Dave Balderstone wrote:
I screwed up cutting the last piece of a particular profile for a
repair job, and the client has no more scrap long enough. Can't find
the exact profile for the 15" piece I need.

This stuff is solid maple with a light stain, and while I can find a
very close match, it's out by just enough to be really noticeable.

I'm hoping to avoid eating the cost of replacing the room's worth, at
over $10/lf... So I have to ask:

Has anyone successfully joined two lengths of the stuff? Scarf joint?
Lapped splice? All suggestions welcome.

Yup. Scarf joints would work but don't give up on the lowly miter joint. I
would not use a lap or a butt. Laps take too much effort and butts only
work on women. A simple miter is your friend. You might have to touch it
up with sandpaper or even with a little filler, but likely not if you take a
little time at it. Just make sure to miter back into the wall - not a miter
that is 90 degrees to the wall. That way, you have the flexibility to move
the joint a small amount as you tack it in place and hide it in the best
possible way. I have done these that are literally invisible 27 years
later. I glued all of my joints as I nailed them in place, and I suspect
that has contributed to them staying in place over the years.

Worst case - replace all of the molding for that one area. It's unlikely
that a slight color mismatch will be noticable as long as the affected area
is consistent with itself.

--

-Mike-