 Re: Flying Saucer
Thanks Ken,Jr
The remainder of the dome was built on styrafoam supports. This was a tip I picked up from this forum and it worked great. When I started, I rented a proper masonary saw with water bath to do the bulk cutting into 2/3, 1/2. and 1/3 bricks. Did all the cutting in a couple of hours. As you move up above the 4th course or so, you have to start doing a "bevel" cut on each brick to keep the inside joints as tight as possible. I did this using an ordinary chop saw with a masonary blade. I soaked the bricks in water for 1/2 hr so that the blade was "wet cutting". If you cut dry bricks the blade will wear out fairly quickly. In the second photo you can see a bundle of cheap chopsticks which I used to bridge between the styrafoam supports as needed to hold the bricks as I worked up. I took my time, doing a couple of courses at a time and letting the mortar set up overnight before doing the next two courses. Last photo is me inserting the keystone set. |