cutting oak plinth

[ETAF]

i had a read of https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/i-need-a-jigsaw-blade-to-cut-curves-through-65mm-oak.257877/
I'm hoping to get a piece of oak, to make into a plinth for a toilet to stand on.
the thickness will be around 44mm
but the OH wants the timber to follow the profile from top - seat to floor - which has a slight taper - gors from 360mm at the seat down to 255mm at the floor part of toilet and so she would like that profile to continue
heres an example of the toilet i have - not sure on the exact one but looks the same

Arezzo Matt White Rimless Back to Wall Toilet + Soft Close Seat | Victorian Plumbing UK

SHOP the Arezzo Matt White Rimless Back to Wall Toilet + Soft Close Seat at Victorian Plumbing UK

www.victorianplumbing.co.uk

ours came from a local bathroom store, as you can see it tapers from the top and curved around the length

I have a Jigsaw - Dewalt cordless DEWALT DCS331N, i also have an old Bosch corded jigsaw

I dont have a bandsaw

I wondered
a) if the jigsaw would cut 44mm oak ok and if so
b) best blades for the job , i suspect some fine tooth

I have some T101 AOF

Error 410 | Screwfix

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and possibly finish of with a spokeshave which i also have - just need to sharpen the blade on that

all suggestions welcome
Thanks

The wood is looking very expensive at the moment £100's so i have another question in different forum about sourcing that - but spending a few quid on a decent blade is not a problem

not sure she will agree to a bandsaw or if the table tilts to get the angle - my brother has one - but he is 100miles away - i may be able to go there and see what thats like - no idea what blade he will have - the normal Axminster craft series i think, called workshop now
I'll have to check the throat depth on the one he got , I think it was an ex demo at around £500 mark

 

[motorbiking]

I'm really struggling to understand the role of the plinth. You have a floor standing back to wall loo, so if you mount that on anything wont it miss align with the pipes? Or is this to cover the concealed cistern?

I'd be using a battery small blade circular saw with a fine tooth failing that a hand saw.

 

[opps]

I'm really struggling to understand the role of the plinth. You have a floor standing back to wall loo, so if you mount that on anything wont it miss align with the pipes? Or is this to cover the concealed cistern?

I'd be using a battery small blade circular saw with a fine tooth failing that a hand saw.

My understanding is that he needs to raise the height of the pan. If so, he wont be able to use a circular saw.

 

[ETAF]

My understanding is that he needs to raise the height of the pan. If so, he wont be able to use a circular saw.

sorry - yes , the floor had been removed and tiled and originally the toilet was on a small plinth plywood - so i said will the toilet still work - and was told yes
BUT
because the floor is lower - to alighn with the rest of the house hallway and then plinth removed - the height difference is probably around the 45cm mark ish
so since replacement 2019 its been a problem

Looking i see that the waste is going uphill , and i measured how much i could modify and move the cistern up - which is 45mm

so now the toilet needs to be OFF the floor by 45mm , now the waste has a very slight fall - and lots of testing today with the toilet on a couple of pieces of wood - its working brilliantly

i have taken a photo to show how it is right now

Cistern raised - so the flush pipe still aligns
The waste has a small portion of flexible going into a horizontal stiff plastic into a stack - and now the toilet has been lifted up , it nolonger is going uphill from the toilet outlet up to the solid pipe work
And as i say its NOW Working - been trying all day , and no paper left in basin

hope that helps what i'm trying to do

 

[foxhole]

Use a proper toilet plinth will look much better.

AKW Toilet Plinth 50mm

Raise the height of your existing toilet 50mm with our toilet plinth. Easy to fit to universal toilet sizes. Free delivery

www.wetroomsdirect.net

 

[ETAF]

thanks for that - i looked at those a while ago , not sure it will look any good with the footprint of my toilet , i would have to look to see if i can get another 5mm as i have the cistern touching the worktop now
but thanks

 

[opps]

I have some T101 AOF

Error 410 | Screwfix

Thousands of products at low trade prices | FREE next day delivery available | 30 day money back guarantee on all orders.

www.screwfix.com

The spec for the blade says a material thickness of 15mm...

I am guessing that you need someone like @JobAndKnock to comment.

Without bandsaw, If I had to do it I would use a jigsaw and over cut it slightly and then spend ages (and ages) with my belt sander to remove the excess. It would be far from perfect but would look "acceptable" .

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Forget trying to cut this with a your jigsaw - unless you happen to own a Mafell P1cc (at £500+) you don't stand a chance of the blade not wandering in the cut and ruining the oak - it's for trade jobs like this that I bought my P1cc, but it's a dear do for a one off (I have a Bosch GST160BCE, a Makita DJV181 and also a DJV182, and none of them could do this job particularly well, hence the comments). Also those T101AOF blades are designed for very tight radii in thin materials (note the maximum depth of cut - 15 to 20mm) so they won't cut 44mm thick stuff. For that you need a T244D blade, but don't expect a smooth finish off the blade as there will be a lot of sanding to do (see below for the technique)

A bandsaw will do the task, but will leave you with a finish which is as rough as a bear's derriere that you'll need to either rasp and sand flat or rout to a flat finish. Small bandsaws can struggle in 2in oak - something like a 14in saw will be OK, but I doubt a 6in LiDL special will be up to much. If you do go the bandsaw route throw away the blade the saw comes with and but a better quality blade with the correct width (for the radius) and pitch for the job. So on it's own a bandsaw isn't the tool to get, either.

I think you'd be better off making up a plywood template then cutting the oak slightly oversize (2 to 3mm) with a jigsaw and routing it with a 1/2in router and a bearing guided template bit. This will produce a square edge cut. but the profile at the top will be bang on. The undercutting to get the angle can be done by using a 12in disc sander with the table tilted to the appropriate angle - the top edge forms your visual reference to work to. Start with a P40 grit disc and only switch to a P100 or P120 when you are withing a millimetre or two of the top edge. Don't underestimate how difficult this will be

In a big workshop this is a simple job to run on a big bandsaw, then clean-up on a 16in or 24in disc sander - it's a lot harder without such large equipment. You might be better just making up a template and getting a cabinetmaking shop or shopfitting joiners to do the work for you

I'd also question the choice of oak - the bolts holding the pan down are plated steel, not stainless, so over time the combination of a room which is wet will result in staining (most probably black). Oak and steel in anywhere that can get wet are a dreadful combination, so you'll need to go to town with sealing it. I also wonder if you are aware that most hardwoods are sold as sawn timbers and not planed - so you may need to look around a bit to find someone who'll be able to supply you, such as British Hardwoods in Keighley

 

[opps]

I'd also question the choice of oak - the bolts holding the pan down are plated steel, not stainless, so over time the combination of a room which is wet will result in staining (most probably black). Oak and steel in anywhere that can get wet are a dreadful combination. Also wondereing if you are aware that most hardwoods are sold as sawn timbers and not planed - so you may need to look around a bit to find someone who'll be able to supply you, such as British Hardwoods in Keighley

I assume that the pan has screws that enter horizontally and then screws in to those cheese wedge thingies which are screwed to the floor (or in this case- the plinth).

 

[ETAF]

thanks for the reply

very interesting comments

You might be better just making up a template and getting a cabinetmaking shop or shopfitting joiners to do the work for you

i'll look into that possibility, see what i have locally

slightly oversize (2 to 3mm) with a jigsaw and routing it with a 1/2in router and a bearing guided template bit - the problem is that the angles you can cut this way are limited to the cutters which are available - most cutters are straight. A 12in disc sander can then be used to form the angled edge you need

I do have a 1/2 router - Dewalt 625
and a large choice of trend bits , from a kit

the bolts for the pan - go sideways - only 2 - not sure what they are , i think stainless as they where spotless on removing - but i will have to make up a block of wood to screw into - as they are just small plastic brackets, screwed into the floor - not looked at those yet

Also wondereing if you are aware that most hardwoods are sold as sawn timbers and not planed - so you may need to look around a bit to find someone who'll be able to supply you,

A few of the yards i spoke to this afternoon, quoted planned material although not wide enough , had a quote today - 44x244 1m @eye watering £311
but a sawmill is looking into it for me, and then have a company that plane down , around the £50 mark , at least that was a telephone estimate - he first quoted for Green oak (£38), but revised up slightly and looking to see what they have aged

 

[ETAF]

I assume that the pan has screws that enter horizontally and then screws in to those cheese wedge thingies which are screwed to the floor (or in this case- the plinth).

yep, into some plastic thing - which i will make up something to fix onto the inside of plinth

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 174758]

A lot of pan screws go down vertically through holes in the base of the pottery, so the plinth would need to be drilled for them and longer screws sourced

 

[ETAF]

Thanks @opps , i should have noticed the 15mm
T 301 CDF
but looking at https://www.bosch-professional.com/gb/en/t-244-d-speed-for-wood-jigsaw-blades-2867298-ocs-ac/ as mentioned by jobandknock - for curves

 

[ETAF]

A lot of pan screws go down vertically through holes in the base of the pottery, so the plinth would need to be drilled for them and longer screws sourced

yes the pan i put in cloakroom had 4 going vertically - but these comfort height pans have 2 horizontally into a plastic thing

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I do have a 1/2 router - Dewalt 625
and a large choice of trend bits , from a kit

Right size of router but I've never seen a kit with one of these:

A top bearing only or a bottom bearing only trimmer could also do the job, but you need to look for 19 to 25mm diameter - far safer than trying to do this with a 12mm diameter cutter.

the bolts for the pan - go sideways - only 2 - not sure what they are , i think stainless as they where spotless on removing - but i will have to make up a block of wood to screw into - as they are just small plastic brackets, screwed into the floor - not looked at those yet

Not seen them like that before. TBH most of the stuff I see these days is hung off a frame in the wall, so we have to work with the plumbers to give them an appropriate IPS framework

A few of the yards i spoke to this afternoon, quoted planned material although not wide enough , had a quote today - 44x244 1m @eye watering £311
but a sawmill is looking into it for me, and then have a company that plane down , around the £50 mark , at least that was a telephone estimate - he first quoted for Green oak (£38), but revised up slightly and looking to see what they have aged

"Aged"? You mean dried. If your house is centrally heated you really do need to look at kiln dried - air dried at 16% MC is not going to work - you are looking for 10 to 12% MC (moisture content)