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Home PageDoorsBase & Shoe MoldingCrown MoldingTips, Etc. ArchivesTools of the TradeBuilding MaterialsChair Rail & BackerSpecialty Projects. Finish Carpentry 101 Tips, Etc. ArchivesMiseries, Revelations & Successes
July 4, 2009 - Revelation
People say that every thing you do has been done, everything you think of has been thought of, and everywhere you go someone's been there before. This may be true, but no one has ever been anywhere, and done things and thought things quite the same way as you have. Whether this gets you ahead in life or not, who freakin' knows, but just the fact you got a shot is what its all about. Peace out and Happy 4th. Hug a veteran. They are the ones giving you a shot at being an individual.
June 28, 2009 - Misery and Revelation:
Once I was using a nail gun to install window trim. A carpenter friend of mine, who fancies himself a comedian, was standing beside me. The nail gun slipped, and I shot a nail through my hand into the wall, securely fastening me there. The other carpenter looked at me and said "What are you doin', dude? We only got half a clip of nails left!"
He would have paid dearly for this comment had I not been nailed to the window.Tips of the Week
June 28, 2009 - When installing crown molding, work from left to right. When installing base, work right to left. This will make coping the material much easier.
When installing shoe molding, who cares; I hate shoe molding. I'd rather sit naked on an ant hill.
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Thursday, July 9, 2009
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Home PageOrganizationBase & Shoe MoldingCrown MoldingDoorsTools of the TradeTips, Etc. ArchivesBuilding MaterialsChair Rail & BackerSpecialty Projects. Finish Carpentry 101 Tools of the Trade
Organization & Order of Your ProjectTools of the Trade
For me, this is one of the most important areas of this site. I just cannot express enough how important it is to use a decent tool for the job. An inferior tool is more dangerous than its worth. I can't even count how many tools I've burnt up doing my job. Please, if you buy a tool, buy a good one.... I'm begging you. You are not saving money if the boat anchor you just bought burns up halfway through your spice rack project, can I get an "amen"?
More to come...
Organization & Order of Your Project
I'm not gonna spend a lot of time on this subject, because most of it boils down to common sense. Also becasue it's about as interesting as shopping for a good sitzbath product. I will say though that an organized job will always go faster and encounter less nasty surprises. I've met a lot of superintendents on jobsites in my life. When they come on the job, I usually can tell immediately what I'm dealing with. The best supers I've met all had one or more things in common. They had the ability to deal with people and get them to do what they want without belittling them and puffing up their chests and spouting orders. These are the ones that get the job done fast, efficiently and on budget. I have met many that I would swear were distant relatives of Adoph Hitler. None of this really applies to an average DIY'er byt I just had to get that off my chest. The point of this fairytale is that good planning can really save you a lot of time, money and sanity.
More to come...
dave@finishcarpentry101.com
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Home PageOrganizationBase & Shoe MoldingCrown MoldingDoorsTools of the TradeTips, Etc. ArchivesBuilding MaterialsChair Rail & BackerSpecialty Projects. Finish Carpentry 101 Tools of the Trade
Organization & Order of Your ProjectTools of the Trade
For me, this is one of the most important areas of this site. I just cannot express enough how important it is to use a decent tool for the job. An inferior tool is more dangerous than its worth. I can't even count how many tools I've burnt up doing my job. Please, if you buy a tool, buy a good one.... I'm begging you. You are not saving money if the boat anchor you just bought burns up halfway through your spice rack project, can I get an "amen"?
More to come...
Organization & Order of Your Project
I'm not gonna spend a lot of time on this subject, because most of it boils down to common sense. Also becasue it's about as interesting as shopping for a good sitzbath product. I will say though that an organized job will always go faster and encounter less nasty surprises. I've met a lot of superintendents on jobsites in my life. When they come on the job, I usually can tell immediately what I'm dealing with. The best supers I've met all had one or more things in common. They had the ability to deal with people and get them to do what they want without belittling them and puffing up their chests and spouting orders. These are the ones that get the job done fast, efficiently and on budget. I have met many that I would swear were distant relatives of Adoph Hitler. None of this really applies to an average DIY'er byt I just had to get that off my chest. The point of this fairytale is that good planning can really save you a lot of time, money and sanity.
More to come...
dave@finishcarpentry101.com
.Content copyright 2009. custom finishes. All rights reserved.
Domain Name Search
MyPoints - Earn RewardsEarn Rewards for Shopping Online. Join MyPoints Free Todaywww.Mypoints.com
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Mantels
This project can actually be fun even for the most jaded among us, unlike some projects like running shoe mold which tends to make me speak Latin backwards and spew pea soup.
The reason this type of project is cool is because we all have a picture in our mind of what looks good. Your fireplace mantel is a place where you can do a lot of stuff and make it llok great and suit your own particular tastes. The process is mostly the same to build, but the end results can be vastly different from what you had before and a beautiful change. On the down side of this, it could just be a horrific mess. Isn't that always the way.... oy.
More to come...
