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Discussion Forum

shimming studs for drywall

user-142008 | Posted in General Discussion on April 21, 2006 01:40am

A number of  years ago I saw an frame punchout specialist  in California use premade shims of  1/8, 3/16, 1/4  thickness to prep stud wall irregularities for drywall hanging. Thought then it was a nice idea, but didn’t find as necessary using steel studs then.

Now that I’m back to wood framing followup, I could use them, but cannot find vendor in central MA. that has any. Strips were same width of studs and 8’L, seemed to be made from some form of proceesed paper that was rigid enough not to crush easily. Has anyone have a lead were to find some? Thanks.

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Replies

  1. ruffmike | Apr 21, 2006 02:17am | #1

    Those shims are available at Depot by the drywall ,only 1/16th though

                                Mike

        Trust in God, but row away from the rocks.

  2. RW | Apr 21, 2006 02:39am | #2

    Here they're available at Carlson Systems and Menards, which are more or less national chains, as well as the local drywall supply houses. The brand I use are made by Fortifiber, if doing a search by manufacturer helps you find someone local who deals with them.

    These are 1/8" by 36", a box has at least 100 strips in it, and they're layered cardboard so you can even peel them in half or thirds roughly if it suits whatever you're doing.

    "Sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences come from little things, I am tempted to think -- there are no little things" - Bruce Barton

    1. user-142008 | Apr 21, 2006 01:18pm | #3

      thanks to you and Ruffmike for the followups. Have not seen at the HD, but will ask, providing you can find someone in dept..

  3. Mooney | Apr 21, 2006 01:37pm | #4

    I did a couple walls recently and I made them  as I needed different sizes . You could have someone cut a bunch for you diffrent depths.

    I was most successful cutting them as I went measueing it off a straight edge.

    Tim

     

    1. chauncey | Apr 21, 2006 01:55pm | #5

      The fact that you guys need these things is sad.

      1. Mooney | Apr 21, 2006 02:34pm | #6

        The fact that you guys need these things is sad.

         

        I suppose it is the way you are looking at it . You cant dwell on that . Its a new puzzle and    an opportunity to play. Somthing different , at least I hope. Although that was the job I was on when I decided being a trucker would be better and at least started reading about it . Jobs like that can get ya down quick if ya let them.

        Tim

         

      2. User avater
        basswood | Apr 21, 2006 02:54pm | #7

        "The fact that you guys need these things is sad."Taking just a few minutes to shim studs before drywall can greatly reduce the amount of shimming for cabinets and vanities & reduce the required scribing of countertops.They can be used to make drywall butt joints into tapered joints that are much easier to finish (by shimming out the studs a very small amount, on either side of the joint.Any wall that will be washed with light can be staightened out nicely with drywall shims.I always keep a bundle on hand and find plenty of other uses for them too.They often save labor and money and result in a better finished product...how sad is that?

        1. User avater
          McDesign | Apr 21, 2006 03:28pm | #8

          I always make sure I erase any penicil marks on the edges of the studs so as not to hump the drywall . . .

          Forrest

          1. Danno | Apr 21, 2006 03:35pm | #9

             

            I always make sure I erase any penicil marks on the edges of the studs so as not to hump the drywall . .

             

            Press harder when you write.

          2. philarenewal | Apr 21, 2006 03:49pm | #10

            >>"so as not to hump the drywall . . .

            Huh?  ;-)

            Dude, don't hump the drywall.  Get a date.  ;-) 

            "Let's get crack-a-lackin"  --- Adam Carolla

      3. user-142008 | Apr 21, 2006 04:54pm | #11

        "It is sad"---but maybe you use lumber that doesn't twist, all milled to same tolerances. Unfortunately, this is product most have to deal with. 

        As other posts state its easier to fix now prior to drywall and trim. Chairrail on a 35'L wall sure looks better w/o the waves.

