We have an oval mirror in the bath room and my wife would like it to
have an oval frame for it. This seems like an "easy" do-it-yourself
project.

While I have a general idea of how you would construct an oval frame,
can someone give me some specific guidance or point me to a site that
shows specifics.

knuttle writes:
We have an oval mirror in the bath room and my wife would like it to
have an oval frame for it. This seems like an "easy" do-it-yourself
project.

While I have a general idea of how you would construct an oval frame,
can someone give me some specific guidance or point me to a site that
shows specifics.

Lay the mirror on large piece of cardboard. Trace it. Cut out the
cardboard. Place the cardboard cutout on another large piece of cardboard.
Trace it again, this time using a compass or dividers set to the width
of the frame minus the width of the rebate on the back of the frame that
will hold the mirror. Cut this out and use it as a template for the outside
edge of the frame. Set your dividers to the width of the frame and
use that to mark the inside edge of the frame. Cut out the center.

Smooth and sand the inner and outer edges, then use a router to cut a rebate in
the back of the frame to hold the mirror.

If you don't have a board wide enough, end glue (with lap joints) stock
in a rough oval and use the template to refine it.

On Wednesday, September 30, 2020 at 12:13:38 PM UTC-4, wrote:
We have an oval mirror in the bath room and my wife would like it to
have an oval frame for it. This seems like an "easy" do-it-yourself
project.

While I have a general idea of how you would construct an oval frame,
can someone give me some specific guidance or point me to a site that
shows specifics.

I made an oval frame in more or less that same manner as shown in the following
video.

Start with a rectangle with mitered corners, adding splines if desired. Cut the inside
oval, rout your rabbet, cut the outside oval and add to profiles of your choice.

https://youtu.be/f6WkzRH-Up8

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 12:13:30 -0400, knuttle
wrote:

We have an oval mirror in the bath room and my wife would like it to
have an oval frame for it. This seems like an "easy" do-it-yourself
project.

While I have a general idea of how you would construct an oval frame,
can someone give me some specific guidance or point me to a site that
shows specifics.

Here's one way to do it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSNT2Zha5mg
Here's another: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6WkzRH-Up8
And here's a guy who knows his stuff in a shop that would make an OSHA
inspector's head explode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7ljMcBqvG4. Oval starts around 9
minutes.
Here's another approach to the curve--you have to trim the pieces just
right on the end to get it all to fit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7LWa-FO_bo
You can also steam-bend:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nukClIXyx0

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 12:13:30 -0400, knuttle
wrote:
...

And here's a guy who knows his stuff in a shop that would make an OSHA
inspector's head explode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7ljMcBqvG4. Oval starts around 9
minutes.

Holy crap! There's one guy who *really* needs a SawStop! Sheesh!

On 9/30/2020 8:28 PM, wrote:

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 12:13:30 -0400, knuttle
wrote:
...

And here's a guy who knows his stuff in a shop that would make an OSHA
inspector's head explode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7ljMcBqvG4. Oval starts around 9
minutes.

Holy crap! There's one guy who *really* needs a SawStop! Sheesh!

OP: I asked for help in making an oval frame, not for bad examples using
badly designed power tool. It was amazing that he still had all his parts.


On looking at some video that I found and what has been presented, my
concern was making putting the sides together.

This is a rather large mirror with the major axis about 30 inches and
the minor axis about 20 inches. To find a board 20+ inches, is going
to be difficult.

My thoughts was to glue up pieces is the approximate shape of the oval
and then cut the oval from that. There is one video where the working
shape is a lay up of small triangles, to give the approximate shape of
the oval and another where he makes the approximate shape out of
rhomboids and glues them together.

May be I am over thinking the problem but I was looking for the best lay
out using standard stock material and the angles to make the cuts. (it
is 50 years since I have had geometry.)

Maybe the best way is trial and error.

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 21:57:18 -0400, knuttle
wrote:

On 9/30/2020 8:28 PM, wrote:

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 12:13:30 -0400, knuttle
wrote:
...

And here's a guy who knows his stuff in a shop that would make an OSHA
inspector's head explode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7ljMcBqvG4. Oval starts around 9
minutes.

Holy crap! There's one guy who *really* needs a SawStop! Sheesh!

OP: I asked for help in making an oval frame, not for bad examples using
badly designed power tool. It was amazing that he still had all his parts.

Note--that appears to be a third-world commercial shop (Vietnam I
believe). Tools aren't badly designed, they're cobbled from what's
available. Same idea as the gym in Angola about halfway down this
page
https://advrider.com/f/threads/angola-its-not-like-they-said.269251/page-2
(warning -- there are also multiple photos of a very attractive woman
in customary Angolan attire on that page, which means she isn't
wearing much, if that sort of thing upsets you).

On looking at some video that I found and what has been presented, my
concern was making putting the sides together.

