Shaun Roper - an Inspirational Pub Shed story
Shaun recently posted some photos of his completed home bar on Pub Sheds and the impression it made on the group was virtually instantaneous and we simply had to get in touch to find out the inspiration behind his project.
Firstly, here are some pictures of the original project:
What follows is Shaun's amazing story in his own words...
"Since 2009 I had been building bars for customers all over the U.K.
I've built bars for peoples houses, sheds, summer houses etc. I have also built bars for a handful of celebrities too. One of which being a one direction band member.
In 2010 I decided that I needed my own.
That's where the "cock in cider" was born.
It started off 16ft x 12 ft. I built the leather seating area and bar over 3 days at my workshop. We had some amazing nights in there. It changed a little in there over the years.
The business was growing rapidly and in December of 2014, we had just had a couple of drinks in there with friends, and were waiting by the front door for a taxi to go into town for a few Christmas drinks. When I suddenly got a pain in my neck. The pain was so severe that I was sick and collapsed on the floor.
I woke up a couple of days before Christmas, lying in hospital with my whole family around me. I knew something bad had happened as my mum had flown from Spain to be there. I had suffered from a brain hemorrhage caused by an AVM.
In the few months that followed I had lost my business as I was too ill to continue. The bar was stripped down and was used to store my machinery and other bits from my workshop.
I've spent some quality time with my wife and 4 children since then. I used to think making money was the most important thing in life. How stupid!
In the spring of 2016 my wife and I were tidying the garden when she said that I should slowly rebuild the bar. I'd not done a lot of physical work for a while and it was a case of doing an hour a day when I wasn't ill. I had friends and family help me lift the heavy wood. Especially the roof.
I had to adjust the pitch of the roof as I was extending the bar. The roof is metal roof sheets that look like red tiles. I paid £10 per sheet.
I managed to get hold of enough plywood to cover the floor. I joined a local wood turners club at the start of the year and they had ordered some new lathes. Luckily for me, they were all nicely packed in some thick ply boxes and they were happy for me to get rid of it.
My wife saw an advert on a local selling page.a man had a van load of timber he was selling for £100 we knocked him down to £80 and had it delivered. It came at night and it wasn't until the morning that I realized that it was hardwood. (Result). It would of cost approx £1800 to buy from a timber merchant. The plan was to use it in the walls and ceiling but it was far too nice. After a month or two the walls were up and it was water tight. I decided that I wanted wood paneling around the whole room. Giving me a shelf to put things on that I had collected over the years. I built the paneling using the old plywood from the roof.
I insulated the walls an ceiling using Fiberglass insulation. My electrician friend came around and told me where to run the cables for the lights and sockets etc. I then did the plasterboards and my friend did the plastering for free.
I purchased some treated 6x1 rough sawn timber for the floor. 30sqm for £150.
Didn't want cheap looking laminate which would of cost twice as much. And certainly didn't want to spend a thousand on some hardwood. I laid it and left it to move for a couple of weeks. Then sanded it. I really like the end result. It has a nice grain and you can also see blade marks from when it was cut at the mill.
I purchased 3 old Singer sewing machines with treadle bases. I made tables using these and the hardwood that I purchased cheap. I drove for 1 1/2 hours to Sheffield to collect the chesterfield sofa which was an absolute nightmare. The seller had given me the wrong postcode and was actually in stoke on Trent. He knocked some money off and I gave him his £150. It's Worth the 6 hour journey.
The lights over the bar are attached to a railway sleeper from my garden, which is hung from the roof. The beams are new timber which I have cladded in pallet wood. They give it an aged look.
The pub doors are my favorite part of the pub. I purchased these from eBay 6 years ago for £70 +£30 postage from Scotland. The brass alone is worth more than that. I nearly sold them for £2000 last year. I'm glad I decided not to now. The Windows are actually a pair of mahogany French doors from a pub. I cut the bottoms off leaving just the lead glazed part.
The front of the pub is cladded with cedar shingles.
Most of the pictures are from my in laws farm house.
We purchased the stags head from eBay. I found some Edwardian framed pictures of some parlour girls on a local market. Can't beat antique porn.
I have a collection of guitars and my wife said had to choose my 3 most favorite. It was a bit like asking me which one of my 4 children I liked the most. The rest are now in the attic. (The guitars) not the kids.
My garden is approx 40m long so it's far enough away from the house not to hear the music. However it's a dark walk to the toilet. My next job is to make a composting toilet. For number 1s only.
So it's nearly finished and I've enjoyed pottering about with the touching up parts. I would say it has taken 6 months to build and at a cost of just under £2000. I funded the build by selling my series Land Rover. I am now waiting for santa to bring me a new projector so I can watch films every Sunday with the family. I have a scan in January to see if my AVM has shrunk. And I am enjoying being alive. That's the story of my build and hope you like it."
As we speak, Shaun is looking for a new name for his Pub Shed so if you have any suggestions, feel free to share them on the main group page:
Shaun's Pub Shed joins the "Pub Sheds Hall of Fame" and is awarded the Pub Sheds Hall of Fame medal:
If you have a home bar that you think deserves to be considered for the Pub Sheds Hall of Fame, or if you'd like to contribute to a Pub Sheds Blog article, feel free to contact us at:
