The Robin Masters Estate (Pahonu)

[Sam]

Hey Pahonu,
Take a look at this article!
It answers a few things and fills in a few more blanks!
http://www.hawaiiislandhomes.com/homes- ... estyle-13/

Thanks for posting the link Kenji.After reading the last paragraph I'm encouraged that Eve many allow photos to be added to the listing.In the past the subject of the estates involvement with the show was Kapu.

“My grandparents, Dr. and Mrs. Ormand E. Wall, who developed this estate, built the various structures to last with foundations of blue rock and concrete. Two years ago, we replaced the original roof on the main house with green tile. Many people know this estate as the location where episodes of Magnum P.I. and Hawaii Five-O were shot over the years. It has also served our family as a gathering place and venue for hosting charitable events. It’s truly a kamaaina home with the rare distinction of continuous use by the same family for over 80 years,” Anderson said.


I think the bathhouse is visible in this pic.Maybe??

[Pahonu]

Hey Pahonu,
Take a look at this article!
It answers a few things and fills in a few more blanks!
http://www.hawaiiislandhomes.com/homes- ... estyle-13/

Thanks Kenji! A couple of new details to help. Dumb waiters were ubiquitous in homes of this size and era if they had a basement. It had crossed my mind that there might be one. I'll have to consider where it might be located in the kitchen wing. With the wine cellar confirmed, I have an idea where in the basement it might be. Wine hates light and heat, so the rearmost part of the kitchen wing, which has no known window wells, would make the most sense. The detail that surprised me most was that the gate house has a basement with laundry facilities. I had no inkling of this at all, and the tax record doesn't mention it. It also mentions a bar, which might be what that front room of the ell is being called. Perhaps the rear room, behind the living room on the beach side, is the library referred to in the article. It has smaller and fewer windows, perfect for rows of bookcases. It is also adjacent to the room to the left of the stair hall which I have drawn as a study in my model. That would make sense.

As I think about the rooms they actually showed on Magnum, it really isn't that many, and is not too far off the actual structure. On the other hand, they mention several rooms and facilities we never see like stables, a servants wing, and didn't they mention a hot tub or spa of some kind? Beyond the living room, stair hall, and Higgins study, other rooms were very infrequently used in the show. How many can we think of?

wine cellar
security computer room
darkroom
kitchen
dining porch
dining room
tv room
library
several bedrooms

?????

I think all of these spaces might fit into the actual home. The real home's living room at 22x40 feet is actually much larger than the one they show on Magnum.

[Pahonu]

Hey Pahonu,
Take a look at this article!
It answers a few things and fills in a few more blanks!
http://www.hawaiiislandhomes.com/homes- ... estyle-13/

Thanks for posting the link Kenji.After reading the last paragraph I'm encouraged that Eve many allow photos to be added to the listing.In the past the subject of the estates involvement with the show was Kapu.

“My grandparents, Dr. and Mrs. Ormand E. Wall, who developed this estate, built the various structures to last with foundations of blue rock and concrete. Two years ago, we replaced the original roof on the main house with green tile. Many people know this estate as the location where episodes of Magnum P.I. and Hawaii Five-O were shot over the years. It has also served our family as a gathering place and venue for hosting charitable events. It’s truly a kamaaina home with the rare distinction of continuous use by the same family for over 80 years,” Anderson said.


I think the bathhouse is visible in this pic.Maybe??

That's it Sam. Someone who attended one of the events there wrote in their blog it was in the rear courtyard. I think this structure may have been added much later.

[Sam]

I think it was the pug meetup from a few years back that mentioned the location.

NOW ..what about the boathouse?? hahaha

[Pahonu]

I just looked back at the article and there isn't a gatehouse basement. I misread it. The laundry downstairs seems to mean on the first floor.

[Pahonu]

I think it was the pug meetup from a few years back that mentioned the location.

NOW ..what about the boathouse?? hahaha

I can't tell you how much I'm hoping for photos to come!

[Sam]

Me too...Pahonu,I have a few questions for you regarding the boathouse.Believe me,I'm not trying to win a point or even make a point,I'm trying to understand what we discussed last week.

In this first photo I've drawn a line that roughly represents the floor joists and the second pic is the joist from below that shows what looks like a finished floor above and joists with braces.My first question is..Would one expect the joists to be finished on the top side..kinda like a floor and have the cross braces giving it the stability of a floor..in an enclosed unused area?

Second question..Does it seem odd that the room has a support post in the middle which would be in line with the double doors?

[KENJI]

One thing I found interesting was Eve mentions they replaced the roof with green tiles......looking at a few aerials of the new roof I originally thought they may have painted the tiles which would've been a BIG mistake in a few years (peeling/flaking). I think what I'm seeing is the roofer never mixed the tiles in each crate together to avoid color variances so some sections look darker than others, making for a patch like look it a few spots. I wonder what it cost to replace that roof? I still prefer the original color.....I wonder if Eve notices a big difference in temperature with the green tile compared to the black tile?

