I sometimes work alone, which means I’m always devising ways of holding up the other end of a board. When it comes to crown molding, I’ve occasionally used a l0d finish nail to position approximately the far end of the molding while I maneuver the other end into place. This works okay, but not great. Sometimes the molding slips off the nail, and I’m always left with another nail hole to patch.
I solved this problem with the molding cradle that’s shown in the drawing. The cradle starts with a 24-in. by 6-in. by 1/2-in. piece of scrap plywood. I affixed a telescoping tent pole to the plywood, using an old push-broom bracket to make the connection. A strip of wood edging along the top of the plywood and a layer of carpet pad were the last touches I added to thecradle. Now I can quickly adjust the cradle up and down depending on the height of the ceiling, and I don’t have to worry about damaging the walls. By the way, I’m sure a painter’s telescoping roller handle would work just as well as my tent pole.
—Charles T. O’Neill, Cranford, NJ
Edited and Illustrated by Charles Miller
From Fine Homebuilding #119
