14 44 6 Kickback . 8 DesignING Class . 16 New and COOL: Bosch Angle Finder . 34 Miter Saw Tune up . 46 Building a Chippendale .
Publisher: Gary M. Katz garyk@thisiscarpentry.com editor: Roe A. Osborn roeo@thisiscarpentry.com Art director/lAyout coordinAtor
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G etting Issue 1 of THISisCarpentry online was filled with bumps and thrills. We got lots of good feedback about our content and
follow explanation for understanding the classical rules of proportion and how those rules apply to your projects, something tha
Praise fOr issu e 1 like what you see? Hate what you see? suggestions? critical comments? tally of typos? We want to hear it all
Awesome project, very contemporary, looks great on my iMac big screen. Reads easily. Love the embedded videos. I've subscribed a
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11 this note, you probably already found the PDF option on our title page! to the reader. Please pass on my compliments. Thanks!
12 the content? Another killer, if not. Maybe fixing the above will also make text in ads findable. A search for "grip-rite" get
13 blame all the errata on the copyeditor, whose job was to proof-read among other things :-). TIC doesn't enjoy that luxury yet
Still Bumping … a n d Always B e n d in
Loading Video Stabila_TIC_ad-1-3 n g Trust – Never Ever Adjust www.stabila.com ?
H the misused & confused chair rail ow high should we install chair rail? Ask most carpenters and they’ll either say 36 in., 32
sit at 36 in. from the floor? Sorry, there is no standard height dimension. In fact, historically chair rail started out very lo
18 Over the past 60 years we have forgotten a lot about those classical rules, and we’ve forgotten how chair rail functions in a
19 column that is seven times as tall as it is wide. Put simply, if the base of the column is 10 in. inches wide, it should be a
20 Abraham Swan, the Doric order didn’t even have a base because Vitruvius said: Brent “This order is like a strong and robust m
21 height of the pedestal: 22 1/2 in. tall. Benjamin also suggests that the pedestal should be 15 parts high. Either way, the re
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23 A spread from William Pain's 1778 book, The Practical House Carpenter.
24 …continued from page 21 about 6 3/16 in. That puts the pedestal about 24 11/16 in. from the floor. Let’s make it simple and a
25 Loading Video Chair-Rail-Proportion.flv TIp magnify the page before viewing video click H e re
26 molding at the bottom should be 4 parts, which makes it 1/2 in., plus another 1/8 in. for the fillet above. The ovolo or supp
27 number either, but hey, it looks like 3/8 in. to me. Add all those crazy numbers together and we’ve got a chair rail that’s 2
28 Height isn’t the only problem we Installing a backband is sometimes the best solution for terminating deep chair rail profile
29 Never back-cut the chair rail at door or window casings. Always butt cut the rail. If you’re running a build up of stool and
30 Always install skirt boards on steps, even if there’s only one riser, otherwise, running the chair rail down the elevation ch
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Mold on Not on Your T Mold adds avor to the worlds most distinctive cheeses, b Protected Trim Boards come with a 30-year warrant
n Cheese Trim Boards. but no one wants to see mold on or in their home. WindsorONE+ inst rot, insects and mold. WindsorONE+ Prot
i the new & imPrOVeD bosch angle finder Send your ideas to: newandcool@ thisiscarpentry.com don’t know about you, but I’ve been
Once the protractor was spread just MT) button as quickly possible because the least little breeze or movement could throw this
36 neat improvements that I’ll discuss in a minute. With the new Angle Finder you still have to set the spring angle, but once y
37 2) Record the corner angle STEP 2: Record the corner angle Spread the Angle Finder in the corner that you’re working on to re
38 3) Find the miter angle One thing that always bothered me with the original Angle Finder was that if I STEP 3: Find the miter
39 Loading Video TIC Bosch Angle Finder.flv sO wHat’s tH e big Deal? Some crown molding profiles are too big to cut in position,
40 molding in the saw with the top of the crown against the fence. I swing the miter angle to 31.8°, then I tilt the bevel angle
