There was a time—not too long ago, really—when carpenters approached problems differently than they do today, and the solutions they conceived were different, too. Some readers might suspect I’m talking about raked crown on an open pediment, but that’s a rare problem encountered in only a few homes.

A far more startling example is running baseboard down a stair and turning a level corner—installing a return. This is a technique which, looking at the whole scheme of carpentry, one would think every carpenter would know—after all, it’s a common everyday problem, and any carpenter capable of running baseboard should be familiar with the solution. But that’s not the case.

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I think carpenters are being shortchanged today. They’re losing out on learning solutions to common problems. They’re not learning simple, fundamental techniques. And all those solutions, all those techniques, share one thing in common: hand tools.

Since power tools first became popular on jobsites, our skill sets have slowly eroded. The reason for this makes good sense. When you can cut a perfectly straight miter in a couple of seconds, why would you want to use a miter box and a shooting board? While we were quick to adopt the time-saving machinery, we were also quick to drop the tools which allowed us to make things in the field. That table saw did a nice job of ripping the stock, but how many of us went back and removed the saw marks?

It took only about three generations for nearly all knowledge of the use of hand tools to be lost. The result of this has been that there are times when operations are preformed on power tools when it would actually be faster to do them by hand. And there are solutions to problems which won’t even be entertained, because the thought is that the piece would have to be custom-ordered, which would take too long and cost too much.

If you are inclined to think that the use of hand tools is outdated and no longer relevant, then your options are limited to what was delivered in the mill package. If one is not aware that there are other options, then some great solutions will be neglected.

I’m not saying that power tools, in amongst themselves, are the problem; I own a fair number of power tools and use them daily. Without them I couldn’t make a living. They’re my bread and butter when it comes to repetitive work, to production, to efficiency. But there are tasks—important, critical tasks—that simply cannot be approached without hand tools and hand-tool techniques, at least in a cost effective manner. Running baseboard down a skirt with a 90 degree turn at the bottom (or the top!), is a perfect example of why hand-tool techniques should be a part of every carpenter’s skill set.

Solutions for skirtboard transitions

Ask any stair-builder and they’ll all say the same thing: Most architects do not know how to layout stairs. Among a litany of loose ends, they rarely provide room enough for proper skirtboard-to-baseboard returns. I’m sure it has something to do with saving square footage and squeezing as much as possible into a home—the same way all return walls are framed with two studs, which really limits the size of the casing that can be used. But I digress….

There are several methods for transitioning a raked skirtboard to horizontal baseboard. One thing is certain: if you can control the skirtboard height, you’ll have many more options. But often, by the time the trim carpenters get on a job site, the skiftboard height is already established.

Miter Saw Solutions

If you’re not able to use hand tools, your options will be limited to mitered transitions. Here are two examples:

Example 1: Rake to Horizontal

Example 1: In this scenario the carpenter has limited options. There is not enough space before the corner to transition to a typical baseboard height. The skirt height can not be lowered enough, and forces a break to horizontal before the molding turns the corner. The result is a return piece taller than most baseboard.

Example 2: Vertical Transition

Example 2: Here, there is slightly more room in front of the bottom tread for a transition, but still not enough to make a clean miter from rake to horizontal at the appropriate height. A common solution carpenters use is to make a vertical transition with the base cap in order to reach the desired baseboard height.

Hand Tool Solutions

Most carpenters, when presented with a raked wall running into a level 90 degree turn automatically think it will require a transition to avoid a profiled return, right? Actually, that’s not true. But for many carpenters today this is the only solution available because they’ve been raised on power miter saws. If a power miter saw is the only tool you know how to use, then the solution to every problem is a miter. While I’m not saying this approach is “wrong,” the short vertical transition of base cap is confusing to the eye—the torus molding on a classical plinth never runs vertically (see below).

Baseboard originates from the plinth or base of classical columns, so the torus molding that forms the primary profile of the base cap is never run vertically.

Carpenters have been cutting compound miters on skirt-to-base joints for centuries. Of course, the simplicity of the joint is deceptive. The 90 degree return is a taller profile and must be shaped to match the raked molding. Here’s what I mean:

Confronted with the same situation illustrated in example 2 (above), a custom profiled piece of base cap is created instead. The skirt height is adjusted so it meets the baseboard height at the corner. It is an elegant solution with its complexity hidden in clean and visually appealing lines.

In this example, there are, again, few options available due to the limited space between the end of the stair and the corner. The use of a custom profiled return still requires a taller base return, but makes the transition look clean. In fact, this same joint can be found at the Lilly House in Indianapolis, IN. (See photo below.)

Stairs with short return walls are not a contemporary problem, but a hundred years ago, carpenters had more joinery solutions in their tool box. Here's an example found at the Lilly House in Indianapolis, IN. In this case, the carpenters profiled a taller baseboard for the return so that the raked base could miter around the corner.

It should be remembered that factory-run millwork has been in wide use since at least the 1850s. When you see an aspect of an older home which appears striking to you, remember that, in all likelihood, they started with the same mill package we see today. Those small touches that you may like were the result of a different approach to solving the problem at hand. That approach is a simple set of skills, which could be fairly easily mastered by most carpenters today.

