I am a custom home builder in a small community on the Texas coast. As of late, I' have really developed a love of things old, specifically craftsman style homes and bungalows from the 30s and 40s.

I want to finish out a new spec home in this style, but have yet to see a good example of this cornice method, one that would withstand extreme humidity, windstorm, etc etc.. all the other fun stuff that goes along with the coast. I have seen some homes in Florida that looked great, but w/o going up inthe attic, I couldn't really see how they did it. Any advice welcomed, thanks a ton.

I'm not sure I'll be much help but if I understand what you are looking for then the way I've seen it done is to run a series of 2x4s from the rake board through notches in the hanging rafter (the rafter that sits flush with the outside of the wall framing). The 2x4s are continued back to the next rafter and are layed flat so that the nothes are 1-1/2" deep x 3-1/2" wide and on 24" centers. The roof sheeting is then nailed to the rake, the 2x4 blocks and the hanging rafter. I've also seen instances where the 2x4 blocks were perpendicular to the rafters as well. The siding is then run and cut in around those components. Of course some-one here will have at least different terminology, but then that is often a local thing.

I would use pressure treated rafers pre cut to a design on a band saw for the tails. If you want them to look wider then just precute a shorter one that just butts up to the side of the house and attach it to the side of the other one with ceramic coated screws.
I like to apply West System to any of the exposed ends grains. After the wood has had time to dry out use stain instead of paint. It will faid but never peel. Stain can now be mixed to just about any color.
If this is the style your looking for then I strongly would suggest you pick up the book Shop designs For Craftsman Homes by Robert W. Lang

This message has been edited. Last edited by: joecaption,

I'm not sure if this will help you but I believe it might. I have documented the setp-by-step construction of my Craftsman house, It has custom rafter tails that extend out. Since I took pictures through all the framing you can see how the rafter tails are actually attached inside the roof to the main rafters. You can see it in the Photo Gallery at CraftsmanRemodel.com.