Follow the harrowing adventures of one man’s quest to become a Master Builder (or at least a Competent Handyman) with no formal (or informal) training. Laugh along as our Hero stumbles blindly from one obvious solution to the next. Gasp in horror as expensive and hard to replace materials are ruthlessly butchered and mangled.
Episode 1: Look Ma, No Brains
We join our hero as he attempts, for a second time, to trim 1/2 of an inch from the long edge of a hollow core door. Having successfully ripped hundreds of sheets of plywood into tiny strips for shims, header fillers etc, our hero confidently lays out and begins trimming said door.
Wielding a side-winder circular saw and using a straight piece of 1×4 pine as a fence our hapless handyman proceeds to destroy a second door as the saw bogs down in exactly the same place as the first (8 inches from the end of the cut). Is the cord hung on the end of the cut? No. Is the blade loose on the arbor? Is he cutting through the sacrificial 2×4 (or worse, the horse itself!). Nay. None of these amateurish and embarrassing gaffs plague our intrepid idiot. In fact, the answer is as elusive as his overly short carpenter’s pencil. Perhaps a shim-as-a-riving-knife will help our hero avoid the pinched kerf on the third door?
Tune in next week when we answer the question “Are saw blades really dangerous?”
Replies
two probabilities.
Dull blade
the 1x4 is bowing as he makes the rip such that he is taking off more near center of door, then as he approaches the end the return bow is forcing the saw back out near the proper position, binding it.
He may6 also very likely have a saw where the shoe following the guide is not parallel top the blade so that multiplies the error.
A better DIY shooting board is made with a piece of 1/4" ply screwed and glued to a 1x4, with that 1x4 being held absolutely straight while joining the two together.
If your saw is a 5-1/2" setback shoe, make it six inches and then trim it with the saw after it is made.
I would not trim a half inch off a hollow core door. there is only about 7/8" of materials giving a solid edge there, so one would need to take 1/4" off each side. at most.
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Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime.
where ...
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For me it's usually the helper standing on the cord. Twice.
If somebody is standing on my cord they aren't a helper they are just somebody watching too close.
You must be married too. :)
I am married, she is a helper and a worker not a watcher.
You are fortunate then.
Also, if trying to rip with a plywood blade you will overheat the blade, and make it wobble like an old vinyl record left out in the sun
Welcome to the
Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime.
where ...
Excellence is its own reward!
Handyman? Get a straight edge guide like the DeWalt, EZGuide, Festool or whatever. Multiple uses that will pay for itself over and over.
And be a hole driller. Gotta be able to drill different dia. straight holes in about anything. Wood, metal, composites, laminates, concrete, whatever.
be versatile
couple more ruined doors would have had it paid for, eh?;)
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
wonderfully articulated to say the least. as was said earlier a 1/2" is alot to trim from the edge of a hollow core. can you trim 1/4" off each edge instead? a power plane (if you have one) would give you a better finished cut.
i feel your pain. hope this helps.
1/4" off each side will work if it is a stock door.If it is a prehinged door you will lose the hinge mortise and the hole for the lock will not work. In order for the latch plate to sit in the mortise the spindle hole has to be enlarged. Then you will need an escuteon plate to hide the hole.By the time you mortise the hinges and go thru all the other #### you may as well have ripped out the jamb and redo it. Even if you had to trim a stud it would be easier than fooling around cutting the door.
I hope the original poster doesn't read this as I am looking forward to the next post on " saw blades, can they hurt you"or whatever he said.
mike
He could do a chapter first on what happens when you change the blade and put it in backwards first.Followed by what happens when you get bamboozled by all the problems and don't notice that you dropped a spaced washer on the floor while changing blades.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
What ever he writes I'm anxious to read it. This fella a damn good writer. I can use a good laugh about now.
mike
This may be a really stupid question, but why would he be trimming a pre-hung door? If the jam fits, the door will fit, (at least not 1/2" off, that is). I just went through this on Friday and we only had 1/8" to spare because the jam frame was larger than the one coming out, and there was nothing to spare. Then, the issue was how to remove part of the header. What a pain and it took 1/2 day...should have been 2 hour job.
At its most basic level, capitalism offers people the freedom to choose where they work and what they do … the dignity that comes with profiting from their talent and hard work. … The free-market system also provides the incentives that lead to prosperity -- the incentive to work, to innovate, to save and invest wisely, and to create jobs for others.” -President George W. Bush
In other words, free-market capitalism is the best path to prosperity.
The job was a pantry door with double doors mounted on a site built jamb. The plan was to reuse the two original doors with just a 1/8" ripped off each one but after applying my considerable skills to the first door I was not able to get an exact match (30 year old door) and had to get (2) 1/6 slabs. Might be able to convince the customer that a curtain would look good over the pantry.
As a former Saturday matinee serial movie-goer, I'll be anticipating what our hero gets bound up in next week.
Will he save the destitute damsel and her unemployed father from the villainous landlord (plenty of them on BT) by releasing her, in a nick of time, from certain death ??
Maaa--ha-ha-ha-ha... :-(
He said pre-HINGED door, not pre-hung.I've never seen such an animal myself; just slab, pre-bored and pre-hung.BruceT
Okay, he did say that,but like you, I missed the "prehinged" denotation. I presumed that he meant pre-hung. I guess, unless he clarifies, I will not know what was meant.
At its most basic level, capitalism offers people the freedom to choose where they work and what they do … the dignity that comes with profiting from their talent and hard work. … The free-market system also provides the incentives that lead to prosperity -- the incentive to work, to innovate, to save and invest wisely, and to create jobs for others.” -President George W. Bush
In other words, free-market capitalism is the best path to prosperity.
Actually your question makes more sense than my answer. You should not have to trim a prehung door unless there is a height problem . I have trimmed an occasional prehung door for problems that could not be easily fixed any other way.An example would be an exterior door in a masony opening. We did a dental lab that we had to send back the prehungs and install our own jambs and stock doors. When I checked the rough openings the top and bottom were close enough but most openings midway were too tight . Most of our 3' -6" doors wound up 3'-5- 5/8"
mike
Now THAT'S a funny post (the writing skills that is not the act described).
Forget trim carpentry and get into writing.
Runnerguy
Forget trim carpentry and get into writing.
2nd that!
View Image"...everyone needs to sit on a rock, listen to the surf, and feel the ocean breeze in their face once in awhile."
cambriadays.com
And the answer to our baffled buffoon's question is....D. all of the above!
Thanks, piffin the 1x4 was just a little bit bowed but not so you would notice. Also the blade was warped (probably happened when it bound up on the first door). That's OK, I think it was one of those really cheap finish blades anyway (ARRGHHH!)
The power planer turned out to be the right answer but I think I will definitely be investing in one of the locking straight edges. As soon as I get the planer dust vacuumed out of my nose.
Don't vacuum out your nose yet with your skills you will probably need a bit of "nose putty" to fill up your miters when you get to the trim on your door.hheeehheheeeRik
We be looking forward to next week!