COMPOUND MITER CUTTING (FIG 25)
A compound miter is a cut made using both a miter setting
and blade bevel setting at the same time. This type of cut is
commonly used for picture framing, boxes with angled sides,
roof framing cuts, and trim molding.
Compound miter settings are made up of miter and bevel angles
that are interdependent, therefore, desired and accurate cuts can
be difficult to attain. When a miter angle is changed it affects the
bevel angle setting and vice versa. It may take numerous set-ups
and test cuts to realize the desired outcome. When compound
cuts are required in projects, the settings are usually provided,
taken from specialty manuals with pre-calculated settings,
published charts, etc. Also you may refer to Cutting Compound
Miters chart included in this manual.
1. Set the bevel angle and miter angle as described earlier and lock the respective adjustment handles securely.
2. For the initial cuts, use scrap material for making test cuts to confirm that bevel and miter angles are set
correctly.
3. After confirming the bevel and miter settings are correct, make the compound miter cuts as described in the
previous separate sections for bevel and miter cuts.
CUTTING BASE MOLDING
Base molding can be cut using two methods: standing vertically against the fence or horizontally, laying flat on
the miter table. Using the vertical method is limited by the height capacities of your compound miter saw.
Flat or Horizontal Cutting:
1. Lay the base molding's back onto the miter table with the bottom of the base molding placed against the
fence.
2. Set the miter angle to 0°.
3. Turn on the laser and set the blade's bevel to the desired angle, such as 45° for one half of 90° corners.
4. Align the cut line on the workpiece with the blade and laser light.
5. Confirm the saw settings, turn on the saw and make the cut as described earlier.
Vertical Cutting
:
1. Stand the base molding upwards with the molding back against the fence and molding bottom sitting on the
miter table.
2. Set the bevel angle to 0°.
3. Turn on the laser and set the miter table to the desired angle, such as 45° for one half of 90° corners.
4. Align the cut line on the workpiece with the blade and laser light.
5. Confirm the saw settings, turn on the saw and make the cut as described earlier.
CUTTING CROWN MOLDING
Your compound miter saw is the ideal tool for cutting crown molding, which bridges the wall and ceiling. The most
common style of crown molding used today has a top rear angle of 52° at the ceiling and a bottom rear angle
of 38° where it meets the wall. For an installation with tight fitting corners where the right and left pieces meet,
extremely accurate bevel and miter angle settings are required.
There are two methods for cutting crown molding. 1) Cutting Crown Molding Flat on the Miter Table. 2) Cutting
Crown Molding Vertically Nested against Miter Fence.
Cutting Crown Molding Flat on the Miter Table
Since the most common corners encountered when using
crown molding measure 90° inside and outside, the following
instructions will be for cutting 52°/38° crown molding to fit 90°
corners with the molding laying flat on the saw table.
FIG 25
52°
CEILING
38°
W
A
L
L
INSIDE CORNER
OUTSIDE CORNER
FIG 26
17