If you’d like to learn how to profile the custom molding for the baseboard return, watch the short video below. This is a technique that every carpenter should know—and these are hand tools that every carpenter should own, for several reasons. Sure, knowing how to match a baseboard profile builds confidence in carpenters, and having multiple solutions is always better than having only one option. But it’s also a matter of economics: carving that custom profile on the return is much faster than cutting all those miters and transitions!

On most jobsites today, the sight of a hand tool brings stares, questions, and, more frequently than not, a shaking of heads that some poor fool couldn’t afford a tool with a cord or a lithium-ion battery attached to it. Yes, many times a battery-powered tool is exactly the right tool for the job. But not always.

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There are times when a power saw is just too big to get into a tight spot. And there are times when the power saw is in the basement and you’re working on the third floor. Besides, a power saw will also leave marks on the edge of a board, which need to be removed, and that can just pose a whole new problem.

I think it is a shame—actually, a detriment to the craft, and to craftsmen—that the occasional use of hand tools is not more common on jobsites. Unfortunately, all of us tend to use the tools and techniques we have been exposed to, and, over the last several decades, exposure to hand tools has been reduced to the point where they are all but on the endangered species list. But they shouldn’t be. In the situation I’m about to tackle, I’ll demonstrate how hand tools can sometimes be the most efficient solution to the problem.

In a recent post on the JLC Finish Carpentry forum, a contributor asked how to cut back a tread that was already installed and couldn’t be removed or cut on a miter saw. The tread material was Jatoba, commonly known as Brazilian Cherry. The carpenter tried a Multimaster on a scrap of material but the blade dulled quickly and overheated, burning rather than cutting the wood. Besides, even if the tool could have cut the Jatoba, it is tough to cut a perfectly straight line with a blade that’s vibrating at a few thousand rpm.

Another contributor suggested using a circular saw, but the saw table would hit the riser before the saw could make much headway.

And another contributor suggested using a reciprocating saw, but I suspect that was a tongue-in-cheek response—at least I hope so!

Identify the problem

Solving the problem required a different approach, a new way of thinking, at least for many contemporary carpenters. And yet, the solution would have been obvious to our grandfathers: hand tools. In fact, the solution to the problem is nearly identical to the procedure used years ago to produce housed stringers—a perfectly straight groove needed to be cut, one that terminated before the edge of the board. In this case, the job was going to be somewhat easier because a constant depth of cut would not be required, plus the cut would be a simple right angle and not on a pitch.

Hand tools do what power tools can’t

I started this cut by placing a framing square against the riser so I could strike a line with a marking knife at the point where the cut needed to be made. I struck the line several times to establish the top of the cut, which is the most visible part.
Next, I struck a second line a few inches long on the waste side. To locate this line, I measured back 1/2 the diameter of the drill bit. I was using a 1/2-in. bit, so I measured back 1/4 in. from the first line.

But before cutting with the saw, I first drilled holes so that the saw dust would have somewhere to go, rather than building up at the end of the cut. Some of you may not know it, but that’s one reason a saw might jump out of a kerf; and besides, if the sawdust builds up at the end of the cut, the saw won’t cut clean all the way to the edge of the board.

I couldn’t drill those holes with a power drill. I needed more reach to clear the riser. But an old brace and bit worked perfectly.

Precise control

By striking the center line with a knife, I define the precise location to place the leading point of my drill bit, which means I can “feel” that spot as well as see it. This technique ensures that the edge of the hole will land right on the line of the cut.

I use a chisel to clean the cut—it’s easy to remove the small pieces between the holes with a sharp chisel.

Ensuring a perfect cut

Now this is the most important part! Before taking a saw to the tread and cutting along the first line, I cut a shallow groove on the waste side of the line using a skewed carving knife. I held the knife at about a 20 degree angle, 1/16″ away from the cutline on the waste side. The small wedged sliver of wood I removed along the cut line provided a positive location to begin cutting below the surface of the wood, while the chamfered edge forced the face of the saw tightly against the cutline. This is a trusted technique used by craftsmen for centuries. As long as the saw does not jump out of the track, a straight cut is all but assured. Trust me, that’s a technique lost to a lot of contemporary carpenters.

While making the cut, I tilted the saw blade just a bit, too. It is helpful to undercut a slight amount. Otherwise, a shoulder plane can be used to square the edge of the cut, and a chisel or joinery float can be used for the very corner where the shoulder plane can’t reach.

From start to finish, I spent fifteen minutes making that perfectly straight cut. And most of that time was spent taking the photos!

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AUTHOR BIO

Keith Mathewson started working in the construction industry in the late 1970s as a summer job during college. He stayed in construction for another five years, then took a different career path for ten years.

In the early 1990s, Keith got back into construction in a much bigger way. He opened a shop, and taught furniture-making after-hours. In 2004, he transitioned out of furniture-making and teaching back to finish carpentry, where he specialized in high-end custom homes. Since 2007, he has focused on stair-building.