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Stud Vocabulary

| Posted in General Discussion on February 15, 2001 04:06am

*
OK, now that we’ve done plates, how about studs? Here are the words as I understand them:

King stud: A stud that extends all the way from the sole plate to the top plate. This is the longest kind.

Jack stud: A stud that extends from the sole plate to a header, and carries the structural load of the header.

Trimmer stud: A stud that forms the side of the rough opening for a door or window. (Often a stud can be both a Jack and a Trimmer)

Cripple stud: Any stud that is none of the above.

Often cripple studs are quite short and go between a header and top plate, or between a sole plate and rough sill for a window. There is a special case in the cripple walls around a crawl space, where all the studs are considered to be cripples.

Anyhow, that’s the way I remember it. Any additions or corrections?

— J.S.

Reply

Replies

  1. Mongo_ | Feb 09, 2001 08:07pm | #1

    *
    That's what I call them, though with one slight modification to king studs: I only call "kings" the full-length studs that define window and door openings. Other "regular" full-length sole-to-top plate studs that make up the wall are simply referred to as "studs." It became easier for me to differentiate between the two when culling the lumber pile became the rule rather than the exception when looking for straight sticks. "As you go through the stack, pull the kings."

    First time through the stack, I pull and save the straightest studs to be used for corners and kings, next best for jacks. Twisters are cut into cripples or returned to the yard. The rest of the usable ones become "studs."

    When I mark up the plates I use an "x" for all full length studs (my version of "regular" and my version of "king"), an "o" for jacks, and a "c" for cripples.

    1. davidmason | Feb 09, 2001 11:19pm | #2

      * I'm with Mongo on this one.I like to use X's and O's for laying out. Worked with a guy that used X's and t's, which was confusing sometimes, especially in the heat of battle. Dave

      1. jim_at_greaat_white | Feb 10, 2001 01:51am | #3

        *Stud- a full length 2x bottom plte to top plateking stud- a full length stud bottom plate to top plate that either defines an opening or is nailed to a header horizontally.Trimmer- cut stud that supports a header vertically from below (nailed flush and tight to a king stud)cripple- cut stud that goes between bottom plate and sill or between top plate and header to hold them at the right hieght stud variation#1- see poster name abovestud variation #2- anyone that manages to haul more lumber than they should "Ease up ya big Stud before ya hurt yerself!"jim

        1. GACC_DAllas | Feb 10, 2001 03:00am | #4

          *I find that the terms can vary from crew to crew, state to state and country to country. I guess it really doesn't matter what you call them as long as you put them in the right place.Here's how I learned first:Stud - Floor to ceiling.King Stud - Floor to ceiling; attaches to side of header.Cripple - Supports header. (I've also heard them trimmers or bucks).Cripple Stud - Small studs above the header. (I've heard them called studlets).That's what I've heard. Then there are corners, T's, ledgers, sills, grounds, backings, fire blocks, stops, bands, dead wood, braces of all kinds, and we haven't even gotten to the roof.Ed. Williams

          1. Ryan_C | Feb 10, 2001 05:07pm | #5

            *Stud: floor to ceilingCripple: short studs either over header or under windowJack stud: a stud that holds something up, usually a header, also know as a trimmer.King stud: just like a regular stud except it flanks a window or door opening, has a jack nailed to it.

          2. HomeBldr_ | Feb 12, 2001 04:13am | #6

            *Stud= sole to top plateKing= sole to top plate defining a window or doorTrimmer= cut to length for tight fit under headersCripple= short studs under sills or above headersPocket= 3studs nailed in a u-shape for interior partition wall intersectionTriple= 3studs flat-nailed for exterior corners & exterior partition wall intersection also used under beams and girder trussScraps= used for backing & blocking

          3. David_G_Bloomer | Feb 14, 2001 05:20am | #7

            *Am' I the only one who call "a Rough sill" a lentil

          4. Ralph_Wicklund | Feb 14, 2001 05:36am | #8

            *lentil 1: a widely cultivated Eurasian annual leguminous plant with flattened edible seeds and leafy stalks used as fodder 2: the seed of the lentil.Did you mean lintel?lintel : a horizontal architectural member spanning and usually carrying the load above an opening. sill 1: a horizontal piece (as a timber) that forms the lowest member of a framework or supporting structure: as a: the horizontal member at the base of a window b: the timber or stone at the foot of a door: threshold.

          5. GKD | Feb 14, 2001 07:29am | #9

            *One crew I worked with about twenty years ago in Michigan insisted on calling all the short studs "minis" instead of cripples. The reasoning was that the term "cripple" was somehow demeaning to handicap folks. Wasn't twenty years ago about the timeframe that the Politically Correct movement started?Gregg

          6. Tony_Ferrito | Feb 14, 2001 01:51pm | #10

            *I beleive the currently acceptable name is "diferently-abled stud", But as this term becomes more widely used so will the stigma attached to it and these studs will resent its use. So I propose we we call them all studs regardless of length, species, orientation, gender, straightness, or any other narrow minded stereotypes. Just put a bunch of marks on the plates and hope the rest of the crew can read your mind.trying to be P.C. -- T.Ferrito ;)

          7. John_Sprung | Feb 14, 2001 10:26pm | #11

            *How about Dimensionally Challenged? ;-)-- J.S.

          8. Bill_Hartmann | Feb 15, 2001 12:50am | #12

            *JohnI think that is a much better term. But I think that there is still a real problem with STUD.How about vertical compression reaction member.

          9. Ralph_Wicklund | Feb 15, 2001 04:06am | #13

            *Keep this up and some wisea$$ rulemaking bureaucrat is going to push through a PC law that will make it so. Can you hear it on the job? "Hey, Mac, bring over a bunch of those VCRM's and cut them into PC lengths for the windows."

  2. John_Sprung | Feb 15, 2001 04:06am | #14

    *
    OK, now that we've done plates, how about studs? Here are the words as I understand them:

    King stud: A stud that extends all the way from the sole plate to the top plate. This is the longest kind.

    Jack stud: A stud that extends from the sole plate to a header, and carries the structural load of the header.

    Trimmer stud: A stud that forms the side of the rough opening for a door or window. (Often a stud can be both a Jack and a Trimmer)

    Cripple stud: Any stud that is none of the above.

    Often cripple studs are quite short and go between a header and top plate, or between a sole plate and rough sill for a window. There is a special case in the cripple walls around a crawl space, where all the studs are considered to be cripples.

    Anyhow, that's the way I remember it. Any additions or corrections?

    -- J.S.

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