Removing burn marks in cherry at end of a routed cove
user780791_
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
I’m currently using routed coves, 3/8″, as edge detail on the frames of a large set of cherry built-in bookshelves. Often at the end of a cove there is a burn mark — this is cherry after all. Sanding out burn marks in the middle of a long cove is no big deal, but where the cove ends it is tricky. I’ve carefully used a #8 sweep gouge to get the burn marks out of the end of the cove, but that still needs to be sanded. If anyone out there knows of a good trick to sand this tight little spot without disturbing the edge of the frame, I’d be grateful to know about it. I have a lot of tools, sandpaper, etc but nothing seems quite right for this job.
Replies
Rout your moldings over length and cut the to size after cleanup. Sometimes you just have to live with some waste.
As MJ said, use longer pieces. If you already have them to length with burns on the end butt another piece with the cove up against it so your sander doesn't know it's the end (it becomes the middle!) :-)
If you have a LOT of them to do, it might be worth grinding up a custom scraper.
https://www.finewoodworking.com/2016/12/02/custom-scrapers-for-custom-work
I'm assuming that you, like I, enjoy the detail of a stopped cove. Hence the burn mark, as it is basically more like end grain, which for cherry is certainly prone to burning. I use a carving gouge of appropriate curve, as you are trying, and then put sandpaper on a small piece of dowel, overhanging the end, and use that to sand. If the gouge is close to the cove curvature, there is very little sanding to do. And, if you grind a scraper to a slightly tighter radius, that can get you closer. For something that small, I might use the end of an old, dull hacksaw blade. Or a saber saw blade (after dulling the teeth for safety.) Get close with your edge tools, and a little 220 and 320 grit on a dowel will finish it out.
I have had the small set of convex / concave card scrapers from Lee Valley for many years. They excel at this sort of stuff and leave just a swipe or two of sanding (sometimes none) in stopped coves. Inexpensive and surprisingly useful.
Consider cutting your cove with two passes. On the first pass, leave only perhaps 1/32". Then come back with the second pass to full depth. This one will be less likely to burn. Also, make sure your cutter is sharp.
I think it's a little late for this, as I read it he assembled his face frames and the routed them with bearing guided router bit.
This is good advice if you plan ahead, easy to do if you route on a table prior to assembly by simply adjusting the fence. When using a bearing guided bit on assembled frames a little trickier but still possible. You need to wrap the bearing with a thick heavy tape for the first pass, while some care is need in doing this any small discrepancies due to tape overlap will be removed when you remove the tape and guide against the bearing for the final pass. I will also make the second pass as a climb cut to get the best possible finish.
A picture would help me visualize it. Any chance you have a gouge that fits the cove the you could adhere some sandpaper to and then sand? Sort of an inbetween step to what Ben suggested.
Agree. In fact I think he was referring to a stop cove, so my advice is meaningless if that's the case. :-)
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