As you may have noticed, both Round Post and Beam Homes and Handcrafted Log Homes are considered handcrafted. This is because the logs for both homes are hand peeled with a draw knife. The logs are left in their original form of wider at the bottoms and narrower at the crowns. And the logs are hand scribed to fit into the log shell.

The idea behind a post and beam home is that the super structure– the bare b0nes or ‘skeleton’ if you will– is the only place the logs dwell. Some homes are enhanced with some handcrafted log siding. This is a matching log siding which is hand peeled, has a 10 3/4 inch of cover, and ship lap grooves. Either standard framing materials between the logs or the home is wrapped in SIP panels. The exterior can be finished with wood siding, cedar shakes, log siding, stone, stucco, etc.

For a handcrafted log homes the standard diameter is 13″. The standard maximum length is up to 50 feet. Pine is where we usually begin but we also offer Western Larch, Douglas Fir, Engelmann Spruce, and Western Red Cedar. A stacked log home is the style of the Bear Creek. All of the exterior walls, and some interior, are solid log. The logs themselves serve as the finished surface of the interior and exterior.

Both styles, stacked logs or post and beam, come fully precut. Stacked log shells have door and window openings cut and recessed. Electric box holes are cut and wire holes drilled into place. For the post and beam home there are no logs that hold the windows into place. Standard framing lumber is used for that. The log superstructure is slabbed and slotted as needed to receive the dimensional lumber. Dovetails, double dovetails, mortise and tenon, and other specialty joinery are used to fit the home together in only the top of the line fashion.

You may notice that all of the handcrafted log and timber homes featured on this plan are all of the larger square footage variety. The reason for this is very few small cabins are built from handcrafted logs and even fewer are built from post and beam. The small post and beam homes are typically popular in Japan instead of the United States and North America.

Overall I prefer the handcrafted stacked log homes. Sometimes owners choose to build a smaller home so that they can afford the handcrafted log style. Extra living space can be gained through a daylight basement being finished or a 3/4 loft being added to the home.

Many luxury log homes are built from Western Red Cedar. Cedar has such as special flair, longevity, and class that no other kind of home has ever been able to match for us. The Scandinavian Full Scribe method is great for sealing between the logs naturally.  Log homes are dreams come true. They are an expectation that one day gets fulfilled. And they are obsession that can only be satisfied with a home totally and completely built from logs.

Cowboy Log Homes