5. Move the work piece left or right to align the cut line with the saw blade and laser light. Then secure the work piece in place, holding it either by
hand or via clamping device.
6. After confirming the saw settings and that the work piece is secured, turn on the saw and make the cut.
COMPOUND MITER CUTTING
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.
1. Set the bevel angle and miter angle as described earlier and locking the respective adjustment handles securely.
2. For the initial cuts, use scrap material for making test cuts to confirm 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.
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 work piece with the blade and laser light.
5. Confirm the saw settings, turn on the saw and make the cut as described earlier.
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 cutline 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.
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.
When cutting and installing crown molding keep in mind the bevel and miter angles involved are extremely accurate while the corners you'll be
working on will rarely measure exactly 90°. Therefore, be prepared to make numerous practice cuts with scrap molding to help fine tune your saw
settings.
Crown molding cutting instructions
For all cuts the bevel angle is 33.85° and the miter angle is 31.62° (right and left).
Left side, inside corner:
1. Top edge of molding against fence
2. Miter table set right to 31.62°
3. Bevel set at 33.85°
4. Make cut, save left end of cut
right side, inside corner
1. Bottom edge of molding against fence
2. Miter table set left to 31.62°
3. Bevel set at 33.85°
4. Make cut, save left end of cut
Left side, outside corner
1. Top edge of molding against fence
2. Miter table set left 31.62°
13