How to remove 5mm from door

[Mark]

Hi,

I need to remove approx 5mm from the bottom of a door due to a new carpet being fitted. What are the ways of doing this? I don't have a circular saw or equivalent.

TIA, Mark

[Chris Bacon]

Remove the door. Mark it on both sides. Cut off the waste using an ordinary panel saw, checking both sides from time to time to check you're "on course". Finish with a plane, taking care on the stiles. Alternatively, take the lot off with your plane - mark the waste as before, bevel the bottom to the mark, then plane down flat. Your saw/plane ought to be sharp. There are lots of ways of doing it with power tools, stand by.....

[Grunff]

One recently discussed option is to saw your door in half (horizontal cut), using a blade with a 5mm kerf, then glue the 2 pieces back together. The result will be both stronger than the original door, and better looking.

I'm personally not a big fan of this approach, and would be inclined to plane the door instead (power or hand plane).

[The3rd Earl Of Derby]

Magic wands are not available.

-- Sir Benjamin Middlethwaite

[Sam Nelson]

When I had to do this at short notice (the flooring salesman having assured us that the crew that came to lay it would throw in this job) I just went out and bought a nice new small, small-toothed handsaw and took my time over it. I don't see myself as any kind of handsaw expert, but compared with the cost of paying someone else to do it at short notice or buying a new door, etc., the new saw was a good investment. Mind, I had

9mm to take off, which is perhaps a bit easier than 5mm.

[Christian McArdle]

Electric plane. Cheap to buy, pretty easy to use if you're not a muppet with power tools. Clamp some offcuts of wood of each end to prevent splintering.

Christian.

[Mark]

The amount to take off looks too small for a saw and too big to plane!

I guess I will pick the latter method. As I need a new plane anyway what would be a suitable type for this job? There seems to be a lot more types available nowadays.

Cheers, Mark

[Mark]

Would anyone recommend a budget power plane for very occasional use?

Thanks. Mark.

[Christian McArdle]

For the unskilled, a cheap electric plane would produce the best results, as they are far easier to use than manual planes.

Christian.

[Mark]

The above question is ambiguous. I meant to ask for a recommendation for a particular make/model of plane :-)

Mark

[The3rd Earl Of Derby]

Benjamin Middlethwaite

[Stuart Noble]

:-). Ah but that was a vertical cut.

[Christian McArdle]

I think mine is a straight performance power (not pro) from B&Q. Does the job very well. The blade didn't even need adjusting out of the box. No problem getting a nice smooth door edge. I'm sure that a branded one will do better, but the cheapie does quite well enough for me.

i.e.

82mm Planer 230V

gives you 600W for 17 quid.

Obviously I can't vouch for the particular model.

Christian.

[The3rd Earl Of Derby]

But can you get new blades for it?

-- Sir Benjamin Middlethwaite

[Davao]

until he'd made over a dozen cuts. All you have to do is fix a straight batten to a piece of waste wood and run the power saw against the batten. Measure the width of the piece left behind (A) adjacent to the batten. Then fix the batten to the door to be cut ensuring the width overlapping the batten is A plus the amount to be removed. Then cut with your fine tooth power saw blade. I get every cut accurate to plus or minus 1/3 mm.

Of course, I also cover every fuggin thing in saw dust but thats another matter. Me and power saw are friends and wifey can kiss my hows yer father.

Arthur

[Mark]

Mark.

[Chris Bacon]

You should be OK with a nice saw (not a £2.99 special that cuts around corners!). If you do buy a new hardpoint type saw, then

*carefully* brush your fingertips gently along each side of the teeth, tip to handle. The saw should feel the same on both sides. On really cheap ones, you can see a burr on one side of the teeth only, where they've been sharpened - these are invariably useless tools.

You can plane off most of the waste by bevelling, as above, or just smooth down after sawing.

You need a new plane? Could you sharpen the one you have? If you stick a sheet of wet'n'dry to a flat surface it makes a good sharpener (used wet) - finish with worn 600 grit.

If you want a new plane, you'll still need to sharpen it - get a cast-iron jack plane (not pressed steel) at about £30 (now prepare to be told you *need* to spend £100+! ;) ).

If you want an electric plane, they're available for about

15 quid upwards - however, I don't think these are a beginners tool, you can do lots of damage with one to yourself or the job, very quickly, and they're of limited use for lots of everyday DIY stuff, and not easy to get a good result with if you haven't used one before! If you buy one, and have not used one before, I exhort you to get some practical instruction and practice before you try using it!

[Christian McArdle]

For my usage patterns, I would neither know nor care. I would not anticipate getting sufficient use to blunt the blades. In five or ten years when it has rusted away, I'd just buy another if the blades were not available.

It may just fit major manufacturer's blades anyway. My cheapie circular saw certainly does. The planing width (82mm) is identical to the Bosch. The Bosch blades are described as "reversible blades for bosch and other planers", so I'd say that there was an evens chance.

Christian.

[The3rd Earl Of Derby]

Yep you can. :-)

Benjamin Middlethwaite

[zymurgy]

VVBG

Get the Aldi 12 quid power plane (takes cover)

But as a previous poster has said, have a practice first on some scrap wood. These can be beasts to handle with a thick cut. Oh, and don't pause on the wood. Ever. !

Cheers

Paul.