How To Fit Cathedral Beams | Installation Tips

This video is a tutorial on how to fit cathedral ceiling side beams to a ceiling. We cover how to cut the correct angles, cutting the beams to the exact length, and scribing the beams to the ceiling. Lots of tips and tricks along the way.

00:00 - Intro - Fitting Cathedral Beams
00:44 - Cut a Template Piece
01:53 - Fitting the First Piece - Note Angles and Length
06:52 - My thoughts About Scaffolding Setups
08:32 - Mark and Cut the Beam to Length
13:38 - Understanding the Two Cut Process: Cut to Length and Scribe Cut
14:16 - Prep for Scribing Process: Apply Tape
14:54 - Test Fit and Tack in Place
17:06 - Cut the Scribe Line
20:55 - Make the Scribe Cut
26:56 - Install the Beam
30:54 - My Thoughts about a Helper
32:19 - Scribing to Match Beam Margins: For Larger Gaps
36:06 - Outro

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[crashkg]

You're a great teacher. You always have the most efficient, fast, and most sensible, way of doing things.Thank you for your videos.

[hustlinghard]

I've always heard "if you want to know the easiest way to get something done ask a lazy person" but it is actually "ask a person that works by himself". You have mastered the working by yourself method. Amazingly well done!!

[GlenKV]

Thanks Spencer we would have no been able to do this box beam install without your help.

[jaredengberg]

wow this is so much better than every other beam video, by a mile.

[hampyonce]

You must be a homebuilder's best friend. Amazingly skilled.

[RandyPlayer-kl]

I've trimmed new houses for 20 years in Long Island, NY by myself just like you and always used 2-1/2" nails on base moldings and never hit anything. Enjoy the channel!

[sergiordz]

Coming from a 30 year old professional I hope I can one day execute my projects as well as you do. A lot of value in these videos thank you!

[hansangb]

@28:00 Wow. CRISPY! Your attention to detail is second to none!

[Calinando]

I just got my 1st big job of white oak beams and this help's me alot. I truly appreciate it brother. Thank you so much for the videos

[albertklassen]

Thanks for the video. Great help. I use a smaller template. About 3’ long, one for the bottom and one for the top. I scribe each side separately because it’s easier to deal with one board than an entire beam especially if it’s wider. I like your idea of 15 degrees cutback and then using the block plane. I also further use my belt sander to get it even finer. The tape scriber method I’ve never seen before. Great idea.

[charliemckay]

Your ability to visualize what you are doing is exceptional making finding solutions a quick trip.

[darrenhutchinson]

Take a bow agin, mate, perfection comes to people that deserving it, you do

[russmartin]

You are the man. I can't comprehend doing that job alone. Anyway, I am not a fan of adding numbers to the template. I would rather have an exact template that I do not need to do math with. All you need to do is put a board up there, square on each end. Then use your adjustable angle finder, and cut a thin piece of wood at the ange of the ceiling and the wall. Do the same for the other end. Tack your angle cuts to the board when they are up against the wall or box beam. You have an exact emplate. My father used to use a two stick sliding ruler device he made from two long 1X2 maple strips, held together with thin brass turn buckles he made. He could put that thing between walls, or whatever, slide it out until they touched, tighten it up, and plop it on a board and have the perfect dimension. No laser measuring device necessary. This is a modification of that idea. Whenever you do math, you are introducing a place you can make a mistake.

[jastelf]

Absolute gold. Thank you. Ordered the depth gauge and razor scribe.

[wade]

I sure hope the owner's of the homes you work on watch your videos so they can see the attention to detail that you put into your work. Another great training video. Thanks again.

[vinceblanchard]

A helper and myself just finished up roughly 300 linear feet of ceiling beam. After thinking about an easy way to measure the rafter beams we came up with exactly the same way you measured yours, worked flawlessly.

[G.I.JeffsWorkbench]

Great work! As always, thanks for talking thru the process without BS or showmanship. Thanks too for including the link to the gap measuring wedge. This should be much faster for me than carrying a piuch full of various sizes of handishims. Suggestion for your lungs when it’s impractical to use dust extraction: Stealth mask. Compact, fits close to your face, comfortable to wear all day, won’t fog your glasses, replacement filters.

[mmmdesignllc]

Id like to reiterate what others have said here. Your videos have become very good. Thanks

[paulramirez]

Looks great Spencer! You're a talented craftsman AND teacher.

[adamweinstein]

I was yelling at the screen on that first cut with the circular saw to reset the depth. Really appreciate the detailed explanation and the CRISPY result. Nice work.