      4. left handed hammer | Apr 21, 2006 09:05pm | #12

        I talked to a guy at the lumber yard the other day who said their crew was power plaining exterior wall studs whilel laying flat on the deck before sheathing them.  Respect to the crew for taking the extra step, but sad commentary on lumber.

        1. alrightythen | Apr 22, 2006 08:53am | #14

          when I did my house I ripped my own shims and power planed the walls from the inside. I'm not sure why you would want power plane the exterior side of the studs. I'm not trying to sound lazy, but my opinion is the exterior usually doesn't show the irregularities the way the inside does. and then even if they have power planed the exterior side, that doesn't help the inside.

          1. ANDYSZ2 | Apr 22, 2006 09:38am | #17

            Concrete board  and other thin siding boards will shows any  irregularities in the framing. This has been an issue more than once for some of the GC's I have done work for.

            ANDYSZ2I MAY DISAGREE WITH WHAT YOUR SAYING BUT I WILL DEFEND TO THE DEATH YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT.

            Remodeler/Punchout

          2. alrightythen | Apr 22, 2006 11:22pm | #26

            I havn't had to work with hardi baord yet. although I have seen houses with it.

            But I guess if it's been an issue, it's been an issue. most times it's not, and if you've had to deal with it, I can't argue that.

        2. Framer | Apr 22, 2006 04:57pm | #22

          "I talked to a guy at the lumber yard the other day who said their crew was power plaining exterior wall studs wwhilelaying flat on the deck before sheathing them. Respect to the crew for taking the extra step, but sad commentary on lumber."That's Insane!!!!If their power planning the outside of the studs before sheathing(which means the studs have bad crowns)then what are they doing to the inside of the studs once the walls are up? Are they firing the bows out to make the walls straight because obviously the inside of the walls, the studs have a bow in them and the framers only fixed one side?I don't get this why framers will NAIL BAD STUDS UP!!. We all get bad studs and I never use them. I always order extra material for walls for that reason. Who cares if the studs are bad, just throw them aside and use straight ones.I don't get the reason why framers will nail up bad studs and not over order and use good ones and send the bad ones back or cut them up for blocking.Would builders rather send some studs back or have bad studs in the walls and have to fix them? It doesn't make any sense.When I'm done framing a house or addition, I will go back and check the walls and if any studs twisted or someone did put a stud that had a bad crown in it, the stud will be replaced. Nailing up bad studs, knowing that they're bad and then planning them is insane.Joe Carola

          1. philarenewal | Apr 22, 2006 05:02pm | #23

            >>"I don't get the reason why framers will nail up bad studs

            Sometimes they're sneaky and hide their twisted warped true colors until after they're nailed into a wall.  ;-)

            Oh, that's the studs, not the framers.  ;-) 

            "Let's get crack-a-lackin"  --- Adam Carolla

          2. m2akita | Apr 22, 2006 08:30pm | #24

            So when do you all decide you need to shim out or plane down a stud???  You stick your straight edge on your top and bottom plate and see that the stud is crowned out or in a bit.  How much of a deviance do you need to do something to it??  1/16", 1/8", 3/16", 2"................2'.

            Are you more/ less picky if your framing is 24" o.c. instead of 16 o.c.".

            All of the studs we use are straight, its just our vision that gets wavey.

            -m2akitaLive by the sword, die by the sword....choose your sword wisely.

          3. alrightythen | Apr 22, 2006 09:06pm | #25

            Joe I totally hear what you're saying. But the lumber in your area must be better than where I live. to me it's not whether or not a stud will have a crown or not, but rather or not how much of a crown, and what wil be acceptable to work with. when looking for a truely straight stud one could easily spend 5 minutes to find one that is true.

            you are bang on about getting the extra material, because if you just throw whatever into your wall, you will drive yourself nuts trying to make it look right before the drywall goes up....or you simply don't know or care.

             

          4. Mooney | Apr 23, 2006 01:47am | #27

            I agree .

            I hire the building framed and then take over again after the footing . I know its level and square or its my fault which is not happening .

            I cant compete with framers and dont have the crew anyway .

