Jointer for trimwork?

[davej77]

Newbie here.

I woud like to know whether any of you use a jointer in doing trimwork.

I also would like to know if I need a router table to edge long pieces of trim (10 ft. or longer) or if I can free-hand it with my router.

I want to get rid of the thin, small, cheap baseboards and door casings in my home and add crown moulding, and trim doorless entries where the builders just trimmed with drywall. I plan to use 1x pine or poplar and use lengths up to 16 ft. to avoid joints in the middle of a wall.

I have a good tablesaw, 12" dual-bevel CMS, router and 13" planer. I am considering adding an 8" jointer. The question is: Where to put it. Most good locations in my garage would limit me to feeding it lumber not much longer than 6 feet. That will work for furniture and lots of projects but I won't be able to run my long pieces of trim over it.

Is this a problem? I would greatly appreciate any help you could give me because my thinker is becoming bruised on this matter.

[Garasaki]

You're kinda all over on this one

First, what is it you want to accomplish with a jointer??? It sounds like you want to make moulding, which dosent really make a lot of sense. Jointer makes a flat surface. That's all it does. It dosen't make profiles or anything.

Secondly, a general rule of thumb is that you can't joint pieces that are longer the 2x the length of the bed on your jointer. Your going to need a loooooooonnngggg jointer for 16' long pieces - so don't concentrate so much on width as length...it's your main concern.

3rd, ever try to joint something that long?? It's going to be a physical workout like you wouldn't believe.

If you have a jointer capable of jointing something that long, you could make it mobile then basically take it out in your driveway or reposition it in your shop as necessary to work with pieces that big. Remember, if your pieces is 16' long, you need at least 20 feet in front, 20 feet behing, and 20 feet to either side to manuver it around. So I hope your shop has 40'x40' clear!!!

[Black wallnut]

For trim work a jointer is simply not needed. Depending mainly on your choice of router bit profiles you could get away with just a hand held router. For more complex profiles you will want to use at least a table mounted router and possibly a shaper or a molding maker. Both of the latter will need generous infeed and outfeed support. Door and window trim can easily be done in a shop but long runs of base board, chair rail and crown molding might just be better purchased already milled in a style you like. You said you wanted pine or poplar is this because you are planning to paint it? Primed MDF molding might be less expense and less work in the long run with looks just as great assuming it is carefully installed.

If your long term aim is making furniture and you have a source for rough cut lumber then a jointer might be a worthwhile addition to your shop. In my area about all that is available is s3s lumber so a jointer is just not needed. There have been a few times that I have had to edge joint a board and a router and straight edge guide did just fine for a fraction of the cost plus a whole bunch less valuable space not used in the shop when compared to a jointer.

[LinuxRandal]

By edge jointing, if your just doing roundovers on the edge, you could put the board on sawhorses, clamp it down (several places) and run the router free hand. For Jointing the edge (like you would use a jointer), you could use a sawboard, guide rail system and both a circular saw, and a router. (from homemade to the EZ Smart).

You could also use an edge guide if one side is square, this goes as well for making your own trim (using bits such as a cove bit, etc).
While you are WANTING to use longer boards, can you get them to the area you need them (hallways, stairs, doorways in the way, etc). A miter saw, or guide system would be a better investment here then a jointer. The guide system I use, can be modified (SRK to Bosch hand planner) to act as a jointer for long pieces.

[kmk]

I think he just want to get a jointer and looking for a excuse...

[davej77]

Thanks for the reply

I asked about the jointer because I see so much lumber at HD with bowed edges and I wondered how people used this for baseboards or door frames without the defect being visible. I figured they must be jointing it somehow, and, being new to woodworking, I have not learned how to straighten edges any other way.

Concerning routing long pieces of trim: I look at the moulded trim at HD and it looks thin and cheap. I live in New Orleans, where we have homes everywhere with fabulous trimwork. You can tell the difference between moulding made from 1x stock from the HD stuff a mile away. Being a beginner, it seemed to me that routing your own edge profile for baseboards would be easier than building a profile by adding a small trim piece to the top of a 1x6 because you would have fewer cuts to make and fewer edges to fit.

[LinuxRandal]

I asked about the jointer because I see so much lumber at HD with bowed edges and I wondered how people used this for baseboards or door frames without the defect being visible. I figured they must be jointing it somehow, and, being new to woodworking, I have not learned how to straighten edges any other way.

Concerning routing long pieces of trim: I look at the moulded trim at HD and it looks thin and cheap. I live in New Orleans, where we have homes everywhere with fabulous trimwork. You can tell the difference between moulding made from 1x stock from the HD stuff a mile away. Being a beginner, it seemed to me that routing your own edge profile for baseboards would be easier than building a profile by adding a small trim piece to the top of a 1x6 because you would have fewer cuts to make and fewer edges to fit.

The old historic molding will contain a lot of lumber from when lumber was true dimension. 1" was 1" finished, which would now be refered to at least 5/4 (and in some cases 6/4), depending on the wood and where you bought it.
You WILL find, there are times when it is both eaiser, cheaper, and preferable to build up a moulding, normally do to depth of profile or how it's mounted. (some of the old Crown).

[Garasaki]

I asked about the jointer because I see so much lumber at HD with bowed edges and I wondered how people used this for baseboards or door frames without the defect being visible.

Well there's several ways to look at that. For one, people in those old gorgeous houses with the nice moulding probably didn't buy their lumber from HD.

Secondly, if you look really closely you could problably find yourself some defects - if you install carefully, you can usually minimize those sorts of defects.

What sort of profile are you envisioning for your moulding?? Something simple, mostly square, maybe a rounded over top, but thats it? Or something really ornate?

[reddog552]

What kind of Planer,could it be used as a molder I have a Grizzly 13"planer /molder that makes very nice millwork.

[jking]

I asked about the jointer because I see so much lumber at HD with bowed edges and I wondered how people used this for baseboards or door frames without the defect being visible. I figured they must be jointing it somehow, and, being new to woodworking, I have not learned how to straighten edges any other way.

You'll need a board straightener. It's very similar to a board stretcher.

[davej77]

Well there's several ways to look at that. For one, people in those old gorgeous houses with the nice moulding probably didn't buy their lumber from HD.

Secondly, if you look really closely you could problably find yourself some defects - if you install carefully, you can usually minimize those sorts of defects.

What sort of profile are you envisioning for your moulding?? Something simple, mostly square, maybe a rounded over top, but thats it? Or something really ornate?

Just a simple beading on 1x6 stock.

You're right about looking carefully. I was in one of Emerill's restaurant's recently, which did not flood during Katrina but underwent a lot of renovation before re-opening. They had done a lot of trimwork and wall paneling in an upstairs dining room, and I was initially impressed until I realized they had done it all on the cheap and the work/materials did not do justice to the 100-year-old building on St. Charles Ave. The gumbo wasn't that great, either.

[davej77]

What kind of Planer,could it be used as a molder I have a Grizzly 13"planer /molder that makes very nice millwork.

It's a DeWalt 735, 13"

[davej77]

You'll need a board straightener. It's very similar to a board stretcher.

I could store it next to my sky hook.

[reddog552]

board straightners

Thats funny board streacher bhttp://www.grizzly.com/products/searchresults.aspx?q=board+straightenersut not funny

[reddog552]

try this again

http://www.grizzly.com/products/searchresults.aspx?q=board+straighteners