The tool we use is called a “scriber” – it’s a divider or a compass but with a pen in both legs. A special bubble-level attachment makes marking the logs precise. We aim for 1mm to 2mm fits on all log grooves and notches, and each log’s fit to its neighbours is almost always even tighter than this.
We want every log to fit so tightly that you can’t get a business card between them!
All the corner notches and long grooves are scribed and then cut only by hand – we do not machine-cut any notch or groove.
This photo shows two logs that have been scribe-fit to each other. You can see that every log is obviously naturally-shaped. And the unique shapes are cut and fitted to each other so that they appear to be seamless – like they grew together!
It takes skilled and experienced craftsmen to get natural logs to fit like this. Natural Log Homes are handmade homes. Homes made with the same attention to fit and finish as furniture.
The logs in this photo have started to dry out, and the small drying cracks you see are called “checks.”
But we engineer all our scribe-fit joinery so that fits stay tight over time as the logs dry. Our long grooves are “double-cut” style that encourage checking to happen where it helps keep the fits tight. And corner notches are “compression-fit” saddle notch style that keep them as tight as possible for the life of the building.
It’s not easy to scribe-fit this well…and some companies may take shortcuts.
But we think it’s worth it to take the time to do it right. We want the quality of our work and our attention to detail to make us proud.
“Scribe-fit” means the logs look like they GREW together – scribing logs is an ancient art invented more than two thousand years ago.
Careful scribing transfers the contours of one log onto the unique contours of the log above. When the timber between the scribe lines is carefully removed, then the logs fit each other perfectly! It looks like magic.
Even logs with lots of natural character and unique shapes are fitted tightly to each other. Above is a close-up of the larger photo next to it.