            What they give me is what I work with but Im there sighting studs for show walls but mostly the kitchen and cabinets bath walls. Then Im gone out of their way. I order 100 or so too many and haul the extras back myself. I agree with that , except if every one did the yards would be complaining .

            Anyway after they are paid I walk in with straight edges up to 12 ft and start hanging rock or I did before surgery . Im not too proud to cut some out but usually I can cut them and bringum in or out . If not  they get shimmed or planed. I try to pick some of the ones a little out for joints as it should be giving me depressions . It doesnt take that long but if you hire a hanging crew they will hang butts over highs .

            The expensive rockers carry in straight edges.

            Tim  

            Edited 4/22/2006 6:49 pm by Mooney

          5. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 23, 2006 01:23pm | #29

            Tim, I don't know what the fuss is all about either.

            After the house if framed, I walk around and check the plane of the walls. Somtimes I have to cut and nail twenty studs. Sometimes thirty. Sometimes ten. It takes me less time than studying every stud.

            Maybe our lumber is better.

            blue 

          6. User avater
            Heck | Apr 23, 2006 04:57pm | #30

            Blue, can you describe what you mean by cutting and nailing studs?

            Do you mean cutting bowed studs all the way through and splicing, or maybe kerfing and shims?

             "Citius, Altius, Fortius"

          7. ponytl | Apr 23, 2006 07:42pm | #31

            long hallways  & tall walls  get metal studs... costs more  but when ur look'n down a 70ft hallway it matters to me...

            kitchens I only check where the counters hit the wall... takes so little time to fix it now...

            then i look for really bad stuff... that gets cut, wedged and sistered...

            I preach all day long...

             "lets do this once... whatever we can do now to save time later is worth it"   I'm sure i block alot more than others...

            I try to thnk what each space will be used for and IF something might need to hang there....  my burn pile never has anything longer than 10" in it because it all becomes blocking or backing for something...  pretty sure i use more nails per SF than most...  but if there ain't a board there rockers will let it float...

            all in all the wood here is pretty good from my supplier... seems the longer the board the better... 8ft 2x6 stuff seems to be bad  but the 10, 12, 16ft stuff is good/better

            p

             

          8. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 24, 2006 05:54am | #36

            Heck, i run a saw kerf in the crowned side of a stud, then spike it tight together. Sometimes a stud is so severly crowned that I need to make two saw kerfs in it. I might get one stud like that every job or every other job.

            blue 

          9. Framer | Apr 23, 2006 08:24pm | #32

            Tim,A lot of the Framers that I've replaced just nail any stud that is front of them whether they have bad crowns in them or they are cracked. They could care less. Nail it up and they're done.You have to pick up every stud you nail in and it takes half a second to see a crown. To nail up bad studs and then go back and plane them down before the sheathing is absolutely ridiculous and a big waste of time, and in order to realize that the studs have to be planed down that means some bozo had to look at the wall before the sheathing to see the bad studs.So now look at how much time was wasted to plane the studs down and it's not even a fix because the inside of the stud has a crown in it. Why not just replace the stud instead of planning it. It so ridiculous, that I have to laugh.To not even look at a stud before you nail it and then go back and replace studs or plane them even if the crown is facing the inside is ridiculous because now the outside is no good. I don’t know why planning a stud is a fix because it’s not on new construction.For someone NOT take half a second and look at a stud to see if it’s any good or if you crown them one way or the other is baffling. Just don't nail up bad studs from the start because you just don't give s sh!t and then plane them or rip them out. We've been getting good studs and I will order extra on new work and I will order extra on everything especially on add-a-levels like I just did last week and I'm doing for another add-a-level this week I will over order everything to be safe because the roof is wide open and I'm not wasting any time going to the lumberyard because I'm short on something because they're bad lumber. I could care less what the lumberyard thinks if I have to return some stuff when the job is done. I'm the one who will put the lumber on my truck to do it and they don't charge me anything to re-stock it. Even if they did it’s worth it to me to protect a house and get it water tight instead of coming up short on lumberJoe Carola

          10. Mooney | Apr 23, 2006 10:31pm | #33

            We used to have uses for the crooked lumber when we did it all and the building patterns were different .

