I want to start this posting with a disclaimer. The information I am about to share may not be the result of brilliant analysis of a problem combined with years of experience to come up with a logical solution. It could be but I just can’t remember any more. Someone may have shown it to me or I may have read it in an article written by someone smarter than me. It may actually be something I discovered through trial and error. I always try to remember that even a blind hog will find an acorn every now and then.

        It really doesn’t matter were the information came from all I know is that it has changed the way I cut and fit crown molding. In my last posting I talked about my three rules to follow for installing crown molding with out copping. The first is about measuring the true length of a piece of crown? Next is there any way to know what the joint will look like before you commit to making a cut. Finally are there minor adjustments I can make to fine tune the joint?

           Most of the joints that I make with crown molding are at inside corners. Every crown molding profile is designed to be installed with a certain drop down the wall and projection out on to the ceiling. I noticed that I always seemed to be rolling the crown up onto the ceiling a little bit to close the joint at the top. It was really a problem if I happened to cut the crown just a little short. If I happened to cut a piece a little long and bow it into place the top of the joint fit better but the bottom did not line up.

     For a while I thought it was just one of those things that are not meant to be understood by mortal men. Then I had a revelation. I was cutting all my pieces a little short. The true corner of the room was somewhere behind the drywall mud built up in the corner. It was like I was installing the trim with the bottom shimmed out to touch leaving the top corner standing open. The solution is to add a 1/8 to 3/16 to my measurements to account for the drywall mud. Then to keep from damaging the sheetrock in the corner I take a little of the long point of the crown with my block plane before I nail it up. So rule one is make sure you are getting the real measurement.

       I am not a big risk taker. Look before you leap is one of my favorite sayings. I like to have a pretty good idea what my joint is going to look like before I cut up an expensive piece of crown molding. When I am putting up crown molding I use about a three foot long test a test piece to preview each joint. I have one with an inside miter cut on each end and another to check the outside corners. If a minor adjustment has to be made I can even do a test cut on another scrap piece. Rule two is use a test piece to preview the joint and make minor changes to the cut if needed.

      Even after following rules one and two I may have to make one more adjustment to the joint. A lot of times I have to use my block plane to take a little off the back of the crown where it meets the wall. That leads me to rule three. Never cut crown molding short at an inside corner or long at an outside corner. This rule applies to base board too. If the joint is open a bit at the outside corner I can close it up by taking a little off the back of the trim.

If the trim is to long all I can do is pull it away from the wall a little and hope for help from the painter. If I come up short at an inside corner all I can do is shim the pieces out till they meet at the bottom but if it is too tight block planning the back side will let it slide in place.

      If I had a fourth rule it would be take your time. If I make a mistake I can always get another piece of trim, but I can tell you from experience that it is a lot faster to slow up get it right and skip the extra trip to the lumber yard. It is a lot cheaper to make a couple of extra trips between the saw and my step ladder and it is pretty good exercise.

       How is working with crown molding like painting a car? Check it out in my next blog.

Tags: crown molding, installing crown

Categories: Technique | Tips & Tricks