The Framers Forum

Hi there,

I'm recently new to framing. Bought a 2nd hand Morso F and I had the blades sharpened before using. I have used it quite a bit up to this point so my first question might be easily answered!

1. Picture 1 - I'm having jagged cuts on my mouldings in the last few days, does this look like blades need to be changed?

2. Picture 3 - I occasionally split the moulding like so. I raise my rebate supports so that they're touching the lip so I'm not quite sure what I'm doing wrong....possibly trying to take too many small bites off the moulding, starting with just the lip...maybe I need to ensure that the first cut takes in the whole lip and more??

3. The Morso that I have (pic attached), what are the benefits of the newer versions? i.e. if I wanted to become a serious framer(!!), would there be good reason to upgrade? I did a framing course last April and on it, I remember the rebate supports being more user friendly.

Thanks all!

Phil

Can I ask first what you mean by "the rebate supports being more user friendly"?
Looking at the photo of your Morso, I suspect that it would benefit from a clean down. Some fine wet n dry, alcohol, ptfe lube spray after.
With so many variables, it's hard to know where to start with advice! And hard to see much from the photos.
I suspect you have one of the cheaper mouldings that can be prone to splits in the rebate. Having your supports in the correct place can help, but even then some soft mouldings can do this.
I am a big fan of new blades, yours look quite short to me. I'm going to let someone else jump in now!

Thanks Justintime! Yeah I thought it might be difficult to diagnose!

Regarding user friendly supports, the new morso we we were using on the course had some mechanism to determine what height they should be - don’t ask what that was called, I just remember it being more straightforward!

Interesting about blade size, didn’t realise there were different sizes

They look short from having been sharpened many times over many years.

Can you take a close-up in focus photo of the front of the blades where they meet in the middle?

Ok interesting…could be very old blades alright…this pic ok? Thank you!

I would echo Justin.

That Morso is filthy! I would spend a couple of hours cleaning that down, particularly the grooves that the rebate supports run in, and the rebate supports themselves.

I would then bite the bullet and buy a new set of blades. Those look near to the end of their life.

I fitted this gadget many years ago and it makes life much easier.

I had to drill and tap into the block but later Morsos have holes in to facilitate fitting this.

Like carving the Sunday Roast with a hacksaw.
Zooming in I can see the chips in the blades, the flecks of moulding where it's dragged and where it's caught between the gap in the blades.
New blades required!
I'd recommend downloading a Morso manual and carefully stripping it back a bit, cleaning parts and refitting as you go. You'll get to know the inner workings of it, which will help in the future.
Alternatively if budget is not a problem, buy a new one and leave the work to the next owner.

Thanks a million guys, really appreciate this help!

I've changed the blades....they definitely look newer - same problem with chipping. It seems to be on one moulding in particular. Any downsides to cutting upside down??

Regarding cleaning, would methylated spirits work? I'll source that PTFE spray

Thanks all!

Anything to degrease it, not sure meths will do that. Some parts will require reoiling after, check manual. These blades are really finely honed. If there's nicks out of the blade they're not going to work as expected. Invest in a brand new shiny pair of blades, simples!
If you want an idea of what you're dealing with, have a look at the dates on the blades, it's stamped on in the format 08 86 (August 1986!!) or 02 20 in my case. You can also find out the new blade spec for width and by comparing yours to that measurement you can get an indication of how much they've been abused, I mean resharpened.. If you have a Lupe, have a look at them under it, you'll be amazed actually how bad your blades are! n.b. They should meet perfectly in the middle and the cutting edge should be flawless. I'll stop now..

Cutting a prefinished moulding upside down can work, as long as the finish doesn't chip. But looking at your morso I wouldn't slide a moulding face across it for fear of what might stick to the face.

1. Some moulding is just so soft that it cuts like this no matter how good your Morso is. You can usually tell by how heavy it is. If I get moulding like this I will either cut a big bit off and then try again, or put a small piece of backing board behind the moulding (adjusting the cut length slightly), or abandoning that length and using a different length.
2. Each time you put new moulding in you need to adjust the rebate supports so they are just under the moulding but not pushing it up. If there's an issue I normally cut less rather than more. From the picture it looks as though your supports weren't supporting the moulding at all, are you sure they were underneath the rebate?
3. I have the same version of Morso as you and it was made in the 60s according to the serial number. I have been using it for 13 years and haven't had any major issues. I think you would be better buying new blades and sorting your issue first but if you win the lottery or your volume increases significantly or your knees give up then maybe you could think about a newer machine.

Amazing guys, thanks so much for all this. A new set of blades is the first port of call! Yeah I think the blades I had were crazy old now that you say it!!

Great to know about different moulding hardness - I swear I never thought framing would have so many little variables Fantastic to have this forum with so many framing legends on it!!

Can I just add a couple of observations....

The quality of moulding today is not as good as it was of yesteryear. I have have a shed full of 'bargain' mouldings
acquired over the years and occasionally I pull a bit out to actually use. Without exception is cuts on a Morso like
a dream and joins likewise.

Secondly, my Morso was purchase new in 1985 and has only ever had two sets of blades. The machine itself holds the
title of the filthiest Morso in the World. Apart from the odd squirt of WD-40 it's never had any lubrication.
It still cuts as well as the day I got it.