to be notified about new postings.

Recent postings include videos on tips & techniques, in addition to videos covering a line-by-line description of the Equal Pitch Rafter Table. Look for future videos covering the Unequal Pitch and Polygon Tables.

Be sure to subscribe to be notified of each new video posting.

Chappell Universal Square: Equal Pitch Rafter Table—Line One This is the first in a series of instructional videos explaining A to Z how to use each of the tables on the Chappell Universal Square. This and upcoming vid...

Check out this new video posted by Chappell Universal Square & Rule Co.

Why the Chappell Square is ruled in Decimal Inch Ruling? Many people ask why the Chappell Universal Square is ruled in the .05 decimal inch ruling as opposed to the more common US fractional 16th inch ruling. This ...

I just ran across this video posted by Nathan Bechtold, that I thought all you past Fox Maple students might appreciate. Nathan was a student of the 2016 Advanced Timber Framing Workshop. He posted it on his youtube channel shortly after the workshop and it passed from memory, until I just happened to run upon it again. Sweet job producing the video, and you'll especially enjoy the Grateful Dead track of Truck-in.

It's worth the view just to hear one of the Dead's classic songs.

Enjoy!

Thanks Nathan!!!

Fox Maple Advanced Timber Framing Workshop 2016 Constructing a 4-valley system to install opposite-facing dormers on a two-bent timber frame saltbox-style workshop. So. Much. Trigonometry.

Costa Rica Timber Framing Workshop
April 22-28, 2024

Fox Maple School of Traditional Building will be returning to Costa Rica in April 2024, to conduct its first CR workshop since COVID. This will be a Community Building Initiative workshop where we will be teaming up with the Bomberos de Nosara (a locally organized group of dedicated volunteer firefighters and lifeguards). Students will cut and erect an eclectic teak Joined Timber Frame that will be worthy of the Headquarters and Principal Lifeguard Tower on the beach at the main entrance to Playa Guiones, Nosara. Students will be working alongside the local lifeguards who will be manning the station. The workshop has all the makings of a life-changing—and potentially life-saving—community building experience.

The photo attached shows the lifeguard tower donated by Fox Maple to the Bomberos de Nosara in November 2021. This is the first of three satellite stands planned for critical locations on the Nosara beaches of Playa Pelada and Play Guiones. Nosara’s bold ocean coastline is prone to big swells, powerful surf and dangerous riptides that can catch even experienced swimmers off-guard. In the 3 months prior to the Bomberos reaching out to us to help build towers along the Nosara coastline, 4 people drowned in the waters directly in front of the tower pictured at Playa Pelada. Since the tower was built there have been scores of rescues, but zero drownings. Taking part in this community building workshop will truly make you a lifesaver.

Check it out at foxmaple.com

Introducing the NEW Chappell 1624 Journeyman Square

As the newest member to the growing family of Chappell Universal Square products, the 1624 Journeyman has now hit the streets and is available to purchase on our website, chappellsquare.com.

The addition of the Journeyman expands the possibilities for cutting compound roof systems by including unequal pitch roof tables for 8/12 and 10/12 Roof Pitches. This is the first time ever these tables have been available to use at your will, and without batteries—or a math degree from Dartmouth.

The Journeyman will allow greater flexibility and creativity to any novice or professional roof framers looking to expand their horizon to include complex, compound roof systems into their repertoire. Alongside the 1824 Master Framer and 1218 Traveler, the 1624 Journeyman will fill a niche by rounding out the panoply of Chappell Universal Framing Squares.

With a 2 inch by 24 inch body and 1-1/2 inch by 16 inch tongue, the 1624 Journeyman will fit as well in your hand as in your tool box—and give you one more trick to pull out of your bag when facing a challenging roof system.

Check it out at chappellsquare.com.

Barn Raising in Brunswick, Maine July 15, 2023

John Bartlett, Fox Maple Class of 2005, sent this note inviting other past students to join in on his barn raising coming up in July. Looks like an exciting raising, so if you are free, give him a shout. S.C.

Hey Steve,
I took your class in 2005? It was a great experience, thanks again. Hope you are doing well.

I am raising my second barn in Brunswick, ME on 15-July and looking for some interested folks to come help. It is a 30 x 36 frame with two floors and two big scissor trusses in the middle two bents. We will have a crane onsite for the heavy lifting. I have a friend from Benson Woodworking who will be the foreman so we have some solid experience on hand.

Do you know of any folks in the area who might be interested in participating? I would love to have a few more strong hands...

I can be reached at this email [email protected]. Thanks for any help.

Best Regards, JB
John Bartlett
[email protected]

2023 Timber Framing Workshops at Fox Maple
Intro Timber Framing, July 17-22, 2023
Advanced Timber Framing, July 24-29, 2023

It's hard to believe that this Summer's 2023 Workshop Series at Fox Maple is coming up in just a few short weeks. What may be even harder to believe is that with this upcoming series, Fox Maple will be entering into its 5th decade of conducting this workshop series without a break. The years past live on as a stream of incredible memories of people, faces, names forgotten and remembered, along with each and every frame project we've engaged in over these years. The value of these experiences represent a wealth of life unimaginable in most contexts. Perhaps this is why I have persisted over all these years. I can't promise that I will still be doing these workshops long enough to reach the half century mark, but for the moment, I am entering into this years schedule with the same excitement and glee as I did in the lead-up to the very first workshop we held way back in 1983.

There are still a few openings in both the Intro and Advanced courses, so if you hope to attend you may want to jump on board before the sure-to-come final flurry of registrations begin to flow in. This comes without fail in the final 30 days.

We hope you can join us in what promises to be another great Fox Maple Workshop experience.
For registration visit foxmaple.com
Vive Jean-Claude,
Steve Chappell

Store - Chappell Universal Square & Rule

2022 Timber Framing Workshops at Fox Maple
Intro Timber Framing, June 27-July 2
Advanced Timber Framing, July 4-9
With the warm breeze flooding southwestern Maine on this Cinco de Mayo, 2022, it reminds me that the Summer 2022 Workshop Series at Fox Maple is coming up just around the corner. Nothing like the first warm spring day in Maine to get the timber framing juices flowing.
The Introductory Workshop, despite the heading, is actually quite advanced in its concept and depth of material covered. This course lays the groundwork for all of the most essential aspects of timber framing from design considerations, engineering, joinery layout and ex*****on, all culminating with the raising of a full scale timber frame, which the students literally design, layout and cut themselves.
The Advanced Workshop takes the knowledge gained in the first session to a completely new level, where we explore the wild and wonderful world of complex, multi-planed and multi-dimensional joinery. In this course students will learn a systematic process to determine angular relationships for virtually any three dimensional form or structure, and how to then apply this information to the layout and ex*****on of complex, compound joinery. The results are often truly amazing.
We hope you can join us in what promises to be another great Fox Maple Workshop experience.
For registration visit foxmaple.com
Vive Jean-Claude,
Steve Chappell

home - Chappell Universal Square & Rule O ur mission when we set out to develop this square was to make a solid, durable, and accurate square that would provide long-term value to the carpenter not only through many years of use, but also through expanded creativity. It is our belief that we hit the mark, and believe you will agree once y...

Back in stock at last. Get yours today!

Back by popular demand!!
Our Chappell Square Center Rules are made from .029” stainless steel and are flexible enough to work on round logs and uneven surfaces. Available in 12" or 18". Perfect for intricate layout. These handy tools may be the most used in our shop!
The front sides have a decimal inch scale divided at the 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 inch, with minor divisions in .05". The scales on top and bottom start from opposite zero points, allowing the rule to be worked from either side without flipping it over and reading upside down. A must have!