Mitering & Fitting Small Moldings.pdf
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MITERING
AND FITTING
SMALL
MOLDINGS
© 2009 August Home Publishing Co.
t
ipS
F
roM
o
ur
S
hop
M
itering
& F
itting
S
Mall
M
oldingS
Mitering small moldings on the table saw doesn’t have to be a hassle. With a few
tried-and-true techniques, a perfect fit is guaranteed.
C
utting accurate miters on the
table saw is always a chal-
lenge. But when you’re miter-
ing small, fragile pieces of molding
that highlight a project, the difficulty
factor increases.
The Goal.
Due to the small size, the
moldings can be difficult to hold on
to safely. You need a way to main-
tain good control of the workpieces
while keeping your hands and fin-
gers safe. Second, the moldings can
be flexible,
so firm support while
making the cuts is essential. Finally,
when fitting these small pieces, the
margin for error is small. The miters
need to be cut cleanly and accurately
with the pieces sized correctly.
FirsT, make a sled.
The solution to
all these challenges starts with
th
e
small miter sled shown in the
photo above. It gives you support
below and behind the workpiece so
positioning and control is easy an
d
chipping is minimized. Plus, once
a kerf is cut in the sled, you always
have a quick, precise way to align
your mark with the blade. You’ll find
more details on making this simple
sled on page 3.
a clean cuT.
The drawings at left
show how to make a miter cut with
the sled. It’s just a simple one, two,
three. Line up your mark, push the
sled through the blade, then slide
the piece away from the blade.
But there are a few other consider-
ations to keep in mind as well. You’ll
find yourself having to make two
different kinds of miter joints when
fitting small moldings — inside and
outside. A
n
inside miter fits into
a corner, an outside miter wraps
around a corner.
one seTup.
Whenever possible, I
like to make both inside and outside
miter cuts with the business end
of the miter gauge and sled angled
back toward me, as shown in the
main photo. This gives you a much
better view for ine control of the
workpiece. It won’t work for all cuts,
Align layout mark
with edge of
kerf in fence
Cove
molding
Slide
workpiece away
from blade after cut
Sled allows
firm, easy
control of
workpiece
during cut
{
Align your layout mark with the
edge of the kerf in the sled and then
make the cut.
{
When the cut is complete, slide
the workpiece away from the blade
before retracting the sled.
1
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com
© 2009 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reser ved.
but if you orient the piece in the
right way, it often will.
When making a miter cut, I always
tr y to orient the molding to confine
any minor chipping to the unseen
surfaces. You’ll have a molded or
exposed side and a hidden side. If
possible, make the cut so that the
blade exits the unseen side and any
minor chipout will be confined to
this edge.
a pracTical job.
Cutting the miters
on the small moldings is only part
of the job. Accurately itting
t
he
pieces and installing them in the
right order is just as important.
The drawings at right show how to
tackle a practical job — framing a
panel opening with molding.
cuT-To-FiT.
When I’m mitering and
itting small moldings, my measur-
ing tape and rule are only used for
rough measurements. Since the
tolerances are too small to measure
with enough precision, I rely on a
“cut-to-it” process.
Start by cutting a miter on one end
of a rough-length piece of molding,
as you see in Figure 1. Then simply
hold the piece in position on the
project to mark for the second cut,
as shown in Figure 2.
The miter cut on the opposite end
is the reverse of the first. But you can
use the same miter gauge setup. Just
flip the piece end for end so that the
top side is now down. Take a look at
Figure 3 and you’ll see how this works.
Then make the cut and check the fit.
1
2
First, miter end of
rough-length
piece
Hold piece in
place to mark
for second miter
Quarter-round
molding
Third
3
4
Flip molding
end-for-end to
cut opposite
miter
Second
Fourth
NOTE:
Work
around
opening
to fit
molding
First
a Fine Trim.
If you need to make a
“hairline” trim on a piece, just snug
it up to the teeth of the blade using
moderate pressure. Then pull the
miter gauge back, turn on the saw
and make the cut. This will result in
a very ine trim cut.
Work around.
The order in which
you install the pieces makes a differ-
ence, as shown in Figure 4. I start
with a short piece of molding and
then work around the opening, in-
ishing with one of the long pieces.
This way, the inal long piece has
more give and can be sprung into
place more easily.
Each piece is cut to fit
a
nd then
installed. It’s more reliable to fit the
following piece
t
o an already firmly
placed molding. This “one piece at a
time” routine allows you to discover
and correct any problems.
shorT pieces.
Figuring out a way to
miter very short pieces safely can
have you scratching your head.
Above all else, you want to keep
your ingers a safe distance from
the blade. But then how do you hold
on to the inished piece? The box
below shows one good solution that
will give you an accurately cut piece
without any risk.
The keys to success when mitering
small moldings are really no different
than any other woodworking task. If
you adapt your technique to the job,
you’re guaranteed per fect-fitting
moldings with a minimum of stress.
HOW-TO: MITER A SHORT PIECE
Leave
!/16"
bridge
Use a
pencil
as hold-
down
Mitered
end
Waste
Utility
knife
Align
cut to
mark
Fit molding in
place and mark
for second miter cut
Carefully
cut through bridge
to complete miter
Workpiece
{
Start by mitering one end of a rough-length
piece. Place the piece in position and mark
it for the second cut.
{
With the blade lowered sli
g
htly, align the
workpiece and make a partial cut, leaving
a narrow bridge.
{
After checking the fit, use a utility
knife to carefully cut through the bridge
and complete the piece.
2
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© 2009 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reser ved.
Small Molding Sled
Always align
kerfs with
blade
Platform is
!/4"hardboard,
cleats are
#/4"-thick
hardwood
When mitering small moldings,
maintaining control of the workpiece
is half the battle. The simple miter
sled, shown in the drawing at right,
eliminates this problem.
The sled consists of a pair of hard-
wood cleats and a
1
⁄
4
" hardboard plat-
form. The front cleat helps stiffen
the sled, while the taller back cleat
serves as the fence. Both cleats are
glued to the platform.
I like to clamp the sled to the miter
gauge, but screwing it in place works
too. Once the 45° kerfs are estab-
lished, you can align the jig with
these cuts.
18
Sled can be clamped
or screwed to
miter gauge
a.
END VIEW
1
#/4
1
!/4
Kerf
4
!/2
Cut 45° kerfs
after assembly
No. ???
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4
3
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© 2009 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reser ved.
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