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Finish Carpentry 101 |
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Thank you for visiting Finish Carpentry 101! This site is currently under construction. ***NEW: Check out the USS Potomac Project page*** |
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[Home] [Base & Shoe Molding] [Crown Molding] [Chair Rail & Backer] [Doors] [Specialty Projects] [Tips, Etc. Archives] [Tools of the Trade] [Building Materials] [Random Stuff] [Photo Gallery] |
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Base & Shoe Molding In this chapter, I'm going to discuss the absolute joys of installing or running base boards and shoe molding among other subjects. I'm getting misty just thinking about it. For me, running base and shoe is one of the most mundane and boring parts of finish work, not to mention it's hard on your body. I hate it. Actually I despise it, but unfortunately it has to be done. It's easy; anyone can do this. If you learn the basic order of installation and tricks, you can conquer this task efficiently and fast. Then you can learn to hate it as well. Let's begin with a ten-foot square room. Start measuring out the room against a door casing, for example, and measure each wall right to left until you come to the other side of the door where you started. Each time you measure the wall, write that measurement down on a piece of paper. Uhh, basically make a list of the wall measurements right to left around the room. When you run base, you need to get in a habit of installing it right to left for several reasons. First and foremost, it is easier to cope. Every cope will be on the right end of the board. This is important because when you have several rooms and closets to run, it helps you stay in touch with where you are at on your list of measurements. My typical list of measurements in a 10 x 10 room would like like this: 111 0 to 0 Have I given you a headache yet? Stay tuned, it will. On the first line of my list above, 111 is the wall measurement. The 0 is the symbol I use for a square cut and the C tells me that end will be a cope. In other words, the left end of the board I'm going to cut first will be square. The right end ............ I know this sounds absurd, but stay with me on it. I have put down miles of base in a very short period of time using this system. You can adapt the list to use any symbol you want to denote the square and coped ends. It is simply a very efficient way of measuring out the room or whole house for that matter, and putting it on paper. Then you can go back and cut a bunch of pieces at one time and simply take them back to a room and plug them in like pieces in a puzzle. If you work right to left, you will begin to understand this method. Okay, I just scrolled up, and yes, it does look like a satanic barcode. Trust me on this, it works. I realize how ridiculous the previous paragraphs read. It's very hard to type it in such a way that makes sense. If you are trying to get a big job done efficiently it’s a must to have a way of mapping out the room with your measurements on it. I will be demonstrating this method in detail on a DVD as well as very other fascinating topic I cover on this site in the near future. It takes time, I'm getting old and I gotta catch my editor at a good time ;}. Most of the time in new construction now a days you will be using what is lovingly referred to as speed base. It is a one piece base of varying sizes. It is a one piece molding of MDF that mimics a two piece base which would typically be a 1x6, 1x8, 1x10, uhh, you get the idea, with a 1 and 3/8 cap on top. Remember it is an MDF material so it’s fragile you have to be careful with it as you work with it. I've worked with MDF trim for years now and it still amazes me how fast you can screw a piece up just by banging it around getting it to the spot your are trying to install it in. On the up side, it's very easy to cope and once you get your measuring routine down it can be installed very fast. It never quite achieves the same look as traditional 2 piece base but it's cheaper and chances are it’s what is installed in your house now. It is pre-primed and paints up easy, and is housebroken and good with kids. More to come... |
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[Home] [Base & Shoe Molding] [Crown Molding] [Chair Rail & Backer] [Doors] [Specialty Projects] [Tips, Etc. Archives] [Tools of the Trade] [Building Materials] [Random Stuff] [Photo Gallery] |
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