Gandy Precision Timberworks — Custom Decks & Pergolas, Canberra

Matt Gandy — Gandy Precision Timberworks

About

Not a crew.
One craftsman.

There's a version of this page that lists qualifications and years of experience. This isn't that version.

I've been working with timber my whole life — but the work that sharpened my eye wasn't decking. It was building custom electric guitars under the name Dirty Elvis Guitars. Boutique instruments built from scratch, where tolerances are measured in fractions of a millimetre and every decision is both structural and aesthetic.

That background changed how I approach every timber project. The framing detail on a deck fascia, the way a corner is finished, the choice between two species of hardwood — these aren't afterthoughts. They're the job.

I also teach Wood Design at Telopea Park School in Canberra, which means I spend a lot of time thinking about design thinking itself. That thinking comes with me to every site visit.

Gandy Precision Timberworks is a sole trader operation, based in Palmerston and working across the Canberra region.

Matt Gandy

Builder · Designer · Craftsman

Services

What we build

Custom Decks

Designed for the specific site, not adapted from a template. We work in premium Australian hardwoods and take the details seriously — from the subframe up to the fascia finish.

Pergolas

A pergola defines an outdoor room. Done well, it's one of the most useful and enduring additions you can make to a Canberra home — shade in summer, structure for climbing plants, a framework for outdoor entertaining.

Timber Details

Steps, landings, screening and structural timber details. Often the most overlooked parts of an outdoor space — and the ones that make the biggest difference to how a home feels to arrive at.

We take on a limited number of projects at a time — that's deliberate. It means your job gets proper attention, not a rushed crew moving on to the next site. If you're looking for the cheapest quote, we're probably not the right fit. If you're looking for something built right the first time, let's talk.

Portfolio

Recent work

Every project on this page was designed for a specific space and a specific brief. None of them are catalogue builds.

Completed 2025

Rear deck & entry landing

Palmerston, ACT

Timber Spotted gum

Scope Custom rear deck + front entry landing

Detail Angled corners, mitered fascia, framed border

Some jobs are straightforward. Others ask you to think carefully about the space before you pick up a tool.

This backyard presented a challenge: a long, rectangular paved courtyard with a structural column sitting just off-centre of the main door opening. A standard rectangular deck would have felt clumsy around it. So instead, we designed the deck with angled corners — a deliberate geometric response to the space.

The decking is spotted gum, chosen for its rich warmth, durability in Canberra's climate extremes, and the way it ages gracefully. Every board was laid tight and consistent, with a full perimeter fascia that frames the surface the way a border frames a piece of artwork.

The same timber and language was carried through to the front entry landing, giving the home a coherent handmade quality from the moment you arrive to the moment you step outside.

Rear deck — angled view showing geometry

Angled fascia corner — mitered spotted gum

Spotted gum rear deck and front entry landing, Palmerston ACT. Custom geometry, full perimeter framing, mitered fascia corners throughout.

Completed 2024

Gable pergola

Canberra Region, ACT

Structure King post gable truss

Finish Painted timber, steel columns

Detail Custom trusses, integrated with existing roofline

A pergola is an exercise in proportion. Get the pitch of the gable wrong, the depth of the rafters wrong, or the spacing of the posts wrong, and the whole thing feels off — too heavy, too light, or disconnected from the house it sits beside.

This gable pergola uses king post trusses that echo the geometry of the home's own roofline. The result is a structure that reads as an extension of the architecture rather than something bolted on as an afterthought.

The painted finish was the client's choice — and a good one. It creates a clean, crisp visual weight that works with the rendered exterior walls and integrates the pergola firmly into the overall palette of the property.

Gable pergola with king post trusses, painted timber finish. Designed to integrate with the existing roofline and exterior palette.

Materials

The timbers we work with

We specify Australian hardwoods because they're the right material for Canberra's climate — hot summers, cold winters, and everything in between. Each species is chosen for the role it plays in the structure.

Spotted Gum

Decking · Fascia · Landing surfaces

One of Australia's hardest and most durable native hardwoods. The colour variation — warm ambers through deep reds — is characteristic of the species and becomes part of the character of the finished structure. Naturally resistant to termites and rot.

Blackbutt

Decking · Structural members

A pale to mid-brown hardwood with an even, consistent grain. Excellent fire resistance rating — relevant in the ACT context — and outstanding durability outdoors. Holds a clean line and finishes beautifully with oil.

Ironbark

Decking · High-traffic surfaces

The hardest and most dense of the common Australian decking hardwoods. Deep reddish-brown with interlocked grain that creates natural variation across a deck surface. Built to last generations with minimal maintenance.

Outdoor timber
structures, designed
and built to last.

Not a crew.
One craftsman.