Carsten Bosse and his team have been on site since 7 o’clock this morning. On the house in the centre of Dardesheim, in the heart of Germany, the weather-facing side of the whitewashed timber façade has suffered severely over the decades. The extent to which the half-timbering beneath has weathered is only gradually becoming apparent. The client, Frank Schubert, is taking it in his stride. After all, Carsten Bosse had already prepared him for the fact that with timber façades, you have to expect anything. The master carpenter speaks from experience. And the client trusts him: “Carsten knows exactly what he’s doing and what needs to be done. That’s why I hired him in the first place.”
Care during demolition and reconstruction
“When renovating half-timbered buildings, you have to proceed carefully and thoughtfully to ensure that no mistakes creep in that you might regret later,” says Carsten. And that’s exactly is exactly what he does. Using the ERSC 18 cordless one-handed reciprocating saw, Carsten makes a horizontal cut to remove the weathered timber from the façade. He saws with one hand and removes the cut timber with the other. The carpenter really appreciates not having to drag a cable along behind him whilst on the scaffolding. This allows him to concentrate fully on his work: “Even though you probably wouldn’t expect it during half-timbered renovation – we, too, sometimes work with millimetre precision.” With the small sabre saw, he manages to remove the old timber precisely – and, thanks to its light weight, even with just one hand.
Harz timber
Carsten Bosses sets high standards for himself at work. He expects the same quality from his tools. They have to deliver the best results on site and be able to withstand a fair bit of wear and tear. And that’s exactly what they do.
“The small cordless jigsaw fits really well in the hand, is light and very easy to handle with one hand.”
Carsten Bosse
The highest standards for the work and the tools
For structural reasons, Benny Mai erects the half-timbered façade before Conor Menzel, the youngest member of the team, chisels out the bricked-up compartments. Watching him do this, you’d think he’d never done anything else. He positions the KHC-S 18 with the chisel precisely next to the beam and makes swift progress. With its compact design, it is particularly well-suited to renovation work in confined spaces. Conor is delighted with the small cordless combination hammer: “Simply lovely, small, handy – perfect for this sort of thing!"
Once the posts, struts and beams of the half-timbered structure have been carefully uncovered, Conor Menzel and Benny Mai check the condition of the timber. It soon becomes clear that some of the beams will need to be partially or completely replaced. This is where the precision work comes in – the sort Carsten was referring to earlier. The new timber must fit perfectly. The Douglas fir – the boss is keen to emphasise – comes from the nearby Harz Forest. It is cut to size at the company’s own sawmill, which has been generations. His longest-serving employee, Kai Feyerabend, prepares the beams there for installation here on the building site.
“Good tools are half the battle when it comes to doing a good job. And Festool helps us enormously in this regard.”
Carsten Bosse
Precise cutting during trimming
To ensure precise cutting of solid square timber, Carsten Bosse is testing the new PSC 500 cordless pendulum jigsaw together with Benny Mai. The jigsaw is ideal for demanding timber construction and renovation work. They are both impressed by the fact that, when used with the Tabless TBX 4 battery, it cuts through material up to 120 mm thick with real ease. And above all: the fact that the cut surfaces are not only clean, but also even and precise – on straight lines as well as curves. “Many manufacturers promise that their jigsaws will make clean, square cuts even with large cross-sections – but this one really delivers,” says Carsten enthusiastically.
To ensure precise cutting of solid square timber, Carsten Bosse is testing the new PSC 500 cordless pendulum jigsaw together with Benny Mai. The jigsaw is ideal for demanding timber construction and renovation work. They are both impressed by the fact that, when used with the Tabless TBX 4 battery, it cuts through material up to 120 mm thick with real ease. And above all: the fact that the cut surfaces are not only clean, but also even and precise – on straight lines as well as curves. “Many manufacturers promise that their jigsaws will make clean, square cuts even with large cross-sections – but this one really delivers,” says Carsten enthusiastically.
Just like this project, the lads at Carsten Bosse’s joinery firm are also cut from a special kind of wood: wood from the Harz Mountains, you might say. The high standards that the boss sets for himself and his team – but also for his tools – are directly reflected in the quality of their work. For Carsten Bosse, it all goes hand in hand: “A team that’s just as keen to be motivated by high quality standards as I am. A healthy working atmosphere, without which the building site simply wouldn’t function. And excellent tools that make the work a pleasure.”
Plenty of motivation for more
They’ve come a long way on this working day. “The first section is done. And with Festool, we’ll manage the rest too,” says Carsten happily. Together with his lads, he prepares the building site for the next day. As soon as the half-timbering has been repaired, a floor-to-ceiling window will be fitted. Eventually, the weather-facing side of the house will be given a new timber façade. And perhaps, at some point, the other three sides will be tackled too.
Plenty of motivation for more
They’ve come a long way on this working day. “The first section is done. And with Festool, we’ll manage the rest too,” says Carsten happily. Together with his lads, he prepares the building site for the next day. As soon as the half-timbering has been repaired, a floor-to-ceiling window will be fitted. Eventually, the weather-facing side of the house will be given a new timber façade. And perhaps, at some point, the other three sides will be tackled too.
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Carsten Bosse’s team uses these tools
