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I need a little help from the more experienced here...

I have installed kitchen cabinets in the new house we are building, and need to cut the filler pieces that will go between two of the cabinets, and between a cabinet and the wall.

We have a tall cabinet that will house a stacked convection oven/microwave. It is next to the end wall...but about 2" from the wall. On the other side, we have about 2" to fill between it and the adjacent upper cabinet.

So I need two pieces that taper... the short one (30") is 2-5/8 at the top and 2-7/16 at the bottom. The long one is 96" and tapers about 1/2" in that length.

Can either be accomplished on the table saw? I am not sure that the tapering jigs I have seen would be able to handle either length, and if they could, how would I figure the angle... to set the jig for the appropriate taper?

gilamonster wrote:I need a little help from the more experienced here...

I have installed kitchen cabinets in the new house we are building, and need to cut the filler pieces that will go between two of the cabinets, and between a cabinet and the wall.

We have a tall cabinet that will house a stacked convection oven/microwave. It is next to the end wall...but about 2" from the wall. On the other side, we have about 2" to fill between it and the adjacent upper cabinet.

So I need two pieces that taper... the short one (30") is 2-5/8 at the top and 2-7/16 at the bottom. The long one is 96" and tapers about 1/2" in that length.

Can either be accomplished on the table saw? I am not sure that the tapering jigs I have seen would be able to handle either length, and if they could, how would I figure the angle... to set the jig for the appropriate taper?

Hi Doug,

I am a little surprised that you need tapered pieces on BOTH sides. If your stacked unit cabinet is plumb (as it should be), and the cabinet next to it is plumb (as it too, should be), the piece between them should be the same width for its entire length. Please double check that before you make your filler board. Either or both cabinets may knot be plumb, so you may need to do some shimming. The side that goes against the wall is another story as a wall could be anything but plumb. After you adjust the cabinets (if needed), the filler dimensions on the wall side might change. As for the cutting of the tapered boards: I have knot used a taper jig, so maybe someone else can answer you about that. If you must cut a taper in the board that goes between your cabinets (very unusual), the taper jig might be the right tool. On the side that goes against the wall, it is common to use a piece of trim, such as screen door molding, coving, or whatever, to cover any small and variable gaps that usually exist between the filler board and the sheetrocked wall. I hope this helps.

gilamonster wrote:I need a little help from the more experienced here...

...So I need two pieces that taper... the short one (30") is 2-5/8 at the top and 2-7/16 at the bottom. The long one is 96" and tapers about 1/2" in that length.

Can either be accomplished on the table saw? I am not sure that the tapering jigs I have seen would be able to handle either length, and if they could, how would I figure the angle... to set the jig for the appropriate taper?

Here's how I'd do it - but there is probably other answers out there.

The short piece - You are only talking about 3/16" difference on this piece. I'd just cut it to closely fit and cover the spaces with molding. Or you could use a hand plane to trim the piece to fit.

The long piece - I'd lay out this taper with a pencil on the wood and trim outside the line with my bandsaw. Then trim with a hand plane.

I have found that I can cut very straight lines on the bandsaw with the 5/8" blade. For long boards, I support the board on both infeed and outfeed sides with ball bearing roller stands. This enables me to concentrate on cutting along the line without having to worry about supporting the board. With this method I've cut the natural edge off of boards, up to 100 inches long, and then jointed and glued them.

If you cut slightly proud of the line, a #5 or #6 hand plane then can take you the rest of the way with a very high degree of accuracy.

I have a taper jig but somehow it always seems inadequate for the length of my board or the taper that I need.

Here's a method that I have used on occasion for cutting a mild taper in a long board. First I rip a board or piece of plywood a little wider than the board you are trying to taper. After you do this DON"T move the fence. By doing this you have created a zero clearance reference edge. On the board that you want to taper. mark the top and bottom ends for the line you want to cut. Line these marks up with the reference edge of the zero clearance board and attach it to the reference board with screws, nails, or double sided tape. Now when you run the attached boards through your saw, the carrier board runs straight against your fence and the board your are cutting will be cut with your taper.

Thanks to all for the suggestions and advice!

gutterman wrote:I am a little surprised that you need tapered pieces on BOTH sides. If your stacked unit cabinet is plumb (as it should be), and the cabinet next to it is plumb (as it too, should be), the piece between them should be the same width for its entire length.

I agree. Funny how these thing work out sometimes. The tall, wall, side, is indeed drywall, and that is not plumb. The tall cabinet is plumb. The lower cabinet on the other side also is plumb and the trim filler fit nicely. The upper cabinet probably gets its position from its adjacent cabinet, which is a corner unit... let's just say it is as plumb as it is going to get, shims notwithstanding.

I figgered I'd have to use the small edge trim (provided with the cabinets) against the wall by the tall cabinet, although it will be the only place in the whole installation where it will be necessary.

charlese wrote:I'd just cut it to closely fit and cover the spaces with molding. Or you could use a hand plane to trim the piece to fit.
The long piece - I'd lay out this taper with a pencil on the wood and trim outside the line with my bandsaw. Then trim with a hand plane.

Since I didn't need to use the small trim on the lower filler, I'd rather not use it on the upper. Since the filler pieces are factory finished and provided with the cabinets, I should be able to make a nice clean, well-fitting piece. Your bandsaw/hand plane suggestion is good. I am better with the bandsaw than I am with the plane but that should work for the short piece.

The bandsaw/edge trim should also work on the long piece...

8iowa wrote:I have a taper jig but somehow it always seems inadequate for the length of my board or the taper that I need.

Yeah, every store-bought or shop-made taper jig I have ever seen looks to be useful only for small pieces...like coffee table legs.

tdubnik wrote:First I rip a board or piece of plywood a little wider than the board you are trying to taper. After you do this DON"T move the fence. By doing this you have created a zero clearance reference edge.

I think that might work in this case as well... the trim piece is 96" x 3" so I'd have 2" or more to tape onto the reference board. Then I could cut off the reference board to use for the short piece of trim.

Again, thanks to all! You have given me a lot to work with... I'm off to the new house!

If you are not comfortable using a plane to fit the trim in the space, many carpenters I know use a portable (or stationary) belt sander to sand the edge to the scribed line. Especially if it is just a small amount or quite irregular.

Hope it turns out nice enough to show us a photo!

One more option would be to cut your taper close with the bandsaw and then lay a straight edge board on your taper line and finish it with a flush trim router bit riding along your straight edge. I have used this several times and it works great.

stew wrote:One more option would be to cut your taper close with the bandsaw and then lay a straight edge board on your taper line and finish it with a flush trim router bit riding along your straight edge. I have used this several times and it works great.

That's a good one! Everyone with a router should remember this tip! Thanks, Stew!:D

On narrow pieces like Doug has, there has to be other pieces come into play. These would be used to stabilize the router base and also to prevent the work piece from moving.