Custom Decorative Corbels pt.2

So, we decided to trace and build them in-house. That is how we did the majority of the fabricating on this project although we had help from Burkart’s Millworks and a few others.

Making the corbel templates

First we made a cutout sample of a corbel still in place and used that to trace our templates. Second, we cut the two outer pieces for all 32 corbels from 1×16 Miratec trim boards. To achieve matched pieces, we clamped two pcs of the Miratec together, this method yielded book-end pairs.

A rescued original corbel with the bookend templates

Once all the outer pieces were cut, we began cutting the centerpieces. We  made a template for the centers because the centerpiece of each corbel was recessed 5/8″  on the lower face of the corbel. To make this piece we used treated 2×12.

The three pieces were then sanded using an oscillating spindle sander and a table sander to clean the profiles for assembly. They were then adhered together using OSI polyurethane adhesive and galvanized finish nails. The adhesive was over-applied at the seams and the pieces were tightly clamped with vise clamps to press some of the glue out. The excess was wiped away and acts as a sealant to prevent water from getting between the pieces.

Finally, the assembled corbels were given a fine-grit sanding and pocket holes – with plugs (drilled from like materials using a plug-cutter) were drilled for screws to attach the corbels. The pieces were the primed twice and painted twice. I do not recall the primer used but the paint was Sherwin-Williams Duration exterior paint. The paint has a lifetime warranty and does not require priming (although we usually do). Also, this paint is bombproof! I do not often tout painting products ( due to the risk of backing a product that turns out not to work 15 years later) but this is fantastic paint (and at fifty bucks a gallon it should be).

The pieces were then transported to the site and installed using DeckMate 3.5″ screws and the plugs were inserted. Then came the touch-up painting and standing back to admire…

The final product installed - a weather-resistant French Corbel

And the project result was…

The completed porch - Custom from top to bottom