-MIKE-

Great post! Lots of good information there. Not much to improve on there, but would like to add a couple more thoughts.

One of the the methods I change about 20 or more years ago is how I do scarf joints. First, I don't cut them at 45 degrees. When we went from soft pine to hard pine, the 45s were harder to make with their feathered edges. Inconsistencies in molding thickness made it hard to get a consistent joint. For production work, the home stores and now almost all lumber yards carry that super hard, brittle, finger jointed crap that can be different not only in thickness, but in profile. Enter the 30 degree joint.

Don't know why it took me so long to start doing that with trim as when I was a house framer we got rough cedar delivered for trims, fascia, etc., that was all different widths. That was my solution.

I use 30 degrees on all scarf joints, including crown molding. If one side of your joint is a little thinner, slip it under the adjoining piece and pull it back until it matches. Never looks right with a 45, but closer to a box joint doesn't reflect the difference as much.

I never nail through the joint itself on trims whether it is a 90 degree miter or a scarf. Trim wood is too brittle and splits too easily these days. On a scarf joint I only nail the lap side, and then away from the joint as far as possible. When dealing with a tougher install due to irregular walls, I mark the studs at the joints so I can catch a stud with a nail that is put in at an angle, but away from the joint.

If I am still doubtful of joint integrity and its ability to hold, I usually have a cartridge of PL400 in the caulk gun. A couple of "Hershey Kisses" on each side of the joint and an X nail pattern will certainly secure it. I keep a cartridge of PL400 around when I am trimming as on small pieces I don't nail. Little 2,3,4 inch pieces, or pieces that are hard to nail are simply glued in. Since me or my company is always doing the painting, I appreciate not having to fill fiddly little pieces that have cracked or have nail holes I can't easily fill to make them go away.

If there is no carpet, or if I am putting on a shoe molding, when I put on base I shoot the bottom of the trim straight into the sole plate about 1/2" above the floor (no caulk/putty), and shoot into the studs using my 18ga brad nailer with 2" brads. If the studs are on 24" centers I shoot three brads per stud, if 16" o.c. then only two. If I am putting on thicker trim like the 3/4"X8" that is popular I use my 16ga straight trim gun or my 15ga angle trim gun that shoot the equivalent of an 8d. Again, since me or mine are usually painting as well, I like as few and as small of nail holes as I can get.

Personally, I don't see any reason to hand nail unless it is a piece or so. The wood we get today is so poor that it splits like crazy, and so when I hand nail I drill pilot holes with the trim on the saw horses before nailing. OTOH, you can get a pretty decent 18ga brad gun from Harbor Freight from time to time for only $15. Brad nailing sure helps keep the time spent and the frustration of broken trim down.

Robert


I don't spend much time straightening my baseboard installs. The reason there are gaps, waves, and snaky appearance is that the sheet rockers have usually left humps in their joints. The walls are pretty straight, but the tape/float joints are a fail. So before starting, I check for the humps. A long wall, I use a string to check, a short one I eyeball it. I am glad to push and nail 1/8", but not much more. If it is too much, then the waviness of the wall is not reflected onto the trim and is more noticeable than ever. So I cut the pieces as long as I can, and if I can't put on a run in one piece, I go from center of the hump to center of the next hump. If I have a 1/4" gap between humps, I stick a long thin wedge in behind the trim to keep me 1/8" from the wall (half the gap from the wall) and secure it. I pull my wedge and the caulk from painting will hide the 1/8" gap that remains.