Shelves
Nowadays people seem to be interested in decorative shelving and such. These types of projects can be done by anybody because they are so simple when you break down the steps. By the way, chicks dig shelves. (Yes, we do.... ~Editor)
More to come...
dave@finishcarpentry101.com
This project can actually be fun even for the most jaded among us, unlike some projects like running shoe mold which tends to make me speak Latin backwards and spew pea soup.
The reason this type of project is cool is because we all have a picture in our mind of what looks good. Your fireplace mantel is a place where you can do a lot of stuff and make it llok great and suit your own particular tastes. The process is mostly the same to build, but the end results can be vastly different from what you had before and a beautiful change. On the down side of this, it could just be a horrific mess. Isn't that always the way.... oy.
More to come...
Shelves
Nowadays people seem to be interested in decorative shelving and such. These types of projects can be done by anybody because they are so simple when you break down the steps. By the way, chicks dig shelves. (Yes, we do.... ~Editor)
More to come...
dave@finishcarpentry101.com
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
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Home Page. Finish Carpentry 101 DoorsI want to cover this category in depth, because many homeowners are wary of installing doors simply because they are not familiar with the process. Installing doors is easy, as is a lot of the stuff I cover on this site after you learn the basic steps. The problem with doors is that they have to be functional or they will drive you nuts, whereas a piece of crown can go up with a tube of caulk stuffed in it and no ones the wiser. Doors must be installed properly to function without sticking, creaking, moving around, etc.
I've put in a ton of doors in my career and over the years I've learned ways to do it fast and functional. A partner of mine and I once installed 150 doors in an apartment complex in just over a day and a half. They were done correctly as well. That's a lot of doors in a day and a half. The point here is that when you learn the the correct steps to installing doors they can be done fast and functional and are really easy to do. On the other hand nothing in carpentry work drives me more nuts than a door that is put in wrong. Trust me I've seen countless doors installed wrong by jacklegs that claimed to be good carpenters either through laziness or just not really know how to do it even though they said they did. It drives me nuts. I've run a lot of trim crews, and I was constantly having to manage the installation of the doors because as soon as I turned around, they would be slapped in wrong and the builder would chew me out because they were installed wrong. It's one of the most basic finish carpentry jobs that must be done when trimming out a house. When a builder walks on his job and inspects the trim crews work, one of the first things he checks is whether the doors are done properly, because he knows that if they aren't that a few weeks down the road they will be sticking or will be out of level so bad that they make the walls look terrible, etc. They simply must be done correctly. Once you learn how, it is like riding a bicycle; you will always remember it
Let's start with the basic anatomy of a door. Simply put, a door is a box or frame that a slab (actual door) is hinged upon and swings right or left. The swing of a door is critical when installing it. I'll expand on that later in this chapter. The box in which the slab swings is called the door jambs, so you will have two side jambs and a top section of jamb.
(insert pic)
There are two main types of residential doors the homeowner needs to be familiar with: a sold jamb door and a split jamb door. A split jamb door is probably what most DIY'ers will end up with, because they are what Home Depot and Lowes carry for the most part. They are cheaper in price and quality, but they do have some advantages for the novice installer. They are called split jambs because the jamb is actually in two pieces. You install one side which typically already has your casing or trim already nailed on. Then you shim it between jamb and framing, and simply plug the other side of jamb on, which obviously is the other side of the two rooms. It will have the casing on it as well and then you nail it all off and you are done. Keep in mind this is just an overview of the door types themselves. I will go over the details of installation below.
Prehung doors come in a variety of sizes. This seems like a simple statement but when you want to buy them and they ask you what size you want, things go fuzzy quick. Most homes have a few basic sizes of doors, and they are labeled in size in a confusing way. For example, if you go to buy a door, most likely you will by buying what is called a 2-0 door, a 2-4 door, a 2-6 door, a 2-8 door or a 3-0 door, etc. I'm getting' a headache describing this. These terms simply mean that a 2-0 door is a 24-inch door, a 2-4 door would be 24 inches plus 4 inches. I know, I know, why not call it a 28-inch door? Maddening, isn't it? Along this line of logic, a 2-6 door would be 30 inches. Uhh, you get the idea. I don't know why this is, but I wasn't invited to the meeting where these things were hammered out. Most framers will frame a door opening 2 to 2.5 inches bigger than the door being installed, so, for example, if your door hole (pardon my French) is 32 inches wide you would need a 2-6 door or you can just pay somebody to go get it and have a martini.
This extra room the framers give you is so you can level the door and shim it. There are not many things more infuriating that trying to put a door in a hole that is framed too tight. If the hole is too tight, don't try to just cram the door in the hole with no room. It might work for a while, but it will not stand the test of time. If your house settles at all, and they all do, the door will stick eventually. It's better to have an opening that is too big than too small. That reminds me of a joke... uh, never mind. The height of the door will be listed as a 6-8 door or an 8-foot door. 6-8 meaning 6 feet, 8 inches high. I know, it's brilliant, isn't it? So if you have a 32-inch opening and went to Home Depot, you would simply tell them you need a 2-6/6-8 prehung split-jamb door. Then watch the guy from the plumbing section get on the radio and call for help. Eventually after two exhilarating hours, you will be the proud owner of a shiny new 30-inch by 80-inch door. Let the fun begin!
