Tips for installing case moldings
Bill Tindall, E.Tn.
PIC 1&2
The first two pictures show the result.
There are two challenges. The arches need to fit the distance between the drawer dividers and the corner miters need to fit well.
To begin with the molding that is arched, miters are cut on one end of oversized pieces that will become one side and the front. This corner, left in the picture, is dry fit with clamps as illustrated in PIC 3.
At this point the other end of each piece overhangs the cabinet (it’s oversized).
Note that I have the cabinet on a dolly with easy to roll wheels that can be securely locked as needed. Also I have a kneeling pad for working off the floor.
The molding that has the arches will need to be reliably removed and then repositioned on the cabinet as part of locating and cutting the arcs. Locating pins in the form of cut-off brads are driven into the fame. When the left corner miter is dry fit well, the front piece is pressed into the cut brads and the location of the vertical drawer dividers can then be scribed. This front piece is removed, the arc for the drawers marked, sawed and smoothed as shown in PIC 4
It is then repositioned on the case with the aid of the pins, its length marked and the right miter sawed a bit long. By trial, bits are shaved off the miter until an acceptable fit is made with the right side. The front molding is then glued and bradded in place, PIC 5.
The side moldings are then cut to length and glued and bradded in place.
I cut corners where it doesn’t show but I strive for perfection on molding miters. The process I use for “wrapping” molding around a case will be illustrated for the molding applied to the arched molding. It depends on dry fitting mitered molding pieces left long during the fitting process. The process enables miter angles to be empirically adjusted to fit the case. My process is slow but sure and depends only on patience, not skill or experience.
To begin, miters are cut on one end of the front and side molding sticks, which are left longer than the finished length. In this case I have started on the right side6.
Because these pieces are left long there is sufficient stick length to diddle with the miter angles, and stick position until the fit is acceptable.
What’s this?! It is a pencil mark across the molding and cabinet. It is an index mark that I use to tell me how much I have moved this piece in the course of diddling with its locating to get the miter to line up. Don’t overlook how accurate something can be moved if there is a similar index mark to judge the adjustment.
When the dry fit is good enough, the front molding is clamped into position. The right side molding has glue applied and it is clamped and braded in place, using the clamped front molding to fix its location. The length of the side can be cut to length before installation, or after with a hand saw. Brad and glue locations depend on the case side. This case is frame and panel so I can glue the entire length of the molding.
The result is shown in PIC 8 ( the front molding has been slid away for the picture to show that it has not been attached yet.) Note the angled pencil mark. I have cut miters the wrong way. The pencil mark helps to get them the correct orientation.
Next a miter is cut on the left side molding stick, again left over length. The miter on the left side of the front molding is shaved away with miter saw or plane until a dry fit with the two side moldings are is acceptable. The front molding is then glued and bradded in place. Finally the left side molding is added.
PIC 9
I cut miters with a sled and adjust with a hand plane.
Not shown in this collection are 4- 6 x 12" clamps that I only occasionally use.
