# Measuring Crown Molding



## brunetmj (Jan 24, 2010)

Hi everyone new to this forum. I have a very elementary question concerning how to measure a crown molding length. I have read considerably on the topic but web searching turns up nothing on my question.
How do you measure a proper length of crown molding before making the various cuts? Say I have a short wall of 4 ft. that will require two inside corners. Do I cut a 4 ft length of molding and then make the angle cuts?
In short how to cut the length you need before cutting angles.
Thanks for any help


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## Big Dave (Sep 16, 2006)

You can precut it an inch long or so for a piece that butts into corners but if it wraps around corners you'll need to add about 4 inches to allow for that.

I just cut the pieces as I need them and don't precut to rough length unless I'm cutting a short piece off of a long piece that's hard to handle.


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## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

Measure the inside dimension and cut it an 1/8" over. Trim until it fits. Outside corners I will usually measure from the crown lower edge (coping) and to the outside corner and add an 1/8 inch. Then cut the other side of the miter and trim until they fit. Noticing if the corner is an actual 90º angle or not. More than likely the corner of a wall is not going to be a 90º angle.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Leo G said:


> Measure the inside dimension and cut it an 1/8" over. Trim until it fits. Outside corners I will usually measure from the crown lower edge (coping) and to the outside corner and add an 1/8 inch. Then cut the other side of the miter and trim until they fit. Noticing if the corner is an actual 90º angle or not. More than likely the corner of a wall is not going to be a 90º angle.


Yes!

G


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

To get lengths right, like between two 90 degree outside corners, cut two sample pieces. Cut a 45 on the left one and a 45 on the right one. As they sit on the wall cut them both off at 90 degrees, 10" long. I picked 10" because it's an even number, and I'm just a simple guy.

Now, when you go to get a wall measurement, set the two pieces up so the miter closes up, and make a fine pencil mark on the straight end. From that mark to wherever the crown goes you can get a wall measurement from that corner by adding 10". If you do that on the other corner, you will have the dimension between marks that you can add 20" to. 

You can cut the actual crown a bit heavy to fine tune the mitered fit. You can check the angle with the two 10" pieces to see if the 45 will work. If not adjust the angle.


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## brunetmj (Jan 24, 2010)

*Thank You*

Thank you for all these replies. I guess my question was not as elementary as I thought. A lot of web sites devote a lot of time focused on how to cut the corners for crown with little mention on how to get correct lengths in the first place. For a real beginner like myself your information will be very helpful.


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## Johnny Yuma (Jul 14, 2009)

Lets say you have an inside-to-inside.... 4' 1 1/4".
If you are going to miter your corners (best way for a diy'er), then cut one end of your crown at 45 deg., hook and pull your tape from your fresh cut, mark the crown at 4' 1 1/4", swing your saw around and cut to your mark.

You might want to cut a little heavy and trim to fit.

couple tips...

*Don't force your pieces. If it is tight, trim it. With mitered corners a touch light is better then a touch heavy!
*Do your outside corners first
*When you put up a piece, only nail it in the middle. DON"T nail the ends.... say 2'-3', until you put up the next piece. This will allow you some 'wiggle' room when you put up your next piece.
* When cutting your corners, if you are not sure if your saw is pointing the right way, just remember... On an outside corner, the top of your crown will be longer then the bottom, and on an inside corner, the top will be shorter then the bottom.


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