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Showerthought: A client's offhand remark about my baseboard cuts made me change my whole approach

I was installing some simple pine baseboard in a house in Springfield last month, and the homeowner, who used to be a finish carpenter, just quietly said, 'You know, you're losing a lot of time and material with those 45-degree cuts on the inside corners.' He showed me how he always copes them instead, even on painted jobs. I tried it on the next room, and honestly, it went way faster and the fit was perfect. Has anyone else switched from mitering to coping for interior trim, and did it save you as much time as it did me?
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3 Comments
drew_ramirez
My buddy had the exact same thing happen with crown molding. A foreman saw him struggling with a miter saw and taught him to cope. He said it changed his whole workflow for the better, saving tons of time on clean-up and adjustments. It's one of those tricks that seems harder than it is.
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hayes.seth
hayes.seth1mo ago
Respectfully, @drew_ramirez, I've always found coping to be slower for a beginner. The learning curve eats up the time you save later, and a good miter cut fits just fine. It depends on the person and the project.
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troy_palmer76
troy_palmer769d agoTop Commenter
@hayes.seth, what made coping finally click for you?
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