Need trim attachement advice

[Jim Izat]

I hope I explain this well. I want to attach trim around the top and the bottom of the mahogany posts of the bed headboard and footboards I'm making. The trim will probably be curly maple cut from the same planks as the panels in the bed. It will be about 4 inches high wrapped around the bottom and 2.5 inches high wrapped the top of each post. I'll also be chamfering the top edge of the trim at 45 degrees. My question is: what is the best method to attach this trim to the posts? I know I could use the Normian method of attaching them with brads and then filling the holes, but I'd much rather not have any visible means of support.

Also, would it be better to build the four sided box in advance and slip it over the post or attach each of the sixteen pieces of trim individually?

Thanks,


Jim

[Kevin Gerstenecker]

Jim, you could attach the trim using just glue and clamps. Since there will be no stress on the trim, that would probably do fine to hold it in place. If it were me, I would cut and fit each trim section, number them so you know exactly where they belong, and then glue them in place. The post probably does not have a large enough diameter to use a band clamp, so I would clamp opposite sides, then when set, remove the clamps and place the other 2 sides and glue them up. I would shy away from assembling the trim a a unit and sliding it on the post. That may work, but if you add the trim a pair at a time, you can more easily adjust the fit as you go. When you have a pair glued and lightly clamped, check the fit of the other pair before the glue sets, so you can adjust as necessary. One other method that would not be visible and add some extra support would be to use small biscuits, providing the trim is thick enough to support this method. I know what you mean about using fasteners and having to fill the holes...........as stated above, I think that the glue and clamp method would suffice. Let us know what you decide, and how it works out. (I would also love to see a picture of the head/foot board when it is completed..........SWMBO has been on me for a while to build a bed set for us...........one of these days I will get around to it!)

[Lee Schierer]

Kevin had some good ideas. You could also set the trim in a dado all the way around the post or use double ended brads or small dowels in the back of the trim pieces into the posts.

[Todd Burch]

Jim,

The nice thing about using brads or pin nails (I would use pin nails), is that once you've pulled that trigger, you are done - no hassle, no fuss, no clamps.

But, yes, they leave holes. If you are going with a dark stain, fill and say so what.

The first hasle that comes to my mind in this situation with gluing and clamping is that the trim pieces will most certainly want to slide around as you tighten the clamp. You can overcut this by driving a small nail in the post where the trim will go and snipping the head off just proud of the surface. When you lay your trim in place, tap it with a mallet to "set" the nail into the back of the trim and now it won't slide around. You have to do at least 2 nails per piece of trim to get this to work properly.

Unless this were a $$ commission, I would use brads. If it were for my house, my wife would never see them as my LOML is totally focused on my svelt bod anytime I'm in the bedroom, and not the bedposts. (If you believe that, I have a bridge for sale!)

Todd.

[Jim Becker]

Originally posted by Todd Burch
The nice thing about using brads or pin nails (I would use pin nails), is that once you've pulled that trigger, you are done - no hassle, no fuss, no clamps.

My experience with using my pinner is that the holes are almost imperceptable. You also don't need to use very many...the glue is what does the work. The pins are only to hold the moldings in place while it cures. Just a few pins and then masking tape to clamp the wrapped molding should do the trick!

[Dave Avery]

Jim,

I'm in the same boat with ya...... I'm leaning toward Lee's idea of glueing then trim in a shallow dado. Dave.