Everyone hates seeing those annoying gaps in the corners of frames. You take care mitring but then a pesky gap opens up when joining. We’ve put together some tips and tricks to ensure you get the best mitred corners possible.
PENS, WAXES & FILLERS
Start here and find out what works best for you. The Edding painter markers are excellent as they are true black and don’t dry purple unlike other brands.
Waxes fill wider gaps and are quite robust while creams offer more variation on colour while being easier to use and can handle more extreme temperatures.
CJ pastes are great as easy to use and you can mix to get a close colour.
MORSO BLADES
Ensure your Morso blades are sharp and positioned correctly. Watch our video below for changing and adjusting the bottom knives.
Some mouldings are difficult to cut on a Morso. This is where our Chop Service comes in handy.
CALIBRATE YOUR UNDERPINNER
Use a calibration set square to align underpinner fences to fix issues with misaligned v nails. Watch the video below to see how.
Loosen the underpinner fences with a hex key.
Place the Set Square on the underpinner. We'll be moving the V Nail head along the centre line.
Make adjustments by moving the set square in line with the nail head. This ensures the fences are in the right place.
Once happy with the positioning keep the set square in place and tighten the fences with the hex key.
The problem should now be fixed, meaningly you'll get the perfect corner join every time.
HOFFMANN ROUTER
Getting a tight join on dense hard woods such as oak and walnut can be a struggle because underpinners need to displace timber fibres as the v-nail is inserted.
The Hoffmann Frame Joiner is a great alternative because it works completely differently - by routing a slot for a dovetail joining key. It’s especially useful for getting a great join on tall, narrow moulding profiles.
Place one mitred piece against the fence face upwards. Then bring the handle of the Hoffmann down to bring the router bit up from underneath.
Repeat the process on all mitred lengths of moulding.
Apply a small amount of PVA wood to the mitred corners. The BabeBot glue bottle makes for precise application.
Position two corners together, lay them face down and tap the Hoffmann Dovetail Key in with a soft faced hammer.
Repeat the process on the remaining three corners to complete the frame.
CHOP + ROUT
Order on our Chop Service and we’ll do the chopping and routing for you. All you need is a hammer to join the frame.
You'll receive the frame with routed slots in each mitred face - they allow you to join the frame with the supplied dovetail keys, instead of on your underpinner. Read our blog to find out more, Chop Service Routing.
Tips for joining a routed Chop Service frame
Lay the pieces face down on a clean surface that won't scratch the face of the moulding.
Check you’re using the right size keys for each slot. Once they're in they can't be easily removed.
Apply PVA glue sparingly to the cut faces, not in the routed slot.
Use something to support the corner if the face of the moulding is not flat, such as a stack of foam centre board.
Use a lightweight hammer to tap the keys into place.
