Crown Molding in Square Room
 

When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being too
tight, though.

Any tips would be appreciated.

Buck Turgidson wrote:

When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being too
tight, though.

Depends on the size of the room...if one piece will do both wall
lengths, then that's the way I tend to do it. If need two or more
pieces, I make the joining miter to length. Your "split it in" way is
possible, too. Just don't nail the other piece in all the way to the
end and you'll have plenty of slack unless it is a very wide mould...

And, if it is more than a couple inch wide, you are using support
blocking, right? :)

"Buck Turgidson" wrote in message
...
When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

Yes.


I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and
fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the
scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being
too
tight, though.

The beauty of using the coped ends on both ends as your last piece is you
can get a really tight fit. In a 12' room, I usually cut it about an eigth
inch long. Nice and snug! Happy coping.
SH

Has anyone found a good coping tutorial online? i've tried and tried
but have yet to experience much success in coping...

Would cope the same corner on all the pieces, such as cope the LEFT
end on all the pieces

John

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:39:00 -0500, "Buck Turgidson"
wrote:

When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being too
tight, though.

Any tips would be appreciated.

There is only one good way to learn that "art form" and
that's practice,practice,practice on scrap.

You need:

A good coping saw.
A set of rattail files.
A Dremel tool is wonderful.

The difficult part is "following" the profile with the
coping saw blade. The molding needs to be held in place
while that happens. Cut it close but NOT on the profile
edge. Use the files and Dremel tool for that.

Patience is a real virtue in putting up molding.

DO NOT PRACTICE on the finished product.


fred wrote:

Has anyone found a good coping tutorial online? i've tried and tried
but have yet to experience much success in coping...

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:39:00 -0500, "Buck Turgidson"
wrote:

When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being too
tight, though.

Any tips would be appreciated.


Start on the opposite wall of the door. Butt both of these ends to
the wall. then work counterclockwise around if you are right-handed
(clockwise if left-handed). Then next wall will be coped on one end
and butted to the opposite wall. And yes, the last wall will have two
coped ends. HTH

Phisherman wrote:

Start on the opposite wall of the door. Butt both of these ends to
the wall. ...

How do you do that??? :)

He means "one piece of molding goes up on that section.

Both ends will be cut off with NO miter, simple butt
joints against the wall.


Duane Bozarth wrote:
Phisherman wrote:


Start on the opposite wall of the door. Butt both of these ends to
the wall. ...


How do you do that??? :)

you pretty much have to make two copes on the last piece in that
situation

LonE


On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:39:00 -0500, "Buck Turgidson"
wrote:

When putting up CM in a simple 4 sided room, what's the best way to deal
with the last piece - i.e. does one use a coped joint on each end?

I was considering putting up the first piece with one end coped, and fitted
over a small piece of scrap on the adjacent wall, the scrap being a proxy
for the last piece. Then when I get to the last piece, slip out the scrap
and slide the real piece in there. Am a little concerned about it being too
tight, though.

Any tips would be appreciated.

What you describe will work. I double cope the last piece, only because
that's the way I've done for 43 years.I have seen it done your way,
came out very well.
mike

On 21 Dec 2004 18:01:49 -0800, "fred" wrote:

Has anyone found a good coping tutorial online? i've tried and tried
but have yet to experience much success in coping...

I haven't seen anything online but it just takes a little practice.
I always cope on the same end as I go around the room (until I get to
the last piece) putting the first piece up with no cope on either end.
This does make you cope both ends of the last piece, assuming it goes
up in a single piece.
To make the cope, cut a 45 on the miter saw first and follow the edge
of the cut with your copeing saw. The biggest problem most people
have, with the cope not fitting, is that they do not have enough
undercut. Crown molding requires a pretty severe undercut as you
follow the detail. Just lean your coping saw at an angle as you saw.
If you have followed the edge of the cut pretty well and the piece
does not seem to fit it's probably because there is not enough
undercut in one or more places on the coped piece. You can't get too
much undercut (unless the blade starts coming out of the front of the
molding) but if you don't get enough undercut the joint will appear
open because the installed piece is hitting the back side of the cope.
If this is the case just lean the blade over a little more and take
more out of the back side of the cope.

On one of the TV shows I saw that someone had invented a machine that
would saw copes for you. It had some kind of small circular type saw
mounted on the machine and the saw would move in all directions. The
roundness of the blade would create the undercut and the machine would
follow a piece that you had already coped. It kinda worked like a key
duplicating machine. I found it on the Internet a while back but I
figured I could cut a lot of copes for $2400.

Mike

Subject: Crown Molding in Square Room
From: Mike

Has anyone found a good coping tutorial online? i've tried and tried
but have yet to experience much success in coping...


I use a Dewalt miniginder with a 36 grit
sanding disc to do all of my coping. It
helps to trim as much of the backcut away
as possible on the miterbox beforehand. Then I swipe
the side of my pencil over the profile of
the finished cope to get a clear picture
of where I'm grinding to, and let the dust
fly. It's very fast, but don't try it for the
first time on your last piece of walnut
crown.