How to Frame a Shed Truss

Measure the width of the shed's footprint. Add 2 feet to the measurement. Cut a 2-by-6-inch board equal to the length of the measurement. Set the 2-by-6 aside.

Place a carpenter's speed square on the end of a 2-by-4 inch board. Rotate the square until it is at a 30-degree angle in relation to the length of the board. Mark a line on the board by running the pencil down the hypotenuse of the square (a carpenter's speed square is actually a right triangle). Do the same to another 2-by-4-inch board. Cut the boards along the 30-degree lines.

Lay the cut boards on level ground. Butt the faces of the 30-degree cuts together. In this position, the two boards constitute two legs of a triangle. Lay the 2-by-6-inch board on top of the other two. Slide the 2-by-6 down the two 2-by-4-inch boards until neither end of the 2-by-6 protrudes out beyond the legs of the 2-by-4-inch boards. In other words, make a triangle.

Draw lines across the portion of the 2-by-4-inch boards that protrude from the triangle -- the legs. First, measure the top of the triangle down to the long side, which is the 2-by-6. Adjust the 2-by-6 until it is an equal distance from the top of the triangle on each leg. Draw lines across the 2-by-4-inch boards using the 2-by-6 as a guide. Cut the 2-by-4-inch boards along the lines.

Butt the faces of the 30-degree cuts on the 2-by-4-inch boards together and set the 2-by-6-inch board at the end of the triangle. Put a bubble level on each leg of the truss. Place shims under the boards until each leg is level. Place aluminum mending plates on top of the boards, one at each corner. Hammer the plates into the faces of the boards using a rubber hand maul.