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If you’ve ever lugged a chop saw onto a scaffold 20 feet off the ground to cut narrow 1x moldings, you’ll appreciate this tool.

With some scrap pieces of 3/4-inch plywood or pine, you can build a simple miter box that will guide precise cuts. Here’s how:

• Attach the vertical fence to the base with glue and 1-5/8-inch drywall screws.
  
  
• Cut 45-degree and 90-degree kerfs in the fence to guide the handsaw blade, and you’re ready to go.

This rig isn’t limited to outdoor work, either. With a fine-toothed saw blade, you can make precise cuts in all kinds of moldings.

Cutting mitered returns for window stools or head casings is tricky with a powered miter box because the short pieces want to fly all over the place. This miter box will handle that task with ease.

— Robert Goodfellow, Clinton, Conn.

Tips & Techniques provided by Fine Homebuilding.
©2009 The Taunton Press

To contact Fine Homebuilding, e-mail Christina Glennon.

BuilderBooks 2010 Virtual Publications Catalog Now Online

The NAHB 2010 Publications Catalog from NAHB BuilderBooks is now available online.

Presented in a virtual format as part of the NAHB BuilderBooks effort to go green and streamline delivery, the catalog includes publications and products to help building industry professionals ramp up for a successful year as the industry and the economy begin to recover.

The materials in the catalog, written by industry leaders in various fields of residential construction, feature publications and products about accounting, estimating, business management, green building, sales and marketing, safety, construction codes, 50+ housing, multifamily housing, construction management remodeling and more.

Some of the newest publications in the catalog include “Social Media for Home Builders,” the “National Green Building Standard Commentary” and “Paper Trail: Systems and Forms for a Well-Run Remodeling Company, Second Edition.”

To view the virtual catalog, click here.