November 20, 2011

Coping

I can't cope. I thought I could. I thought coping was a good idea. Coping made sense. Having tried it now, I just don't see the point.

Coping is highly overrated.

It's a cool word though. Cope. Coped. Coping. Copable (okay, maybe not).

Lest you think I've given up on something really important, you need to know that coping is a method of cutting crown molding to fit inside corners. You find the spring angle of the molding, set your jig to this angle, and cut the molding at 45° (assuming your corner is 90). Then you take the cut end and cut away the material behind your original cut. The idea being that this piece will now fit without gapping over top of the other piece in the corner, which you've installed butted up flush against the adjacent wall. Make sense? Don't worry about it. For the amount of effort it takes, you're best to just cut two 45°s and piece them together, using wood filler for any gapping. Don't get me wrong. I'm all about good, solid, work. After all, I'd like to live in this house without things coming down around my ears.  Coping, by some accounts, is supposed to be a better way to join crown molding in the corner. I happen to disagree. When it's all said and done - after filling, sanding, and painting, which you have to do to coped and non-coped corners anyway - the only difference is the time it took. One of these inside corners is not coped. I won't tell if you won't.




  














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