#-o Can anyone help with a drawing and advise the best way to make a wooden mitre box out of scrap so that I can cut some tall skirting. It appears the only ones you can buy are for the small type skirting. Any help would be much appreciated.
Tall skirting
- Thread starter Billy44
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nev
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Eric The Viking
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A mitre box isn't really the best way to do it though, at least for internal mitres (i.e. those in the corners of rooms). The best way is to scribe one side of the skirting to the other one. That way, if the boards aren't square to each other it doesn't matter as much. You can also arrange the corners so that the scribed pieces are at right angles to the window(s), so they catch the light less, and the gaps are easier to fill, too. And if it's a Victorian-style skirting, most of it is a straight square cut - only the moulding needs to be scribed - and setting it out is easier too.
We've had old properties since we were married, 35 years ago, and at first I tried to cut tall mitres (11" and 10"), with a home-made mitre box (couldn't work out why nobody sold tall ones!), and wasted a fair bit of wood, complete with expensive mouldings. Then a friend took pity on me and taught me how to scribe them, with a fret/coping saw.
Once you know, it's a lot easier than you might think, pretty quick, and the results look neat even when they are cut a bit roughly. Yes, you do need to mitre the returning angles of a chimney breast, but those corners can be pinned so the joints don't gap over time, and one side is really short so it's easy to do.
No I'm not going to go through all the process. It's been discussed at length on the forum, and there are quite a few YouTube videos as well. Search for "scribing skirtings" or "scribing baseboard" (USA). You'll find what you need.
HTH, E.
We've had old properties since we were married, 35 years ago, and at first I tried to cut tall mitres (11" and 10"), with a home-made mitre box (couldn't work out why nobody sold tall ones!), and wasted a fair bit of wood, complete with expensive mouldings. Then a friend took pity on me and taught me how to scribe them, with a fret/coping saw.
Once you know, it's a lot easier than you might think, pretty quick, and the results look neat even when they are cut a bit roughly. Yes, you do need to mitre the returning angles of a chimney breast, but those corners can be pinned so the joints don't gap over time, and one side is really short so it's easy to do.
No I'm not going to go through all the process. It's been discussed at length on the forum, and there are quite a few YouTube videos as well. Search for "scribing skirtings" or "scribing baseboard" (USA). You'll find what you need.
HTH, E.
MikeG.
Established Member
Eric the Viking has it right. Skirting (internal corners) aren't mitred.
Thanks for your helpful replies gents. I omitted to say it is only the external mitre’s I wanted to use this for I would have scribed and coping sawn the internal’s as I always have done. I will abandon the idea of making a mitre board taking into account your remarks Eric The Viking on the poor results that you encountered and look for another way around the problem of cutting the external mitre’s on the large skirting.
Lard
Established Member
Hi Billy, don’t abandon your ideas, Eric is describing difficulties with internal scribing and is not talking about external mitres. Scribing doesn’t work externally (I think you know these basic ‘rules’ anyway).
Why not do a simple search on YouTube, you will be surprised how many tips and tricks are out there, especially for making your own jigs etc.
To start with, this may help or give you an idea to make something of your own.....see this link
https://youtu.be/S8kmpLbmG1E
All the best.
Dq
Why not do a simple search on YouTube, you will be surprised how many tips and tricks are out there, especially for making your own jigs etc.
To start with, this may help or give you an idea to make something of your own.....see this link
https://youtu.be/S8kmpLbmG1E
All the best.
Dq
Thanks for your reply Dq (Lard) and your encouraging words not to give up my ideas. I had a quick look this morning on the YouTube link you kindly sent and was inspired by what I saw and will look further on YouTube tonight. Once again many thanks. Billy
How about something like this?
https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/faithfull- ... gIWSfD_BwE
Never used one so I can't say how good they are, always used a sliding mitre saw.
https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/faithfull- ... gIWSfD_BwE
Never used one so I can't say how good they are, always used a sliding mitre saw.
I fit quite a lot of tall skirtings.
I usually use my mitre saw with the blade tilted over to do the bevel cuts, the piece held flat down onto the saw bed.
Alternatively you could do the same with a track saw or circular saw.
As a side note, even coping requires a bevel cut to be made.
This is done first to establish the cope line on the face of the board.
I usually use my mitre saw with the blade tilted over to do the bevel cuts, the piece held flat down onto the saw bed.
Alternatively you could do the same with a track saw or circular saw.
As a side note, even coping requires a bevel cut to be made.
This is done first to establish the cope line on the face of the board.
Thank you for your replies owen and will1983. Owen the Faithfull mitre box for cutting 230mm skirting looks like just what I needed, so have ordered one and not to much money wasted on such a small amount of skirting I have to do. Many thanks. 