            Crooked studs were made up into truss webbing  and bracing on stick builds.

            There are still places to put some of them. Short closet plates would mention one.

            On an out side wall that has foam board and brick if the concave side is exterior. That leaves an arch on the inside that can be planed with a portable planer or ground with 24 to 36 grit sanding disks on a grinder. Thats normally done from 2 ft from the floor to 2 feet from the ceiling which is pretty easy.

            If the exterior is Hardi backer siding , yer dead in the water . So it depends on different applications. The exterior of that has to be in plane more than most drywall interiors. Thats when you have to have straight studs big time.

            I pick and roll the very best studs on the job for kitchens and baths and mark them #1s and cover them up with black vesqueen immediately. That way Ive got a chance before the framers get busy. Show walls are next with an opportunity for access of vision and sunlight. Long walls are next that have multiple butt joints in drywall. When they lay  out their walls  I crayon specifying the lumber grade with a different color than they use, if they use crayon at all.

            #2s have no more than 1/4 inch and #3s or  greater to discard. Depends on the grading #s for volume . That also depneds on priceing on how much work you want to invest.

            So far my lumber yards dont offer huge discounts for #3s so they get them back. Its funny [well its not funny sometimes] that if you order less than a bundle unit you can actually see the same stuff on another delivery. Thats when I haul and pick my own and have to shoo them away from loading me . That in its self is very hard to do somtimes. The yard hands are very aggressive. I dont think they mean to be in that way but they are very high speed. If I roll in at 3pm they are normally caught up for the day and I can often find 4 or 5 of them loading my 16 foot flat bed. They can load it in 5 minutes, so that doesnt give much time to supervise.

            All that sh^t takes time , so a lot of times I just do what Blue does. Anyway thats my "other " side of it . Premium studs are a blessing if they are actually premium, but somtimes they are not . I can usually "fix " a job in a day by myself so its sometimes a crap shoot what time you spend either way and no I dont have a direst answer to it .

            To your point framers can sure help or they can hurt as you mentioned. The good ones that will look at the lumber and grade it are often higher priced , of course. When I get bids they are often far apart in price , so then I have to try to figgure out the differences. Sometimes theres not that much and sometimes there is , so knowing the individuals work is critical. How much time will they spend doing what I want them to do? Will they even do it after I drive away? Will I pizz them off in anyway? So sometimes they need the lumber graded for them and get out of their way. Others you could order a bundle of studs extra which would be 220 to 240 and have an exellent framing job. Still with others you would find that bundle unopened.

            It takes a Dale Carnigie course to deal with some of them.

            Tim

          11. Framer | Apr 24, 2006 02:29am | #34

            "To your point framers can sure help or they can hurt as you mentioned. The good ones that will look at the lumber and grade it are often higher priced , of course. When I get bids they are often far apart in price , so then I have to try to figgure out the differences. Sometimes theres not that much and sometimes there is , so knowing the individuals work is critical."Tim,I can't see how a framer would charge more to take a stud that he already has in his hand and lift it up a few inches further to see where/if there's a crown in it, or if it's bad. Most framers crown the studs one way or the other and some don't but the ones who crown the studs are looking at them anyway, so why not throw the bad ones out...?Now I'm starting to wonder if these framers don't crown the joists and rafters up, and if they do, are they charging more money........?It takes 1/2 a second to look at a stud, anyone who says they don't look at a stud and just nails every single stud up good or bad and then goes back and rips studs out or planes them (which planing a stud is a joke and not just removing it and putting in a good stud) and says it's faster then just taking 1/2 a second to look at a stud is in la, la land.......Joe Carola

          12. Mooney | Apr 24, 2006 03:52am | #35

            "I can't see how a framer would charge more to take a stud that he already has in his hand and lift it up a few inches further to see where/if there's a crown in it, or if it's bad."