41 are available with the miter and bevel angles for those moldings. Less expensive protractors are also available that include
42 job and the Bosch Angle Finder will look like a bargain. but wait tH e re’s mOre The new Bosch Angle Finder reads simple mite
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Loading Video Collins Tool Company
MITER SAW TUNE UP by DaviD Collins If your miters aren’t as tight as they used to be, here’s how to get your saw singing on pitc
48 E very carpenter should know that when you buy a new chisel or hand plane it’s not razor sharp out of the box—you have to sha
49 saw, I prefer a thin kerf crosscutting blade with 60 teeth or less. This type of blade often comes on new saws. My reasons fo
50 more than a 1/8-in. thick blade with 100 teeth. However, many carpenters choose thicker miter saw blades with the maximum num
51 flat because modern saws are well supported at their centers. But if a strip of notebook paper can slide under the framing sq
52 Loading Video Check-the-Fence.flv table should be done in very small increments and with great care. Cast aluminum will break
53 press the paper against the fence with the square. You shouldn’t be able to withdraw the paper anywhere from one side to the
54 a wOrD abOut cali Pe rs Calipers are very inexpensive these days, both dial and digital. Whether you are working with metal o
55 fits” method might work, it can waste a lot of time and make a lot of sawdust. If a saw is adjusted perfectly, assembly time
56 Then, with the same edge against the fence, flip the piece over to the opposite side so that the bottom is facing up. Lock th
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58 Loading Video Two-cut Calibration.flv My DeWalt produced a piece that was off by .010-in., meaning that each cut would be out
59 Loading Video Four-Cut Calibration.flv are made on a piece of stock. The final cutoff is measured and the difference is divid
60 measurements and formulas only determine the amount of error in the saw. Adjusting a saw (even the pricey Festool) is far les
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62 the square tight to the fence and place your feeler gauge (a piece of phone book paper) between the back side of the blade an
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64 Miter Scale Adjustment For a saw with a movable miter scale, swing the saw head until it clicks into the 90° detent. But don’
65 But with many saws, there is enough play for the scale to move perpendicular to the fence as well. It doesn’t take much movem
66 With my DeWalt miter saw, I loosened the scale plate just enough to pry it over with a screwdriver. Then I made another test
67 piece of 1/4-in. plywood or mdf as wide as you can miter on your saw. (You can use thicker stock, but it offers more resistan
68 DeWalt it doesn’t deflect. (Remember, the table must be flat.) Use a sheet of phone book paper as a feeler gauge to ensure th
69 Milwaukee The 90° adjustment bolt is located on the top of the bevel hub. Simply turn that bolt clockwise and the blade tips
70 Bosch (www.boschtools.com) Adjusting the Bo- sch saw is similar to the first two. Before you start, back out the main depth-s
71 a Bosch b
72 c D
73 Next loosen the set screw labeled D using the 4-mm Allen wrench supplied with the saw. Back out the screw at least three full
74 Festool Kapex (www.festool.com) Adjusting Festool’s Kapex saw is a bit different. The Kapex isn’t equipped with a micro-fine
75 and plate move freely, making it very tough to dial in a fine adjustment. But here’s a solution: Before loosening the two adj
76 cuts a perfectly square bevel, but the miters aren’t perfect, you may have to make miter adjustments each time you use the sa
77 a bar near the blade arbor and bounced on the bar—I mean, with all my weight well, a lot of weight. It made a loud popping so
78 autHOr's biO David Collins has been making stuff all his life. At age seven, he carved swords, canoes, and all sorts of thing
79 friends drove that car to California to see what the “Height Ashbury” thing was all about—didn’t figure it out, but it sure w
80 He couldn’t cope that molding with a coping saw and got a little desperate. He’d always used the saber saw from the back side
81 David hasn’t done any finish carpentry for hire since 2006. He spends his early mornings with the Good Book, and writing musi