update: faux bamboo rain gutters now with installed photo

howdy.
i started work on an outdoor tiki bar and thought i'd share the rain gutters i made and how i went about making them.
(warning: long descriptive post with lotsa photos)

i started with a 5" half round sheet metal gutter.

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i cleaned it with some acetone then took some metal epoxy putty Image Missing: https://tikicentral.com/resize.php/uploads/76208/5313ea5a.jpg?w=1280&h=1280&fit=max&sharp=5&s=67ea078a6cd8f5f1f8e59d0dbecc5423
and made little 6" long worms.
these we're spaced out at 12" and pressed onto the gutter.
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i recommend wearing neoprene/latex gloves as the stuff is very sticky.
you'll also want to change gloves every 2nd or 3rd node as the putty will start to stick to the gloves

after pressing the putty down i took a scrawl, dipped it in water and rolled it down the middle of the putty.
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this leaves a groove and completes the shape of the node.
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do that a buncha times and you end up with this.
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next comes the base coat.
i had some rustoleum warm yellow spray paint left over from my daughters bike paint job, so that's what i used.
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be sure to paint i a well ventilated area. i had the garage door up when painting.

next is where the real experimentation begins.
i had some rustoleum espresso paint so that's what i used for the next step.
painting the nodes.
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once you get them painted, experiment with taking a small brush or your fingertip and pull some of the paint away from the node.
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add a little stippling and you're ready to make it look like bamboo.
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i had a mix of 50/50 rustoleum espresso with bear faux glaze from another project, so that's what i used for the next step.
get a wide brush, like 3" and spread a liberal amount of the glaze/paint mixture on the gutter between two nodes. cover the area entirely then in a single motion, drag the brush in a straight line from node to node. repeat this going from the front to the back til it looks something like this.
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once you get it looking the way you like, move on to the next segment. repeat til the gutter is done.
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once you're happy with the way that looks, get a tooth brush and get some of the dark paint on it and flick some spots around randomly. you can also add more stippling and random bits here and there.
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once i was finished i decided the nodes were too dark so i stippled them with a lighter brown.
had i started of with new paints as opposed to what i had in the cupboard, i would've chosen different colors but i think it came out pretty darn fine.
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once you're happy with it, give it a clear coat and you're ready to go.

i'll post a picture of it once i get it put up.

update: here it is installed, just needs a rain chain.

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enjoy
keith

[ Edited by: muskrat 2014-03-02 20:06 ]

[ Edited by: muskrat 2014-03-07 16:18 ]

Those are great "how to" pictures. Nice job indeed...looking forward to your other crafty illusions.

Now that was something I've never seen before. Wonderful photos. Can't wait to see your backyard.

Send me the Kiki's font that you showed me on your phone.

Come back soon, Wendy

Very Clever..... looks great

Yer a wizard, Harry!

I love the orange dune buggy! The gutter is cool too.

Great idea, great execution, great step-by-step

thanks y'all.

That looks fantastic!

vamp: i dont think i'll be ready for this years tiki crawll but the next for sure.

wendy: glad i could show ya something new.

erich: thanks a bunch.

ticitacky: abracadabra

tikilongbeach: we love our little speed buggy.

maddgomike: thanks for the props.

4wdtiki: that means a lot coming from a craftsman such as yourself.

so as promised, here's a coupla shots of the gutter put up.

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the big ugly brackets will be covered in rope.
just gotta get a rain chain and we'll call this project done.
on to the roof.

Great job!

here it is with the roof in place.

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thanks for lookin.

You could have a whole new profession. Wonderful work, Wendy

very cool... great job routing the wood. Very clever making the support arms to look like war clubs...
Can't wait for more pics...

ErichTroudt good catch, I missed that. Excellent!

thanks, and glad somebody noticed my clubs.
my non-tiki friends are confused by them.

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[ Edited by: muskrat 2014-03-07 16:46 ]

Damn, that all looks SO good! Love the dark stain on the beams and the reed between them, the routered patterns, the clubs!

Phenomenal work! Dig the ingenuity and old school vibe. My favorite. Looking forward to more pictures.

4wdtiki- no stain, thats all burnt and clear coated.

kahaka- thanks. next up is wiring so i can start hangin lights. hopefully one of yours will grace the lounge.

gotta start a tiki bar build thread.

On 2014-03-08 00:41, muskrat wrote:

... gotta start a tiki bar build thread.

Yes, please! Great stuff here!!

I like it... I like it a lot!

Beauty, eh?

Yes, please start a tiki bar thread! I'd love to see the whole space.

Love the gutters! So amazingly creative. What a great idea and they turned out really nice. I used to think I was somewhat creative. Then I came on this site. I am not. But I can learn from all of you who are!

Love this! You did an amazing job the detail is what makes it look so great, if you start an at home bar post please share the link on here I'd be very interested in seeing it.

well i finally got around to starting a build thread.
i'll be updating it daily til i get to the current state of things.
you can check it out here-
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=47888&forum=20&17

Thanks for linking to this...missed it before. Great job! The faux paint looks very convincing.

A quick update. I added a rain chain to one of the gutters and a bamboo diverter to connect the two gutters. Inspired by the Swiss family Robinson.
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Even the hardware is made of bamboo.

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Wow wow wow. Is is looing like the Mai Kai. Wendy

I live in the desert, we don't even have gutters - I had to look up rain chain to see what it was :lol:

Very cool Muskrat!

Wow... thank you for sharing step by step pictures.. It's so neat to see your project come to life. :)

Good job!!

Sandra

I'm bumping this up because I am SO impressed with your creativity and with how your tiki space is turning out!!! That faux bamboo rain gutter is phenomenal! Thank you for the step by step, as this is something I was hoping to get to soon and you really demystified it all for me.

your attention to detail is top notch! Nice job!!