How to cut premade formica counter

Posted by mm on October 11, 2005, 11:56 am

How to I cut excess lengtth from pre-made formica countertop.

I bought two pieces at HD, with 45 degree ends, which are fine, but I
need to cut off at the other end.

I intended to follow advice I once read here about cutting a bit
longer and finishing with a carbide router bit.

But I forgot that my pieces have a bull-nose front end, and a built-in
splash-back. The router won't get close to an inside curve, and won't
have a surface to rest on when doing the front outside curve.

I bought a 140 tooth 7 inch blade, but now I think a circular saw will
have the same problem. (I wanted a fine tooth blad for my 5 1/2 inch
circuar saw, but couldn't find one. Can I put a speed control on the
7 1/4 inch saw to make it cut more slowly? I have one I could use.)

Do I need to use an electric sabre saw, or a handsaw? I can clamp a
piece of wood as a guide for the flat part in the middle, but I don't
see how I can do a perfectly straight line for the rest.

Should I use a sabre saw with a clamped fence for the middle and a
hand saw for the curved parts?

I'm so unsure. and I'd like to do this outside before it gets cold
out. Only 65 degrees today.

Thanks.

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
me know if you have posted also.

Posted by Fred on October 11, 2005, 2:22 pm

> How to I cut excess lengtth from pre-made formica countertop.
> I bought two pieces at HD, with 45 degree ends, which are fine, but I
> need to cut off at the other end.
> I intended to follow advice I once read here about cutting a bit
> longer and finishing with a carbide router bit.
> But I forgot that my pieces have a bull-nose front end, and a built-in
> splash-back. The router won't get close to an inside curve, and won't
> have a surface to rest on when doing the front outside curve.
> I bought a 140 tooth 7 inch blade, but now I think a circular saw will
> have the same problem. (I wanted a fine tooth blad for my 5 1/2 inch
> circuar saw, but couldn't find one. Can I put a speed control on the
> 7 1/4 inch saw to make it cut more slowly? I have one I could use.)
> Do I need to use an electric sabre saw, or a handsaw? I can clamp a
> piece of wood as a guide for the flat part in the middle, but I don't
> see how I can do a perfectly straight line for the rest.
> Should I use a sabre saw with a clamped fence for the middle and a
> hand saw for the curved parts?
> I'm so unsure. and I'd like to do this outside before it gets cold
> out. Only 65 degrees today.
> Thanks.
> Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
> me know if you have posted also.

1. A 12" radial arm saw would be perfect for this.

2. Hand saw but it require pretty good skills to cut it perfectly.

3. Next would be either router and circular saw: provide some dummy wood for
support on the outside corner and cut it from the top with the router (no
circular saw) and then cut the inside corner from the back with either
router or circular saw. The trick is to have the line meet perfectly between
the back and front. I'm always off a little.

Finish off 2. or 3. above with a belt sander or hand plan to get perfect
line.

Posted by dadiOH on October 11, 2005, 4:19 pm

mm wrote:

Do it from the back side. With a router and a straight edge guide.

--
dadiOH
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Posted by Jim in PA on October 11, 2005, 10:33 am

I did this recently & had planned to use the router ... did, in fact,
except in the places you described where it wasn't manageable (would
have been possible with a jig, maybe, and/or a longer bit designed for
such things). I ended up finishing with a sabre saw (same deal with the
sink cutout). The formica chipped in one spot, I think because I was
pushing the saw rather than letting it cut.

Anyhow, I got a nice clean edge that didn't need much fixing before
gluing the end cap on. Most of my sabre-sawing was on the back, but
when I did it on the front I protected the countertop with masking
tape.

You can put tape on the saw instead, but in my experience it wears
through more quickly.

I'm no expert, having replaced only one countertop in my life. It came
out okay. If I had paid a professional, I would have expected (and
certainly gotten) better results ... but I wouldn't have had as much
fun OR been able to convince my wife I needed more tools.

Posted by boden on October 11, 2005, 4:55 pm

Score the Formica with a sharp utility knife to prevent chipping. The
post form material is much thinner than regular Formica so you should be
able to score through the entire layer. Then flip the counter over and
cut it about 1/8" longer than desired with a saber or circular saw.
Finish to the cut line with a router, fine hand (trim) saw, plane or
belt sander. Be patient.

Boden

mm wrote:

> How to I cut excess lengtth from pre-made formica countertop.
>
> I bought two pieces at HD, with 45 degree ends, which are fine, but I
> need to cut off at the other end.
>
> I intended to follow advice I once read here about cutting a bit
> longer and finishing with a carbide router bit.
>
> But I forgot that my pieces have a bull-nose front end, and a built-in
> splash-back. The router won't get close to an inside curve, and won't
> have a surface to rest on when doing the front outside curve.
>
> I bought a 140 tooth 7 inch blade, but now I think a circular saw will
> have the same problem. (I wanted a fine tooth blad for my 5 1/2 inch
> circuar saw, but couldn't find one. Can I put a speed control on the
> 7 1/4 inch saw to make it cut more slowly? I have one I could use.)
>
> Do I need to use an electric sabre saw, or a handsaw? I can clamp a
> piece of wood as a guide for the flat part in the middle, but I don't
> see how I can do a perfectly straight line for the rest.
>
> Should I use a sabre saw with a clamped fence for the middle and a
> hand saw for the curved parts?
>
> I'm so unsure. and I'd like to do this outside before it gets cold
> out. Only 65 degrees today.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
> me know if you have posted also.

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