Crown Moulding?

[ufg8r85]

Can I effectively use my new bt3100 for cutting crown moulding? Or, am I better off with a dedicated sliding miter saw? Thanks in advance.

Steve

[Tom Hintz]

You can cut crown molding on virtually any table saw by adding a tall fence with a jig to hold the stock at the right angle for the spring anlge of the molding. However, it is way eaiser (overall and to be accurate) with a good SCMS, or even a good CMS. I've done it both on a table saw and my Bosch SCMS and I don't even look at the table saw anymore for that job.
If you don't have a good SCMS, this could be a good opportunity to "need" or "justify" one! I use my SCMS for lots of things now that I have it.

[JimD]

One of the guys at work indicated he did crown moulding on his BT3000 but I agree with Tom, it is a lot easier on a CMS. I don't know about a SCMS because I've never used one but I would assume a good one would also work well. A good SCMS is $400-500, however. You will have to cut large crown flat on a 10 inch SCMS which is confusing to me.

For small crown (up to 2 5/8, maybe a bit more), a 10 inch CMS will work well cutting the crown "upside-down-and-backwards". You need to make a tall fence and a stop on the flat table but then you are set to cut. For larger crown, a 12 inch CMS would be my tool of choice. On a conventional CMS, the 12 inch would be limited to 3 5/8 or so but that would cover most crown. There are CMS's that have the motor up and out of the way that would have greater capability. The limitation is the motor on the right side of the saw for a conventional CMS. The crown has to go under it for cuts on that side of the saw. I did a small room with 3 5/8 crown on my 10 inch CMS by making all the cuts on the left but I would not want to anything very complicated - sooner or later you have to cut on the right (or flat).

Jim

[Tom Hintz]

You will have to cut large crown flat on a 10 inch SCMS which is confusing to me. Jim

I also thought this technique on the SCMS would be confusing but it is actually far easier than standing the piece at a vertical angle and upside down. Being able to dial the angles into the SCMS, not the wood, makes cutting crown molding accurately much easier. especially with a good SCMS. I use the Bosch 4410 which has proven to be extremely accurate and has pre-set detents for the common angles (left and right) used to cut crown molding. It makes that job a snap, as I found out when doing a total three-room remodel in our house last year.

http://www.newwoodworker.com/reviews/b4410Lrvu.html

[JimD]

Tom,

Your Bosch looks nice and I'm glad you mastered miters on the flat. If your most demanding job is crown moulding, however, there are ways to do it for a lot less than the $500+ that the Bosch apparently costs. A good SCMS like your Bosch plus the BT3100 makes a pretty great combination, however (rips on the Ryobi, cross cuts on the Bosch).

Jim