Avoiding Trim-induced Headaches
Here are a few tips to help you
avoid a few trim hassles:
- Whenever you can, cut with
the thick side of the trim
against the miter saw fence.
You’ll be less likely to tear
out the narrow tapered
edge that way.
- Cutting right up to the pencil
mark almost always leaves
pieces too long, so remove
the pencil line with the
blade. You’ll most likely still
have to shave off more.
- Sneak up on cuts by starting
long and dipping the saw
blade into the wood while
you work your way to the
cutoff mark.
- Trim out the biggest windows
first. That way, you can
reuse miscuts for the smaller
windows and not run out of
material.
- When nailing 3/4-in.-thick
trim, use 15-gauge 2-1/2-in.
nails for the framing and
18-gauge 2-in. brads for nailing
to the jamb.
- To prevent splitting, avoid
nailing closer than 2 in. from
the ends.