            That would cut out the stud lumper wouldnt it working for minimum wage ?

            Tim

          13. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 24, 2006 06:14am | #37

            It takes 1/2 a second to look at a stud, anyone who says they don't look at a stud and just nails every single stud up good or bad and then goes back and rips studs out or planes them (which planing a stud is a joke and not just removing it and putting in a good stud) and says it's faster then just taking 1/2 a second to look at a stud is in la, la land.......

            La La La La La, La La La La!

            I might pick up one stud or two per job and sight them for some specific reason, but I haven't sighted every stud in a wall ever. They get dropped, rat-a-tat-tat, machine gun style and no one ever picks them up higher than the plate.

            Your claim of 1/2 second per stud translates into 50 minutes on a 1500 stud house. I won't dispute that, but you aren't adding the amount of time that it takes to switch out the bad studs. I'm willing to bet that your standard for tossing them is pretty high, so you probably cull fifty or more studs per job. That might be one in every wall. Your going to be losing a few more minutes due to that accumulation of time.

            I've already stated that I fix a few spots in every house I do. I slide my 4' level along every wall and I plane everything in, on the last day I'm in the house. I'm sure that more studs will dry and crown after I leave, just like they do when you walk away too. Are you going back and checking to make sure your walls are true on the day before drywall? Or do you just leave it to chance and hope all your studs cure themselves straight?

            Since you don't put the sheathing on the houses, you probably don't know that the OSB will pull and push the crown out of most exterior walls. I rarely have to cut an exterior stud...maybe one every four houses. You also don't know that the board will true up most minor stud issues too, especially if the hanger are skilled and use glue and they don't nail the board tight to all the recessed studs. Construction adhesive will bridge 3/8" and you don't need drywall shims.

            I'm not going to tell you that you are wrong for setting such a high standard on your frames, but I doubt that your finished product is any higher that anything we are doing. I've framed house for 30 years and I've never had a callback for crooked wall issues. The drywallers normally fix the bulges before they hang, after the house has dried a bit and nothing we do before that can be construed as the "finished" rough product anyways.

            I just haven't lost much sleep about the issue and I've trimmed a few houses that I've roughed.

            Of course, maybe we simply have better studs. We are close to Canada and most of the lumbe comes from there.

            One last thing.....the builders have a yard available that sells premium straight clear  and waxed fir studs. If they are truly interested in having a superior product, they'd shop there. If they are going to save their bucks and buy inferior studs, why should I spend my time and dollars on their house, when they won't?

            blue

            blue 

          14. Framer | Apr 24, 2006 01:20pm | #38

            "I walk around and check the plane of the walls. Somtimes I have to cut and nail twenty studs. Sometimes thirty. Sometimes ten. It takes me less time than studying every stud. La La La La La, La La La La!"Blue,You are in La La Land!Go back and cut and nail twenty, thirty, and sometimes ten studs all you want and think it's faster then not doing it at all because I don't have to do that and try to debate this with me because you are one of those insane guys that I've described, so knock yourself out!"Your claim of 1/2 second per stud translates into 50 minutes on a 1500 stud house."Since when is 1500 studs at 1/2 a second 50 minutes? It's only 12.5 minutes........Joe Carola

            Edited 4/24/2006 7:56 am ET by Framer

          15. ANDYSZ2 | Apr 24, 2006 03:32pm | #39

            Since when can you sight down  a stud in a 1/2 second and decide if its good or not.

            I don't think you can eye coordinate the plane of the stud and then make a decision in under 2seconds much less replace the stud and locate the bad one into the discard  pile.

            I have had the fortune of buying bundles without a crooked stud and the misfortune of bundles without a straight stud.

            I have also seen straight studs twist like a coiled airhose after one day of rain then drying in the hot sun.

            I have spent a week planing and straightening wall planes because the GC so shafted the framer that his crew must have deliberately turned every nasty crowned stud one way then the other.

            I have seen exterior siding so bad that it looked like a sine wave going down the side of the house.

