Thank you all for the replies (never imagined the sheer volume of help) and the tips/suggestions. I will take it all into consideration. Unfortunately I remeasured with my wife's help tonight and we measured 104 1/4 to 104 3/8, so I am off slightly. The engineer I spoke with said that I should oversize by 3/16" to compensate for shrinkage of the wood over time, so I'm really not that far off from that number.
Should I sand it down a bit on top or is 3/8 not that big of a deal? Either way, sounds like I've gotta get a bigger hammer... And a helper that weighs more than 100 lbs.
And no worries, I've taken the wiring and boxes into account. The wires up top are loose because I took them out of their pins to move them around. Unfortunately with all the wiring, ductwork, etc in the area, it's been difficult to find ideal locations for the supporting walls, but I think I've got 2 spots that should work fine. Plus I've reinforced the I beams by gluing and nailing 3/4" plywood inside it.
Should I sand it down a bit on top or is 3/8 not that big of a deal? Either way, sounds like I've gotta get a bigger hammer... And a helper that weighs more than 100 lbs.
And no worries, I've taken the wiring and boxes into account. The wires up top are loose because I took them out of their pins to move them around. Unfortunately with all the wiring, ductwork, etc in the area, it's been difficult to find ideal locations for the supporting walls, but I think I've got 2 spots that should work fine. Plus I've reinforced the I beams by gluing and nailing 3/4" plywood inside it.
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