[Styles Bitchley]

I wonder if Eve notices a big difference in temperature with the green tile compared to the black tile?

I'm sure she notices a difference in her electricity bill.

[KENJI]

Me too...Pahonu,I have a few questions for you regarding the boathouse.Believe me,I'm not trying to win a point or even make a point,I'm trying to understand what we discussed last week.

In this first photo I've drawn a line that roughly represents the floor joists and the second pic is the joist from below that shows what looks like a finished floor above and joists with braces.My first question is..Would one expect the joists to be finished on the top side..kinda like a floor and have the cross braces giving it the stability of a floor..in an enclosed unused area?

Second question..Does it seem odd that the room has a support post in the middle which would be in line with the double doors?

Hi Sam,
I'll add my two bits......
To answer your first question...no that wouldn't be the norm...I feel what you are seeing in the second picture is actually under the covered lanai where there is floor above etc.....the red line section would contain truss structure. The second question connects with the first....the post would most likely located in line with the posts that you see on the lanai looking out at the tidal pool to carry the load down to the footings. The double doors are located in the slope section which is further forward than the posts so there is plenty of room for door clearance etc. If Eve wanted to she could remove the post(s) that you mentioned but the cross beam and downward posts would have to be beefed up to take on the extra load. With it just being a boathouse there is no real need though.
Your turn Pahonu.

[Pahonu]

Hey Sam, Kenji

The construction of the boathouse is really pretty straight forward. Remember the lower level interior storage space is about 22 wide and, if I remember correctly 33 feet long. It looks as though the narrower dimension, perpendicular to your red line, is spanned by at least two larger beams called girts or girders. They would most likely line up with the wall to the upper level interior space that has the door, and the half wall between the lania and the sloped roof on the beach side. There might even be a third one running down the center of the lania. Between those girts run smaller dimension rafters that would be parallel to your red line. On top of this would be laid the subfloor which in this era was not plywood, but probably tongue and groove planking. Then construction of the second level would begin with finished flooring for the interior space, perhaps wood, tile was obviously used on the lanai, and the small shed roof constructed between the half wall of the lanai and the beach side wall with the double doors.

As to the posts, it really comes down to expense. The whole span could be carried by large, very costly, beams perhaps 8x12 or even 8x14 inches, or by much smaller pieces of lumber if you split the span in half with a post, also called a lally column. Today they are usually steel posts. Each of the two or three girts would have such a post. They might have simply ganged two or three 2x10's together for each girt, which would be even less expensive. Considering they didn't even go to the expense of installing a finished ceiling, it's logical that they also saved the expense of very large beams. It's just a storage area, why pay more. I've been meaning to add them to my model. I already show the girts, three of them, but not the cross joists. Hope that helps.

[Pahonu]

Oh, and Kenji is right that the first post would be quite a few feet back of the double doors, maybe 6-8. Come to think of it, the double doors aren't right in the center of that wall, are they? Offset to the left, I think. That might be why, Sam. Got a pic of the double door side handy?

[Sam]

Pahonu.I think it is the way you've detailed it but when I see the pics I have a hard time visualizing it.
In this pic it appears that the platform runs to the right of the window.look at the folded lawn chair how big is that,two chairs end to end would reach the end of the platform?? Looking at the surf ski the end is about the far end of the window,compare that to the outside window I would expect to see the double doors. I guess it comes down to angles.

[Pahonu]

Pahonu.I think it is the way you've detailed it but when I see the pics I have a hard time visualizing it.
In this pic it appears that the platform runs to the right of the window.look at the folded lawn chair how big is that,two chairs end to end would reach the end of the platform?? Looking at the surf ski the end is about the far end of the window,compare that to the outside window I would expect to see the double doors. I guess it comes down to angles.

Hey Sam,

I honestly don't know. It does seem like you should be able to see part of the double doors as they're not that far away, maybe 4 or 5 feet. I just can't see what other view it would be as none of the other corners of the space would look remotely close. I'll have to add the platform to my model also.

[J.J. Walters]

Glad you were all able to get a look at it. It's still a work in progress, as you might have noticed. Some areas are well detailed, others less so, and some not at all. It all depends on what I and you guys have been able to track down in terms of pictures of the actual interior. The only spots on the exterior that are still uncertain are the service porch next to the garage in the rear, the corner of the main house behind the second floor lanai by the water, and the gate house opposite the driveway.

Another neat tool is "section plane". Click on that, go to the top side of the ceiling of any room, and click it. It will slice off everything above that and you can look down in at the floor plan. The whole space will make more sense that way.

Finally had a chance to look at your latest update to the SketchUp model, Pahonu. Wow, it's just fantastic! You've made quite a few improvements to it. Truly an impressive piece of work. Thank you again for creating this and sharing it with all of us.

I must say, it's really neat to see the gatehouse building without all the foliage cover. You really never get a good look at the structure in the show. It's really a beautiful little building. I could totally live there.





And what a thrill it is to see the backside of the main house. Again, hardly ever see it in the show! This is where I'd put the bank of grills and smokers.



Never knew this little lanai existed!