            I have fixed many a sheetrock wall that had a swell going by cutting a square of sheetrock out and cutting a deep kerf at an angle and running 4" screws in to pull the kerf tight and thus straightening a stud.

            Every framing crew I have worked for and my own has always sorted and crowned there studs ,joists and rafters and I feel this is one of the first lessons a new guy is required to learn and if he can't see a bow or crown he is gone.

            I usually, when supervising, work with the sheetrock crew to straighten or replace any lumber that will look bad on the finished product.

            Most of this experiance comes from punching out for 4 different builders who called me in to straighten these messes out.I have found that they occur more with sloppy framers but still occur with the best.

            ANDYSZ2I MAY DISAGREE WITH WHAT YOUR SAYING BUT I WILL DEFEND TO THE DEATH YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT.

            Remodeler/Punchout

          16. Framer | Apr 25, 2006 12:51am | #41

            "Since when can you sight down a stud in a 1/2 second and decide if its good or not."Andy,It's simple. The studs are carried over by the handful, 12-16 studs at time and dropped on the top plate, as they are grabbed to lay on the 16" center marks they are looked at in 1/2 a second and if it's no good it's thrown to the opposite way I grabbed it.I get good precuts for some reason and that's it and I crown the studs by looking at it in 1/2 a second. If I can't see a crown in a stud in 1/2 a second after 22 years of framing, I'm useless.I'm the framer and I would be the guy to go back and replace studs if they were bad, so I'm not going to take a chance on having bad studs from the start and go back and fix/plane or whatever later. It makes no sense at all, Period!Joe Carola

          17. ANDYSZ2 | Apr 25, 2006 02:35am | #42

            So you you have superman abilities that I was unaware of!

            Excuse me for my naitivity.

            ANDYSZ2I MAY DISAGREE WITH WHAT YOUR SAYING BUT I WILL DEFEND TO THE DEATH YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT.

            Remodeler/Punchout

          18. Framer | Apr 25, 2006 03:47am | #43

            Andy,What is it that you don't like what I'm saying? The 1/2 second thing or that fact that it doesn't take much time at all to just look at a stud before I nail it, or the fact that this is rookie stuff that I learned the first day on the job and for me it's just the right thing to do. I could care less what anyone does.I pick the good studs out and nail them in with the crown one way and if anyone else doesn't look at their studs and just nails every stud in good and bad and wants to go back and rip them out and plane them before they sheath that's their problem not mine. Have fun! Do you want to keep going back and forth with this rookie stuff or do you want to talk about soemthing that's more important?Joe Carola

          19. alrightythen | Apr 25, 2006 04:29am | #44

            Framer I'm with ya, but I hear what Andy's saying too. I think Andy's issue is with the 1/2 second...as for me, guess I'm not as fast as you only been framing eight years, so it takes me a whole second. But you are right on about actually looking at them to check the crown. I think I misunderstood you earlier, thought you were replacing every stud that had any crown whatsoever.

            I don't think most guys here are saying that they don't look at the studs, I think it's just that to find a "straight" stud most of us are going to find them few and far between.

            The lumber I get I gotta check just like you and anything that appears to have a crown over 1/8"  gets set aside. I have to live with the 1/8" threshold or I'd be setting aside 90% of my studs, which is just too many to have in the reject pile. Then to make the wall look the way I want, I'll spend a day planing/shimming before the drywall goes up.

            Just made the switch from framing to building my 1st home, which I also did the framing for. Both the drywallers and cabinet installer told me how impressed they were with the framing. In fact the rockers went so far as to say it was the best framing they'd seen in a long time. I know every little imperfection in the framing, little things that I still was never completly happy with, but gotta draw the line somewhere, and you have to know what will come out in the wash. But to me it just goes to show how bad things really are out there. most guys, it's get it up - get it up fast. big contest who can get it up the fastest. which is a shame because it becomes the norm and people think this is the how it's supposed to be and come to find it acceptable.

