Shaving off 2mm of Kitchen Countertop

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davidb2002

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I'm needing to shave off about 2mm off the side of a kitchen countertop to allow enough space for a new freestanding 50cm wide electric cooker.

The end caps are metal, screw-in ones which are easily removed and put back on. The 2mm only needs to be removed from around mid way and onto the back. I guess the original fitters didn't measure things up right.

I don't own (or used) any heavy power saws, but I do have a copule of hand saws I've used for other jobs.

What are some considerations/suggestions on the best way to approach this? 2mm is such a small amount to come off and I'm not sure if it will end up damaging the laminate country top some how? I don't want to have a go with a hand saw to then totally ruin my kitchen.

Thanks in advance!
 
davidb2002 said:
I'm needing to shave off about 2mm off the side of a kitchen countertop to allow enough space for a new freestanding 50cm wide electric cooker.

The end caps are metal, screw-in ones which are easily removed and put back on. The 2mm only needs to be removed from around mid way and onto the back. I guess the original fitters didn't measure things up right.

I don't own (or used) any heavy power saws, but I do have a copule of hand saws I've used for other jobs.

What are some considerations/suggestions on the best way to approach this? 2mm is such a small amount to come off and I'm not sure if it will end up damaging the laminate country top some how? I don't want to have a go with a hand saw to then totally ruin my kitchen.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Best solution is to either hire a 1/2 inch router, or maybe get someone with said router to do it.

But it's a faff coz the tops have to come off, so you could find and extra 2mm by chasing out walls, and moving the tops in a bit.
 
Power plane will do it in 1-2 passes .You need 10mm at least , gap either side of oven .
 
Not easily doable with any hand tool alone IMHO, especially as the worktop is already in situ and presumably difficult to pull out (meaning that whatever power tool you use will only do 80 to 85% of the cut)

The obvious choice (to my mind) would be a circular saw with a fine tooth blade, which will give you about 85% of the cut, then something like a Surform to finish the cut off (fortunately metal cappings hide a multitude of sins, except at the very front edge). Just make sure that before starting any cutting you score the cut line with a sharp Stanley knife and a straight edge as this will contain much of the chipping out of the laminate at the edge which could otherwise occur.
 
are the tops chipped??
if not irn on edging will give you perhaps 1.5-2mm each side over a metal strip
 
Assuming that's the case, but in my experience you aren't often going to find anyone who's put metal caps over a pristine edge - that is just too much effort and time for zero return. Metal edges are designed to cover imperfect edges in price work
 
It's about time someone invented a small oscillating bladed power tool.
 
If you have a fire extinguisher handy and don't mind the ensuing dust cloud you could try an angle grinder.:)
 
davidb2002 said:
I'm needing to shave off about 2mm off the side of a kitchen countertop to allow enough space for a new freestanding 50cm wide electric cooker.

The end caps are metal, screw-in ones which are easily removed and put back on. The 2mm only needs to be removed from around mid way and onto the back. I guess the original fitters didn't measure things up right.

I don't own (or used) any heavy power saws, but I do have a copule of hand saws I've used for other jobs.

What are some considerations/suggestions on the best way to approach this? 2mm is such a small amount to come off and I'm not sure if it will end up damaging the laminate country top some how? I don't want to have a go with a hand saw to then totally ruin my kitchen.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
We did something like that with a fine toothed hand saw. It took ages but it worked. That won't work with 2mm to cut, the saw would pop out too much.

You can cut small amounts off with a jigsaw and a straight edge clamped in place as a guide, but the blade may wander a bit (to either side) which means you might not get a clean 90° cut. A fine toothed, deep (from teeth to the back edge) blade will cut the straightest line.

If you've got a router then that might be suitable, again with a guide clamped in place.
 
Which ever method used, almost no power tool, other than a multitool, will be able to finish the cut into the wall as the base of the tool always interferes. Jigsaw with large tooth blades are more prone to chipping out the edge of the laminate than those with small teeth
 
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For 2mm I'd use a belt sander. They run with the belt towards the user so should keep a clean edge on the top of the laminate. It would probably get close enough to the wall for the oven to slide in too.
 
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