border in hardwood floor question???

[david]

Hi,

I am installing unfinished 3/4" x 3 1/4" red oak flooring in our renovated living room and kitchen. There will be a 4x8 ft cooktop island in the kitchen. I want to have a rectangular border of 3 1/4" Brazilian cherry about 8x12 around the island...possibly a row of cherry, a row of the oak inside that, another row of the cherry, and then just oak back to the island itself. I will probably herringbone this border and what?s inside of it...the main flooring will run parallel to the 8 ft side of the island. The idea is to pick up the cherry in the cabinets...

Should I lay the cherry border first, then add the field to it, or lay the red oak field, then cut out the space for the border? Is it possible to herringbone inward instead of outward, or would I need to start at the island and work outward to the cherry? The island will actually be installed afterwards.

Any tips, ideas, links, etc. would be most welcome. I am a carpenter, but it has been many years since I did a hardwood floor, and never with a border. I bought an air powered floor nailer on Ebay for the job, 750 sq ft in all... Thanks,

david

[Bay Area Dave]

consider the nailing sequence. you need to be able to get to the edges to hide the nails as the planks go down.

dave

david wrote:

[Dave Hinz]

Where the tongue and grooves are will dictate the order you do this in. I did a lot of borders similar to what you describe when I built my house, and it triples the work - just so you know what you're getting into.

Snap lines for the inner field, work from one corner over, and when you have to crosscut two pieces to make a butt joint (you will for every row of the field) use a biscuit to give it vertical stability. Maybe overkill but I don't have any pops anywhere in my floor using that method.

Slow and easy does it. And watch your shins with that F$S)(* hammer. Good luck, Dave Hinz

[tweaker]

david wrote in news:eVMyc.24634$ [e-mail]: I want to have a rectangular border of 3 1/4"

. I bought an air powered floor nailer on Ebay for the job, 750

Not understanding, is your boder laid in rows or herringbone? You say both.

There are a variety of options. I would seriously cosider making an intriquite(sp?) herrinbone border on panels with 5/16 material glued to

1/2" ply. This is how all the expensive inlays are done you see in catalogs. Much easier to work with, less issues with expansion/contraction and much, much smoother install. Your choice whether to lay the field first or the border. Depends on how many end cuts in your situation. I usually lay the border first, all the time spent cutting and grooving the field is rarely worth it. After a while, the end cuts become easy. Set up a router and groove everything! with tongue stock from the flooring distributor. Have the router set next to the chop saw on the floor where you work and it goes fast. Before somebody questions the thickness of the 5/16, that is all the material you get on 3/4" for sanding. If it ever gets sanded that low, you'll run into the tongue and groove anyway.

MH

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[david]

The cherry border (8 x 12)and the oak strips inside that rectangle will be herringboned, the rest of the field will be regularly laid strip flooring. I dont refer to the herringbone with all the angles, but rather the one with alternating "vertical and horizontal" butt joints. (if that made sense) It is confusing to have the same word refer to 2 different things...

david

tweaker wrote:

[tweaker]

david wrote in news:HMCzc.10811$ [e-mail]:

I would lay the inner herringbone first, run wild over the edges, cut edges straight with skilsaw, lay border, then field.

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