          20. KirkG | Apr 25, 2006 05:17am | #45

            This isn't a reply to alrightythen.There usually is some time after framing and befor rocking. Checking for bad and or missing studs/blocking is part of the job. Since there is usually electric and plumbing already run and insulation, it is easier and faster to kerf and sister, or plane, than try to pull out and replace the stud.Then there is remodeling, where the old wall was plaster and the new wall is drywall. Since you can't correct with the wall covering, shims & planes make it quick and easy. Just rememmber to set the nails on the studs before you plane.Just part of getting the job done.

          21. alrightythen | Apr 25, 2006 05:48am | #47

            This is a reply to KirkG.

            FYI..I realize you hit reply while reading my post but it wasn't directed to me, I do that too sometimes, but it is easy to change who you are directing it to: simply click on the little arrow were the name is beside "others" and it will give you a list of all names of people who have posted on this thread (marked by *) as well as option for "all."

          22. KirkG | Apr 25, 2006 05:55am | #48

            I am sorry, I am real dense and don't see the area you are talking about, ie "others".I hit reply and it just goes to you. I click on you and it offers me email option etc.Kirk

          23. alrightythen | Apr 25, 2006 06:38am | #51

            no worries lol...

            you only will get the option when have started your reply, exactly to the right of the name you are replying to is a little arrow pointing down, if you click it you will then see all the options.

            the other way to do it is to double click my name, you can then type what ever name you want. same thing happens if you click where it says "others" to the right of the little arrow I referred to before.

          24. KirkG | Apr 25, 2006 07:20pm | #55

            Well I have checked and checked, but on my computer, when I start a reply, there are no little arrows anywhere. This is all I see. Our names are underlined also.General Discussion
            (little arrow here*,)shimming studs for drywall
            From: KirkG 12:15 pm
            To: alrightythen in reply to 72712.53Type in your message and click POSTSo thanks for trying to help, but it is probably a limitation of the browser or operating system I am using.Kirk* but nothing happens when I click it

          25. alrightythen | Apr 28, 2006 09:20am | #56

            hmmm very bizaar. what you describe is what I see for the normal thread. once I hit reply I get what I described to you before. I wonder if there is a settings mode that might have something to do with it.

            can anyone else help him out?

          26. User avater
            McDesign | Apr 28, 2006 01:28pm | #57

            Don't ya'll get the hula girl at the top of your screen when you're composing / posting?

            Forrest

          27. luckypenny | Apr 29, 2006 05:05am | #58

            I don't see what you're talking about either.  Are you sure you're not just special?

            penny.Live light enough to see the humour and long enough to see change.

            -Ani DiFranco

          28. ANDYSZ2 | Apr 25, 2006 06:08am | #49

            I guess the 1/2 second bugs me because I can't find the plane that fast and make the decision and then toss it and then get another or set it aside or move the set a side pile when it gets in the way.It just seems like an unfair assessment that it only takes a 1/2 second when it seems to me to take as much time as the actual framing nail up.

            I do cull my lumber though and I try and do it before I carry my stacks to the staging area.

            What really bugs me I  guess is the fact that I cull my lumber and still will come back and find studs that have twisted after I put them up.If this is not an issue with you than you have an advantage over yellow pine sent out here in my area.

            The best studs I have ever seen were western fir  that I used on my own house that  whole bundles were perfect, I haven't seen that again and probably never will.

            Anyway no animosity just my personnal take and heaven knows I am not the most efficient framer there is.

            ANDYSZ2

             I MAY DISAGREE WITH WHAT YOUR SAYING BUT I WILL DEFEND TO THE DEATH YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT.

            Remodeler/Punchout

          29. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 25, 2006 06:28am | #50

            Andy, it's no surprise that you cull the bad ones, only to find more after the frame is done. That is my entire point!

            Since you have to go through and straightedge the house after it's been standing a few days (the studs dry out when they are separted), you might as well just do it all at once.