More to come...
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Home Page. Finish Carpentry 101 DoorsI want to cover this category in depth, because many homeowners are wary of installing doors simply because they are not familiar with the process. Installing doors is easy, as is a lot of the stuff I cover on this site after you learn the basic steps. The problem with doors is that they have to be functional or they will drive you nuts, whereas a piece of crown can go up with a tube of caulk stuffed in it and no ones the wiser. Doors must be installed properly to function without sticking, creaking, moving around, etc.
I've put in a ton of doors in my career and over the years I've learned ways to do it fast and functional. A partner of mine and I once installed 150 doors in an apartment complex in just over a day and a half. They were done correctly as well. That's a lot of doors in a day and a half. The point here is that when you learn the the correct steps to installing doors they can be done fast and functional and are really easy to do. On the other hand nothing in carpentry work drives me more nuts than a door that is put in wrong. Trust me I've seen countless doors installed wrong by jacklegs that claimed to be good carpenters either through laziness or just not really know how to do it even though they said they did. It drives me nuts. I've run a lot of trim crews, and I was constantly having to manage the installation of the doors because as soon as I turned around, they would be slapped in wrong and the builder would chew me out because they were installed wrong. It's one of the most basic finish carpentry jobs that must be done when trimming out a house. When a builder walks on his job and inspects the trim crews work, one of the first things he checks is whether the doors are done properly, because he knows that if they aren't that a few weeks down the road they will be sticking or will be out of level so bad that they make the walls look terrible, etc. They simply must be done correctly. Once you learn how, it is like riding a bicycle; you will always remember it
Let's start with the basic anatomy of a door. Simply put, a door is a box or frame that a slab (actual door) is hinged upon and swings right or left. The swing of a door is critical when installing it. I'll expand on that later in this chapter. The box in which the slab swings is called the door jambs, so you will have two side jambs and a top section of jamb.
(insert pic)
There are two main types of residential doors the homeowner needs to be familiar with: a sold jamb door and a split jamb door. A split jamb door is probably what most DIY'ers will end up with, because they are what Home Depot and Lowes carry for the most part. They are cheaper in price and quality, but they do have some advantages for the novice installer. They are called split jambs because the jamb is actually in two pieces. You install one side which typically already has your casing or trim already nailed on. Then you shim it between jamb and framing, and simply plug the other side of jamb on, which obviously is the other side of the two rooms. It will have the casing on it as well and then you nail it all off and you are done. Keep in mind this is just an overview of the door types themselves. I will go over the details of installation below.
Prehung doors come in a variety of sizes. This seems like a simple statement but when you want to buy them and they ask you what size you want, things go fuzzy quick. Most homes have a few basic sizes of doors, and they are labeled in size in a confusing way. For example, if you go to buy a door, most likely you will by buying what is called a 2-0 door, a 2-4 door, a 2-6 door, a 2-8 door or a 3-0 door, etc. I'm getting' a headache describing this. These terms simply mean that a 2-0 door is a 24-inch door, a 2-4 door would be 24 inches plus 4 inches. I know, I know, why not call it a 28-inch door? Maddening, isn't it? Along this line of logic, a 2-6 door would be 30 inches. Uhh, you get the idea. I don't know why this is, but I wasn't invited to the meeting where these things were hammered out. Most framers will frame a door opening 2 to 2.5 inches bigger than the door being installed, so, for example, if your door hole (pardon my French) is 32 inches wide you would need a 2-6 door or you can just pay somebody to go get it and have a martini.
This extra room the framers give you is so you can level the door and shim it. There are not many things more infuriating that trying to put a door in a hole that is framed too tight. If the hole is too tight, don't try to just cram the door in the hole with no room. It might work for a while, but it will not stand the test of time. If your house settles at all, and they all do, the door will stick eventually. It's better to have an opening that is too big than too small. That reminds me of a joke... uh, never mind. The height of the door will be listed as a 6-8 door or an 8-foot door. 6-8 meaning 6 feet, 8 inches high. I know, it's brilliant, isn't it? So if you have a 32-inch opening and went to Home Depot, you would simply tell them you need a 2-6/6-8 prehung split-jamb door. Then watch the guy from the plumbing section get on the radio and call for help. Eventually after two exhilarating hours, you will be the proud owner of a shiny new 30-inch by 80-inch door. Let the fun begin!
More to come...
.Content copyright 2009. custom finishes. All rights reserved.
Domain Name Search
Jobs InfoGet Info on Jobs from 14 search engines in 1!http://www.info.com/Jobs
Obama asks You to Return to School!Request Free Information on Accredited Online Bachelor's & Master's Degrees. Get Info Now!www.ClassesUSA.com/OnlineDegrees
Employers Hiring Here!Register, Post Your Resume and Search and Apply to 1000s of Local Jobs. Go Now >>www.Job.com
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