bending a skirting (baseboard) around a curve

[Davej]

Alan you will definately have to laminate it,maybe 3mm ply layers,  to follow the curve then face it with oak veneer , if it has a moulding on the top that wil also have to be built up in layers as oak is a nightmare to bend ( if you kerf out the back it will still bend in 'blocks' between cuts or more probably snap ) you could get a french polisher ( a rare breed nowadays ) to match the finish of the rest of the skirting

 

[Deansocial]

Talk him into tiled skirting

 

[Alan m]

Talk him into tiled skirting

everything else is going to be oak  so i doubt he would go for tiled skirting. we are putting in a really high cuiling and having a bulkhead all around it to make it look flash, even using those acustic slabs.

 

[Alan m]

Alan you will definately have to laminate it,maybe 3mm ply layers,  to follow the curve then face it with oak veneer , if it has a moulding on the top that wil also have to be built up in layers as oak is a nightmare to bend ( if you kerf out the back it will still bend in 'blocks' between cuts or more probably snap ) you could get a french polisher ( a rare breed nowadays ) to match the finish of the rest of the skirting

thats what i was afraid of. i dont want it to look steped i want a smooth curve

 

[galwaydude18@gmail.com]

That sounds like a class fit out! A high end fit I'd like to be doing.

 

[Alan m]

How about gluing the L shaped pieces to the concrete floor with pu glue? It needs to be extremely dust free to do this. Use a piece of pre finished skirting on the front of it. Say 3mm thick laminations

If its being tiled like Alan said the skirting will be done after so your method of screwing/glueing pieces to the floor wouldnt work.

Alan I have been thinking this was like a proper commercial kinda job sorry!  Sounds of it its more personal like kinda job  something more upmarket.  Especially seen as hes had the curves put in especially and having tiles flooring and underfloor heating.

I dont know what the room looks like or anything but take pictures!  So we can see  [big grin]  Maybe you can use something else make a feature out of the curves?!?

JMB

i will try and take pics.
im not sure what to do. i dont really want to go down the laminated route as matching the finish will be a nightmare . not to mention the hassel of matching the profile.
the boss has a 11000 sq ft mansion  and this job is for the hq of his several buisiness. he does water pumps etc. he wanted to get into water filtering so he just bought up the main competition to save him the hassel of organising everything.

 

[Alan m]

That sounds like a class fit out! A high end fit I'd like to be doing.

should be good . i bought one of those laser level gadgets to help with all the curves ,alcoves and  steps. great machine for this kind of job. it shined out doorways (i was playing with it to see if it would work)and put level lines on everything in sight. sweet.

 

[jmbfestool]

Ya that's true jmb but he could use the methods I suggested to form it before the tiles go down. Remove it once set and then put it into place once the tiles are down.

Yeah true sorry!

 

[jmbfestool]

He has not ordered the skirting yet has he?

Why don't you convince him you will make the skirting?  You get your self more work for one

And you can easily laminate the skirting to go round the curves and put your mould on it all so it all matches and then you can get it sent of for it to be pre finished so he still gets that daft idea of prefinished skirting or do it how I think is the proper way and finishe it once it's fitted.

Jmb

 

[Alan m]

it is probably ordered. he knows the guy supplying it  and said he is getting everything off him. he must be getting mates rates or somthing.

i agree , everything should be finished after fitting. it is a much better way, and you can fix and touch up areas that got damaged

 

[galwaydude18@gmail.com]

How did you fair out with this today?

 

[Alan m]

forgot the camera.
the samply that was there was mdf core. . it is flexible thow. i was doing this ceiling with the bulkhead all around today. total nightmare. boss changed his mind half way through  and wanted it higher even thow there was a kirder in the way. so it all came down and changed the layout of the joists.

 

[galwaydude18@gmail.com]

Nightmare. I hate when things like that happen. The way I see it tho is that I will be longer on site and get paid more at the end if the day.hmm that sounds like an interesting skirting board being flexible like that. Is it like flexibly? You hardly work for a builder in claregalway by any chamce?

 

[Alan m]

no never worked in claregalway.
its not really flexable but better than i thought it wopuld be. it is bendy like a plaster slab. the last mdf  core skirting i used was very ridgid

 

[galwaydude18@gmail.com]

Can you take a picture of it tomorrow? Or do you know who the manufacturer of the skirting is?

 

[Davej]

MDF is a bit misleading in that there are different qualities and nowadays it seems all fibreboard is classed as medium density but the quality varies tremendously , when it first appeared many years ago i seem to remember different standards of density and prices varied accordingly , nowadays all fibreboard seems to be mdf , just varies in colour i.e. Pink ( fire retardant ) , green ( water resistant/proof ) and green is absolutely not resistant to water , trust me on that , and standard mdf which , if good quality should be rigid and have a tough surface finish . If it is flexible its probably poor quality but should make your job easier.
p.s. On your pugging issue in prefinished oak frames you could use contrasting timber plugs to make a feature of them  done right it can look really smart.

 

[Alan m]

i was thinking about contrasting the plugs. im not sure if he would like that. i will ask.
i agree about the mdf . some is good some is terible. it is very hard to judge what you will get until  you cut into it.

 

[Alan m]

Can you take a picture of it tomorrow? Or do you know who the manufacturer of the skirting is?

i will take a pic.
dont know the manufacturer or supplier. it came from a friend of the boss.

 

[jmbfestool]

MDF is a bit misleading in that there are different qualities and nowadays it seems all fibreboard is classed as medium density but the quality varies tremendously , when it first appeared many years ago i seem to remember different standards of density and prices varied accordingly , nowadays all fibreboard seems to be mdf , just varies in colour i.e. Pink ( fire retardant ) , green ( water resistant/proof ) and green is absolutely not resistant to water , trust me on that , and standard mdf which , if good quality should be rigid and have a tough surface finish . If it is flexible its probably poor quality but should make your job easier.
p.s. On your pugging issue in prefinished oak frames you could use contrasting timber plugs to make a feature of them  done right it can look really smart.

Tell me about it! I buy most my standard size MDF from my local timber merchant!   But the MDF quality varies often but the price stays the same!   They will have dark MDF which is brilliant for painting very hard and the edges paints very well but it's very rare they get the dark MDF  then they get this very light colour MDF which is crap the edge is like bear fur  and then they get this minimum brown which has a poor face and edge even the face fibres come up slightly when you give it a undercoat.

I always ask them to get the very dark MDF in but they say they just go for what ever is the best price when they stock up.

Annoying!

Jmb

 

[obdoor]

Here in the states I would make a male mould and a female  mould and with oak veneers 1/8 " thick I would veneer the stock in a vacuum press then rout the cap moulding and stain and lacquer to match. it's quicker and more efficientt han steam bending.