Currently replacing all the baseboards in the house (white 60mm) but I'm having trouble when mitering them at 45 degrees. It might not be very clear in the picture, but for some reason, they don't come out perfectly straight and somehow curve inwards by a millimeter or two in the middle, giving a sort of concave shape. Does anyone have an idea why this happens? I'm using a Metabo KGS-254v2 with a standard blade (48T).
Possible causes:
* In the picture, it looks like the moulding is not flush against the wall; the lower part of the moulding goes further into the wall than the upper part.
How do you cut the moulding in the miter saw? Lying down? Which side up? Standing? Which side against the fence?
Maybe because the baseboard is shaped that way? i.e., if it has a curved profile? or is it completely smooth?
That's correct, the baseboard has a curved profile, so perhaps it's not so surprising that the cut ends up the way it does. The question is what can be done to get a straight cut?
Possible causes:
* In the picture, it looks like the molding doesn't lie flat against the wall; the bottom part of the molding goes further in towards the wall than the top part.
How do you cut the molding in the miter saw? Lying down? Which side up? Standing? Which side against the fence?
I think it's the picture that's a bit misleading; in reality, it lies flat against the wall.
I cut it lying down & from above (the painted side) to avoid splinters as much as possible.
That's correct, the baseboard has a curved profile, so maybe it's not so strange that the cut turns out the way it does. The question is just what you can do to get a straight cut?
Does it really need to be straighter? If it's a curved molding, perhaps a curved corner looks perfectly natural? How does it look when you fit the other piece? You could cut a short little piece just to test.
I perceive that the cut is not straight. Have you ever cut into a nail, making the teeth more worn on one side, possibly causing the blade to press slightly to one side?
The molding should lie on its back, profile side up, if the profile is not symmetrical, then the angles should be correct and the front side profiles should fit together for the corner of two moldings.
That's correct, the baseboard has a curved profile so maybe it's not so strange that the cut is the way it is. The question is just what can be done to get a straight cut?
If the baseboard is curved then the cut should be curved. Otherwise, you'll never get it together.
The outside of the baseboard is concave, you say, then you will never get a straight outer corner.
I believe the cut surface is completely flat, but the outer corner becomes curved because the sum of a straight (cut surface) and a curved (outside of the molding) surface intersecting at an angle (miter) results in a curved line.
If you want a straight outer corner, you need to choose a molding that is not concave on the outside.
No, it is not the outside of the baseboard that is concave (maybe I was a bit unclear about that before). However, I made a new attempt yesterday and suddenly got perfectly straight cuts, just like that. Now I'm unsure if I really sawed against the painted side, it feels more like I turned the molding before. It would indeed be completely natural to have a concave cut considering the design of the baseboard...
mexitegel said:
