Roof Should be Sturdy
The pitch of the roof and the width of the eaves are largely matters of personal taste and the kind of cabin you are building. A low pitched or flat roof, however, must be thoroughly braced if it is to bear a heavy load of snow, and the additional materials may cost more than a steeply pitched roof. The most effective roof for many cabins is low pitched with wide eaves—not too wide, of course, but wider than you’d have on a city house. Build the gable ends to the height you finally decide on; then trim down the rough ends along a line marked to the pitch of the roof.
If you have been wise, you have a long, straight log of unquestioned strength saved for your ridge pole. This should rest in notches at the very peak of the gables, and since it forms the keystone of your house, be sure it is solid and well bedded in oakum. The auxiliary roof supports, called purlins, run parallel to the ridge log and should be set by notching out the gable log where the purlin end rests. Cope the log above it so that the two gable logs grip the purlin firmly. These purlins ought to project eight or ten inches beyond the roof itself to allow for axe-trimmed ends. ([Fig. 9].)