How to Trim Kitchen Cabinets With Crown Molding
- 1). Loosen the adjustment screw on the square and set the 90-degree square edge to 1/4-inch or the amount of crown to cover the upper cabinet face. Place the square edge on the cabinet top with the 1/4-inch ruler end pointing down on the outside face of the cabinet case. Mark the cabinet case every 1 to 2 feet with a pencil. This makes a line of marks 1/4-inch from the cabinet top.
- 2). Install 1-by-2-inch popular lumber on the top of the cabinet wherever the crown molding will be installed. Measure and cut the lumber to length and fasten it to the top of the cabinet about 1/8-inch back from the cabinet face. Nail the lumber to the cabinet top with the finish nailer and 1 1/2-inch finish nails.
- 3). Place a piece of crown molding on the miter saw table upside down with the wall flat on the back of the molding against the miter saw fence and the ceiling flat against the miter saw table. Set the table to 45 degrees right and cut off the right end of the molding.
- 4). Measure along the top face of the cabinet or series of cabinets from corner to corner. On the crown piece just cut, measure along the bottom wall edge -- the side against the fence -- from the cut end and mark for the cut. Set the miter saw table to 45 degrees left, align the blade next to the mark to leave the exact length of crown measured and make the cut.
- 5). Hold the crown molding on the cabinet with shortest edge down and against the cabinet face. The bottom ends of the molding should align perfectly with the corners of the cabinet while the bottom edge aligns with the marks made earlier. Fasten the crown to the popular board using 2-inch finishing nails.
- 6). Measure the left and right cabinet sides from back to front. Set the saw table to 0 degrees. Place a piece of crown molding on the miter saw table as before and cut off the left and right ends to make them square. Measure and mark from the right end for the left side of the cabinet. Set the saw table to 45 degrees right, align the blade with the mark and make the cut. Measure and mark from the left end for the right side of the cabinet. Set the saw table to 45 degrees left, align the blade with the mark and make the cut.
- 7). Hold the pieces against the cabinet and align the cut molding corners. Fine tune the fit if necessary. Add wood glue to both faces of the cut. Fasten the crown molding to the popular 1-by-2 with 2-inch finishing nails from the nailer.
Source...