I finally stopped scribing baseboard with a bevel gauge wrong

After 5 years of fighting gaps on old plaster walls, I realized I was holding the gauge at the wrong angle. I'd always tilt it to match the wall slope but the base board would end up short by like 1/8 inch. Switched to using a contour gauge last month on a 1920s house in Buffalo and the first piece fit perfect. Has anyone else dealt with this or found a better way to handle wavy walls?

2 comments

2 Comments

lee_butler1mo ago

Nah man a contour gauge is great but you still gotta watch your angle on old plaster.

thea_chen1mo ago

Guarantee I'd mess up the angle AND drop the gauge on my foot in the same motion. I swear old plaster has a mind of its own, like it WANTS to chip off in weird chunks just to mess with you. Last time I tried to patch a spot in my hallway, I ended up with a lump that looks like a half-deflated balloon. Somehow the contour gauge just confirmed how BADLY I was failing at matching the original texture. Honestly, I think my house is just mocking me at this point.