Mitered & Beveled Cedar Clapboard Siding
Hi,
I am renovating a house with cedar clapboard (3/4″ x 8″) siding and the corners are beveled and mitered. I need to install a new boards on one side and the back of the house and can’t figure out how to cut them. And, I’m also wondering how do I make sure that the new siding will mate properly or line up with the siding that is still up on the other side of the house.
Thanks for your help.
Replies
If the bottom edge is truely 3/4" and the board width is truely 8" then the angle that the face of the board makes with vertical would be arcsine(3/4 / 8) or about 5.4 degrees. This would be about where you'd set the table of a miter saw.
I've never seen a formula that I understood to calculate complex angles, but you'd slant the saw head very slightly less than 45 degrees. Or prop up the bottom edge of the board the appropriate amount and go for exactly 45 degrees.
In practice you'll have to make a few trial-and-error cuts anyway, to account for the actual dimensions of the stock you're using, etc.
To get siding to line up all around a house you need to establish a common level line all the way around, and measure relative to that. A water level is probably the best tool for this, though you could use a transit or contractor's level and take several shots if you had to. Trying to just use a carpenter's level all the way around could easily leave you an inch off.
I've worked with 1/2 by 6 and if I remember correctly it was around a 6 degree mitre with an 31 degree bevel. like the previous response it will be some trial and error. If you can get a decent piece of corner off the building you can line up the saw w/that. whatever you do make sure the material you are using has no cuppage or you will never get it right. I repeat it must lay flat on the saw's table. good luck!
If you set up a shim on your saw table (flat) to duplicate the angle that the siding will have when it is against the wall, you can set your miter at zero (square) and your bevel at 45 degrees, and your cut should then be at the proper angle.
As another poster stated, it's imperative that you get the cedar flat. Any cupping will ruin the cut.
When I did a lot of cedar siding, we found block planes to be indispensible for tweaking the cut edges.
Edited 4/13/2006 6:34 pm ET by Tomrocks21212