Wainscoting?

[engineer one]

both dom and jason are right, but it might be worth considering the length of the walls.

by this i mean centre the two boards along the wall, and as dom has said, v cut the joint, then measure on either side, and space out your other v's based on the distance between each edge. might make the gaps between slightly bigger or smaller, but the same all around, and thus more pleasing to the eye 8)

i used mdf skirting in the lounge of a friend, and it is ok, but some people sell mr for it, or the other thing is to build up the shape using mr strips at the bottom, and making your old moulding for the top of the skirting.

paul :wink:

 

[wizer]

many thanks guys, I think I got it.

One last question (yeh right):

What happens at the window? The wainscoting will be about 900mm high, but the window is 700mm up the wall. Will the sill need extending?

 

[DomValente]

It depends, is the window inset or is it flush to the wall ?

 

[wizer]

 

[DomValente]

Yes, I would if the window frame allows it put a thin window sill on top of the old one with a thicker front moulding coming out and an inch or so over the panelling/wainscotting.
I would also extend the dado into the window box up to the frame .

Dom

 

[wizer]

fankoooooo

 

[DomValente]

oo welcome

Dom

 

[jasonB]

Those dogs have made a mess of that room

As Dom says I would return the T&g round the reveal it may be you only have room for boards and no batten but for a small piece like that you should be able to fix straight to the plaster.

Make a new cill to match the capping moulding thats going round the top.

Jason

 

[wizer]

Right, this again.

I have managed to get the wall panels cut to size around the room and the next job is making the V grooves in the 9mm MR MDF. I have been playing on scrap today and have worked a few things out but not sure if I am going about it correctly.

I think that grooves at 100mm centres looks about right and I have set the depth to about 4.5mm. I am using the big Triton Router freehand with a timber guide clamped in place. From the side of the base to the tip of the cutter is 90mm. So I have marked out the V grooves at 100mm then set the clamp 90mm back. This seems to work well, except for the first one where I wasn't paying attention:

#-o

This is how I had the test run setup

Is there a better way to go about this? I'm a bit worried about making silly mistakes like the first photo when doing the actual panels. Clamping the guide to the work is a bit awkward. Is there some kind of jiggery or clever setup I can do to aid me?

 

[engineer one]

given that you have a bunch to do, how about a simple jig???

not tried it, but think about this.

make a board with an end stop that is wide enough for the whole board you are cutting. decide where the first groove will go, then cut a spacer which is the distance between the end of the board, and the edge of the router. thus groove distance less approx half the width of router base.
and then make a number of spacers which is the groove distance you want, ie 100. cut the first groove, then add spacers as you go along the board.

so in principal, you are going to make a carrier board that is about
1400 mm long, with an end stop. that board will be the width of your wainscoting, plus a little over to allow for the router to run through, and support it.

the end stop will be square to the edge of the carrier board. then just use you square spacers to set out the rest of the grooves. you are gonna need about 10 of them.

this might well be the easiest way which does not require too much use of the clamps. just need to lock the spacers to gether properly. rubber mallet would help.

old rule KISS :roll:

paul :wink:

 

[Keith Smith]

Yes :wink:

You need a length of PAR softwood the same width as the routed panels.

Set up the clamp for the first cut and route the first groove.

Place a length of PAR against the clamp and route the next groove, then just carry on and on

The advantage of this is that it's quick and the grooves stay parallel, it's so easy to get slightly of square otherwise and it only shows once its all finished.

Route from left to right and keep an even pressure against the clamp/ PAR and you should get a straight cut

 

[Fecn]

Modify your fence so that it has ridge (or couple of bumps) which will sit in the V-grooves you've just cut. That way you don't need to measure each time you clamp, and you remove any worries about the clamps slipping.
To prevent the router wandering, add a back fence so you can't accidentally move away from the front.

 

[jasonB]

I just do them with a metal clamp/guide against pencil marks, The offset on my base is 52mm so I mark the first clamp position at 52 then 152,252 etc. Once I get going I can have the clamp repositioned before the router has stopped spinning from the previous cut. I only go 2-3mm deep which will give 4-6mm width at the top of the vee.

If you are having problems keeping the router against the fence then make a double bladed "T" square with the blades spaced to take say a 30mm guide bush. Clamp his to your board and just run the router between the two blades.

If you do go off line, fill with epoxy wood filler, let set, sand off smooth and then run the cut again, works for me :wink:

Jason

 

[wizer]

guys, many thanks for your replies. I haven't had a chance to sit down and work all this out yet but I'll let you know how I get on. Lots of pressure at the moment :roll:

 

[MooreToolsPlease]

I'll second the double bladed T square, make the edge you register from reasonably long so it wont move, then theres no risk of wandering away from the guide

 

[wizer]

I had some time to think this through and today I have been experimenting with different methods. I probably took as long playing with the setup than it would have taken to use a timber guide and clamps. But its been interesting all the same.

I made up this guide/jig

I spent a lot of time making it dead square. Orginally I made it longer than needed but then decided it might be a good idead to make the bottom tight to the board to allevieate the need for clamps. Whilst this seemed like a good idea, I failed to test on a piece of scrap and....

aaggghh

Luckily I could turn this panel over.. phew!

Having to clamp the guide to the panel on each groove prooved very time consuming but I got there in the end.

Notice my inovative use of a trolley jack? :wink: I only had 2 tressles and one Triton Multistand and no long lenghts of timber to support the panel.

I have to sort something btter out when I cut the rest of the grooves as the panel was not properly supported and so a few mistakes happened.

I may even have to do this on the floor as stooping over the panel (1m) has strained my back quite badly.

Anyway, thanks for your suggestions. This story is yet to finish.

 

[MooreToolsPlease]

does your router have guide bushes with it?
if so, I would put those 2 strips of mdf closer together, for say a 30mm guide bush.
The router will sit on top of the 2 strips, and it wont matter if you twist the router as it will still be centered.
using that its possible to workout the offset between the router cutter and the guide bush, and use this to make marks ont he board for where your jig needs to go.

 

[engineer one]

you and others might find interesting the latest issue of Fine homebuilding, the cousin of FWW. called weekend projects around the house, it includes details on wainscotting in america. including a built up header etc.

paul :wink:

 

[wizer]

thanks guys. I did another panel this evening with zero C*@k-Ups

I think the problem was that the work was not properly supported. To remedy the situation I took off the door and laid it on the tressles

Question: I'm thinking about the finish now. Firstly someone mentioned sealing the grooves? What with? Also last time I painted MDF I used MDF Primer, then undercoat, then the top colour. Is this correct? Is emulsion ok for the top coat or should I use eggshell or something?

TIA

 

[MooreToolsPlease]

Personally, I would use the MDF primer on the grooves first, sand down and then put another coat over it. that should see them sealed okay