The Framers Forum

I have acquired a batch of a narrow hockey stick moulding that is wood but covered in a silver aluminum. I have tried to mitre it on my Morso but it crushes the aluminum therefore making it difficult to use as a viable moulding for a frame. Are there ways or means by which I could cut/mitre this stock to make frames or should I dump it?

I don't know why these mouldings are still sold; I'd definitely dump it!

You could use a saw, could be manual and a real pain, could be electric single mitre and not much less of a pain or could be electric/pneumatic double mitre and really expensive, you'd still end up with a really naff frame though.

Thanks I thought that might be the case. Never mind more room for something better.

Peel off the ally and you have a nice wood moulding to stain/paint/whatever.

Otherwise do what Robo suggests and sling it. If it were square you can mitre it upside-down. Hockey stick is not worth the hassle.

I know lots of framers struggle with it, but we have been using aluminium wrap (mostly Mainline 200-0065) without problems for years, perhaps we have been lucky in our choice of profiles.

Do they include rounded profiles?

Hi

Lion seem to have reintroduced these but in a flat version. I managed to use but only with very sharp blades and multiple small bites! Have told lion I will not use again or will order as chop if customer must have. The samples are no longer on show however!

I remember when these were first brought out......real pain then and I guess they still are. Only had to look at a length and it would mark and nowadays looks so dated.

At the time they were a novel metal finish for the framer before Neilsen's and others existed.

TCT saw blades will do the job but not be perfect.

Dead sharp hollow ground morso blades needed and it will take the edge off them very quickly.

Far better to use a company like Niesen's for a stylish and smart finish .....that's what todays customer is looking for.

I remember a lady bringing in an ally wrapped frame - polished silver, that looked very tatty. She asked me if I could 'touch it up'. On closer examination I realised that who ever had made it had left the plastic coating on. So I took it in the workshop, peeled off the plastic and handed a pristine, gleaming frame back to her. She was very pleased.

Here is an aluminium wrapped frame that we completed this morning.

We always remove the rebate burr with a Stanley knife and have never noticed any additional blunting effect either on knife or Morso blade, we are not big users though. Maybe someone cutting a lot of this moulding would see a difference in blade life compared to wood - we do one or two aluminium wrap frames a month, though from time to time we have had orders for as many as a dozen.
The Morso blades that this frame was cut with have been in constant use for nearly three months.