MAKING AND INSTALLING PILASTERS
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Cutting the grooves
Cut the pilaster pieces to size, taking into account the width of the stiles and allowing enough space between the door and the pilaster for the hinges you plan to use. Then, install a core box bit in your router and mount the tool in a table. Adjust the cutting height for a semicircular cove. Mark the location of the grooves on the end of the board and add marks on the face indicating where the cut should start and end. Align the front cutting line with the bit, then use the leading end of the piece to mark a reference line on the outfeed fence. Repeat the procedure with the back cutting line and make a similar reference line on the infeed fence. Adjust the fence for the first groove, then install a featherboard on the table to hold the pilaster firmly against the fence. Round over the top edge of the featherboard to prevent the stock from catching when it is pivoted down into the cut. To make the cuts, align the leading end of the pilaster with the reference line on the outfeed fence and lower the board face onto the bit (above, top). Hold the workpiece flat on the table as you make your pass. When the back end of the piece aligns with the reference line on the infeed fence, pivot the stock off the table (above, bottom). Repeat the cut on the other pilaster, then adjust the fence to cut the remaining grooves.
SHOP TIP
Shaping pilasters on the table saw
With the help of a simple shop-built jig, you can use the cove-cutting technique snown on page 69 to shape pilasters. For the jig, cut a wedge-shaped base piece at the appropriate angle for the cove you need and screw it to two fences: a low fence along one long side and a higher one on the adjacent side, then screw the jig to the saw’s rip fence. To make the cuts, line up the middle of the leading end of a test board with the blade and adjust the rip fence until the angled guide butts against the pilaster. Turn on the saw and feed the board into the blade as shown; adjust the cutting height until you create the appropriate groove.
Mark groove location lines and front and back cutting lines on the workpiece as you did in 1 on page 64, then saw the grooves. Use extreme care in lowering and raising the workpiece at each end of the
