Ogee moulding problem

Re: Ogee moulding problem

John Fitzpatrick

>Bill- Can you post a drawing of the molding profile (showing the dimensions too), just to make sure we're all clear on the profile that you're looking for? [There have been lots of variations on an Ogee over the years.]

And from what wood are you looking to cut the molding (something soft and straight-grained, or hard and squirrley, requiring a higher pitched iron) ?

profile shown....

bill tindall

>I have some fine grained, rift-cut almost riven straight walnut I am using for the molding. If anything can be planed, this can. It is no accident that this lumber was selected for the multitude of molding on this thing. A piece of it is poking out the edge of the picture.

the grid in the photo is 1/4". The heigth (vertical ) is about 1" and the width (horizontal dimension about 5/8". I'll build the base of the cabinet around what ever heigth and width I come up with but it needs to be close to this size to look right. A 1/4" -1/4 round sets on top of this ogee and lies against the cabient side at the base. From left to right I created an ogee with circular sections, 3/4, 7/8 and 1" diameter. They all would be accceptable, but I like the right one best.

In desperation I may try grinding a 3/8" roundover bit to make the bottom bead and use a portion of a cove cutter for the top part and a lot of scraping or carving at the transition.

The ogee is such a common form in molding I don't see why companies don't sell a series of these bits in varying sizes. I have needed four sizes for this project and have been able to grind existing router bits to make the smaller ogees. but I could never grind this big one in one piece and get it sufficient balanced.

Re: profile shown....

mikew

>Hi Bill,

That's the shape of the #93 cutter from a #55, btw. Or at least it is close. 3/8" radii.

I have a shaper cutter of that profile as well...somewhere. Mail is cheap if you want to borrow it. You have my email address.

Take care, Mike

Re: Ogee moulding problem

Larry Williams

>You simply need a pair of #6, #7 or #8 hollows and rounds. A moving fillister would help establish the profile.

just realized that

bill tindall

>I had just come from the shop having made the realization that something that cut a section of a circle presented to an edge at about a 30 degree angle off the normal would cut the beaded part of this molding. But saying that I "simply needed" some hollows and rounds is equivalently helpful as saying all I need is the ogee plane or a shaper bit, as I have none of these nor a quick, economically practical way to get them. I am, however, contemplating how I might present a tilted piece of stock to the router bit mounted in a router table, as I have these parts at hand.

For my last project I needed to round a curved edge and got convinced to but some rounds (or hollows, I get them confused). Got one from a highly recommended dealer who claimed to use these things ( and hence should be knowledgable as to what is useable), and it was not cheap. Took for ever to get the iron loose. It was pitted and warped. Took most of a morning to get it flat, pit-free at the edge and sharp. Buying the router bit and making the template would have been quicker and about as cheap. I don't enjoy spending time resuscitating old tools. I suspect all the good planes are ensconced in collections never to be used again. Well, enough ranting about my unstaisfactiory experiences at buying old tools by mail.

Re: Ogee moulding problem

Brad in Ottawa

>Did you find a solution yet? I can check when I get back to the shop to see if I have one that would match what you are looking for. Let me know.

Brad

Will be testing an approach

bill tindall

>Once I realized that any sized ogee (which means there could be a universal solution for the future needs) can be created from hollows and rounds, or their motorized equivalents with the 1/4 round cutter presented at an angle, I have become motivated to explore the practicality (in my hands) of this universal solution to ogee molding. Will explore by this weekend and report on results. I have local loan of some hollows and rounds(don't know yet if they are the right size), I have an inherited Stanley 55 I may give another try and I have the necessary router bits and a means of tilting the lumber to make the convex cut on a router table ( the cove is easy). Success depends on how hard it is to get the transition between these curves to go well, with or without scraping or carving. This is a reproduction piece so I would actually prefer a less than perfect molding.

In any case a big thanks to all who have helped. Hope I can repay the favor.

From limited experience

Bill Houghton, raining and raining, Sebastopol, CA

>One thing I learned about making concave shapes with a round plane when making the railings on my porch is that (a) it helps to start out with a flat (though not necessarily smooth) surface that touches the tangent points of the concave and (b) the round plane must be presented to the surface at 90 degrees to start, or it will slide off. I used my scrub plane to waste material until I had an approximately flat surface, and then applied the round plane (in my case, a No. 45 with a round skate).

Round planes

Warren in Lancaster, PA

>We usually make a rabbet on the edge of the board to guide the round plane at the start. That is why Larry Williams mentioned moving fillister in his above post. The rabbet gradually disappears as you use the round plane. It is also helpful to scribe a line with a marking gauge to show the limit of the molding. This helps keep the molding more uniform and it is hard to mark this after you've started molding.

One of the advantages of using hollows and rounds is that you can stop when the molding looks just right or, if the molding is a little flat, do a little more to make the molding more lively.