American Roof Framer 

This book was written for both apprentices and master roof cutters. Many carpenters still do not use a CMC calculator or phone app for carpentry calculations, so the original idea was to create another rafter-table reference. As the work developed, however, it became much more than a reinvention of traditional rafter tables—it grew into a more advanced and capable roof-framing resource.

The American Roof Framer book stands out most clearly in its treatment of unequal-pitch hip roofs. For every pitch combination, it provides two additional pages with the information needed to cut the hip rafter accurately. The book also excels in its round-tower rafter tables, which allow the user to work like a master roof cutter without performing trigonometric calculations. The bay-window rafter tables are equally useful, making it possible to cut and stack a bay-window roof in 10 minutes or less.

Using the American Roof Framer’s rafter tables for round towers—whether the rafters are mitered or butted—can be significantly faster and more reliable than working through each calculation on a calculator or phone app. The tables provide ready-to-use values that help roof framers determine rafter lengths, angles, and related layout information with less chance of error in the field. 

This is especially helpful on complex roof shapes such as round towers and polygon roofs, where repeated angle and length calculations can slow down production. By referencing the appropriate rafter table, a framer can quickly compare design conditions, confirm layout dimensions, and move from planning to cutting with greater confidence.

The same advantage applies to the polygon rafter tables. Instead of relying on separate digital calculations for each condition, the tables give a practical reference system that supports consistent layout, reduces guesswork, and saves time on the jobsite.

Unequal Pitch Rafter Table Coverage

The Unequal Pitch Rafter Tables include 42 pitch combinations. Main pitches range from 4:12 through 16:12, and each main pitch is paired with up to four higher adjacent pitches.

Example: A 4:12 main pitch pairs with 5:12, 6:12, 7:12, and 8:12. Exception: Main pitches 13:12 through 15:12 have fewer pairings because they reach the upper limit of 16:12. With 42 combinations and 4 pages per combination, the tables contain 168 total pages.

HG VIII — American Roof Framer

Round Towers Mitered or Round Tower Butt Rafters Table Coverage

Ever feel like you’re fucking the dog when cutting the rafters for a Round Tower Roof? Well, put the jar of Vaseline away and buy the American Roof Framer book. Simply find the radius of the Round Tower Roof, then use the Round Tower Mitered or Butt Rafter Table using the radius of the Round Tower. Each row in the Round Tower Rafter Tables has the Radius, Edge length, RL Main: M-22.5°, RL #2: M-22.5°, RL#3: M-11.25°, RL#4: M-5.625°, or the rafter lengths for the Butt rafters. No calculations are required. It couldn’t get any simpler than that. Using the Round Tower Rafter Tables is 100x faster than using a calculator or phone app.

Bay Window Rafter Tables

Cutting and stacking a Bay Window will be a breeze with these rafter tables. No calculations, just select a roof pitch and bay window run-projection and you're off to the races.

Example: Bay Window: Pitch: 8:12 (Slope Angle: 33.69007°)

Hip Rafter Slope A = 31.62973° Hip Rafter Slope B = 25.23940°

Rafter Lengths are to the Ridge

Rise is to the top of the Ridge

Book Contents

Equal Pitch Roof Rafter Tables

Unequal Pitch Roof Rafter Tables

Polygon Roof Rafter Tables

Mitered Round Tower Rafter Tables

Butt Round Tower Rafter Tables

Bay Window Rafter Tables

HG VIII American Roof Framer

Book VIII, 8.5x11 Soft cover, 636 pages — $110.00

All books are shipped via United States Postal Service Priority Mail for Orders in the United States (3–4 days).

This book cannot be shipped outside the United States due to the export laws of the American Carpenters Federation of Roof Cutters.

Click here to buy American Roof Framer