This is a rather large mirror with the major axis about 30 inches and
the minor axis about 20 inches. To find a board 20+ inches, is going
to be difficult.

Doesn't have to be 20 inches. Doesn't even have to be 10 inches.

Get a piece of foamcore board at Staples (or posterboard, but foamcore
is easier to work with--20x30 sheet is around 3 bucks) and if you dont
have one a 9mm (they come 9 and 18, for this you want the narrow one)
snap-blade knife (same source) and again if you don't have one a good
straight-edge (hardware store, art supply store, or fabric shop). Lay
out a quarter of the ellipse on the foamcore and cut it out. Now put
a straightedge on that and measure across. You'll find that you need
far less width than you think. And of course you can make 8 segments
or 16 segments or however many float your boat.

My thoughts was to glue up pieces is the approximate shape of the oval
and then cut the oval from that. There is one video where the working
shape is a lay up of small triangles, to give the approximate shape of
the oval and another where he makes the approximate shape out of
rhomboids and glues them together.

Both of those work.

May be I am over thinking the problem but I was looking for the best lay
out using standard stock material and the angles to make the cuts. (it
is 50 years since I have had geometry.)

Maybe the best way is trial and error.

Foamcore is your friend. If you want to be high-tech Fusion 360 will
let you try things out on the PC screen and it's free for
non-commercial use--I think there's still a free Sketch-Up but haven't
used it in ages. To perform this task though there's quite a lot of
learning-curve on either.

On 9/30/2020 11:13 AM, knuttle wrote:
We have an oval mirror in the bath room and my wife would like it to
have an oval frame for it.Â* This seems like an "easy" do-it-yourself
project.

While I have a general idea of how you would construct an oval frame,
can someone give me some specific guidance or point me to a site that
shows specifics.


I have actually done this before. You want as many, with the grain
boards as possible. Build a straight board frame that will accommodate
the mirror. Then use the mirror as a guide to mark the oval.

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 23:18:09 -0400, J. Clarke
wrote:

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 21:57:18 -0400, knuttle
wrote:

On 9/30/2020 8:28 PM, wrote:

On Wed, 30 Sep 2020 12:13:30 -0400, knuttle
wrote:
...

And here's a guy who knows his stuff in a shop that would make an OSHA
inspector's head explode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7ljMcBqvG4. Oval starts around 9
minutes.

Holy crap! There's one guy who *really* needs a SawStop! Sheesh!

OP: I asked for help in making an oval frame, not for bad examples using
badly designed power tool. It was amazing that he still had all his parts.

Note--that appears to be a third-world commercial shop (Vietnam I
believe). Tools aren't badly designed, they're cobbled from what's
available. Same idea as the gym in Angola about halfway down this

OK but it's still surprising he has all his parts. One kickback and
he may lose an important one. It gets worse from there. Way worse.

page
https://advrider.com/f/threads/angola-its-not-like-they-said.269251/page-2
(warning -- there are also multiple photos of a very attractive woman
in customary Angolan attire on that page, which means she isn't
wearing much, if that sort of thing upsets you).

Hmmm. How many decades has it been since I've read a National
Geographic?

On looking at some video that I found and what has been presented, my
concern was making putting the sides together.

This is a rather large mirror with the major axis about 30 inches and
the minor axis about 20 inches. To find a board 20+ inches, is going
to be difficult.

Doesn't have to be 20 inches. Doesn't even have to be 10 inches.

Get a piece of foamcore board at Staples (or posterboard, but foamcore
is easier to work with--20x30 sheet is around 3 bucks) and if you dont
have one a 9mm (they come 9 and 18, for this you want the narrow one)
snap-blade knife (same source) and again if you don't have one a good
straight-edge (hardware store, art supply store, or fabric shop). Lay
out a quarter of the ellipse on the foamcore and cut it out. Now put
a straightedge on that and measure across. You'll find that you need
far less width than you think. And of course you can make 8 segments
or 16 segments or however many float your boat.

My thoughts was to glue up pieces is the approximate shape of the oval
and then cut the oval from that. There is one video where the working
shape is a lay up of small triangles, to give the approximate shape of
the oval and another where he makes the approximate shape out of
rhomboids and glues them together.

Both of those work.

May be I am over thinking the problem but I was looking for the best lay
out using standard stock material and the angles to make the cuts. (it
is 50 years since I have had geometry.)

Maybe the best way is trial and error.

Foamcore is your friend. If you want to be high-tech Fusion 360 will
let you try things out on the PC screen and it's free for
non-commercial use--I think there's still a free Sketch-Up but haven't
used it in ages. To perform this task though there's quite a lot of
learning-curve on either.

Or this with an ellipse jig or a couple of pieces of string:
https://www.emathhelp.net/calculators/algebra-2/ellipse-calculator/