Stephen wrote:
Hello,

I need to join two short sections of skirting board to make one long
section. How can I join them invisibly? I think I need to use a scarf
joint. Is that best? I read (online) that a scarf joint (why is it
called scarf BTW?) should be eight times longer than it is thick. By
my calculations, cutting something as thin as skirting board would
require cutting at a very shallow angle; about 7 degrees. Since my
humble Wickes mitre saw only goes as low as 45 degrees. What should I
do?

The standard chippies way is to stand the boards vertically with the
join overlapped, and then cut down through both with a hand saw at
something approximating 45 deg. The actual angle (or for that matter
even the straightness of the cut) does not really matter since they will
match perfectly. All you need do is ensure that a black line will not
open up as the board shrinks, and a board thickness of overlap when
finished is fine.

--
Cheers,

John.

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