            I haven't had to frame with yellow pine studs since the early 80's. I don't miss them at all. Back then, if we culled the bad ones, we'd never frame a wall.

            blue 

          30. alrightythen | Apr 25, 2006 06:52am | #52

            yeah...I recently framed out a basement for a guy. NIGHTMARE. checked the studs as they went up to omit the worst. then shimmed and planed as needed to get things real straight. week later it was all twisted to hell. The guy had insisted on using 2x3 but it was KD...but you would never believe it. ripped out over a dozen maybe 20 studs and brought em back all cut up and some with nails still in em  ( I was mad , we're talking major warpage) to my lumber yard to trade for new ones. all they had to say was oh well.

            I told the guy I did the job for he'd never talk me into letting him go with 2x3 again.

          31. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 25, 2006 07:10am | #53

            2x3's will never stay straight unless you get something nailed to it right away. You can't even leave them alone for one night.

            blue 

          32. blue_eyed_devil | Apr 25, 2006 05:44am | #46

            Tis true, I am in La La land Framer.

            I just straightedged a 1550 house today. I had to cut a whopping three studs!

            Of course, you also straightedge your house don't you? Or do you just hope everything is good?

            So, I spent exactly 45 seconds fixing three problem studs. I could have sighted and sorted and dikked around, but instead, we just got er done!

            YOu never answered....how many studs do you cull and how much time does that take?

            blue 

          33. Framer | Apr 25, 2006 01:49pm | #54

            "we just got er done!"There you go with same mentality as the rest of those types of framers who just, "get her done". I can imagine if you do an addition or work inside an existing house, would you have the patience or would you just rush, rush, to get er done?You still using a 100’ extension cord to square foundations because you don’t have a big enough tape, and are you still nailing down the mudsills following the foundations instead of snapping lines to, “ get er done”?I frame the way I do and you can frame the way you do since every single process of framing a house that you are the fastest on the planet in your mind!Joe Carola

            Edited 4/25/2006 12:14 pm ET by Framer

      5. alrightythen | Apr 22, 2006 09:01am | #16

        you don't? 

        seriously...tell us about the lumber you get. I know TJI advertises a fabricated stud, but I also know you pay a premium. I've heard that some builders will use em strictly where the cabinets go.

      6. JRuss | Apr 22, 2006 01:39pm | #19

        The satisfaction of a job well done is never sad.

         

         Never serious, but always right.

        1. chauncey | Apr 22, 2006 02:13pm | #20

          I must apologize to you guys.  I didn't mean any disrespect to your work.  I was saddened by the need to use shims.  I know there is "engineered" framing lumber out there, what is the cost difference, is it so pricey that it's used only on cabinet walls?

  4. regreaves | Apr 21, 2006 09:32pm | #13

    I went looking for shims and couldn't find any. I ripped pieces of 1/4 and 1/8 masonite 4' long and used them as shims.

  5. alrightythen | Apr 22, 2006 08:55am | #15

    how do you guys like to fasten your shims. I ripped my own shims and fsaten with my hand tacker.

    1. User avater
      IMERC | Apr 22, 2006 09:58am | #18

      or duct tape..Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->

      WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->

      Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!

  6. GUNN308 | Apr 22, 2006 03:29pm | #21

    I crown all my wall studs with the crown out, if they are too bad use em for cripples and bracing or send em back which takes longer shimmin or crownin?

  7. User avater
    xxPaulCPxx | Apr 23, 2006 02:46am | #28

    I've seen it at Lowes as well, I remember a brand name "Phoenix board"

    Another use:  Keeps staples from tearing through plastic sheeting - it basicly works as a long plastic cap.

    Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA

    Also a CRX fanatic!

  8. Shep | Apr 24, 2006 05:51pm | #40

    I've frequently used 30# tar paper for shims.

    I use the long leg of my drywall square as a cutting guide, and cut a bunch all at one time.

    Then tack them on with a hammer stapler.

    You can get pretty close to a flat, straight wall with them.

    I wish I could get perfect lumber, but sometimes you gotta improvise.

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