To fit the other end of the piece I duplicated the process, with the added detail of butting the already coped end against the rabbet of its joining piece. In practice it helps to cut out the parts a bit long at first, see how they fit, and shorten them if necessary by repeating the flush trim and cope steps with the part in the cope blocks as before, but protruding just a hair so that it is shortened by the flush trim and cope cuts.

Note that the cope blocks serve several purposes. They give you something to attach the coping template to. They back up the cope cut so the sticking won't tear. They give you something large to grab as you cut the piece on the router tables. And, they provide the surface that the coping cutter bearing rides on as it makes the cut into and out of the part. This last point is critical because if the cope blocks aren’t wide enough in the area that gets flush trimmed, the outer edges of the sticking will not be cut along the intended line. This will make gaps right where they will be seen, defeating the whole purpose.

PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

Because of slightly warped stock, the sticking thickness on some of my parts varied as the heights of the sticking and rabbeting passes varied. Thicker sticking means the cope won't fit. You can widen a tight cope by chiseling away a thin layer along the flat surface of the coped profile that contacts beneath the sticking in the rabbet.

The cope blocks are supposed to back up the cope cut as it is made, but if they are at all loose or your wood is brittle you will still get tearout, again, right where it is seen. If this is a problem put masking tape on the sticking at the point of the cope, so that the fit against the cope block is very tight at this point. You want to pinch the wood at the point where the cope cutter comes out of the cut on the sticking and into the cope block. Focus on the pinch points and you’ll avoid tearout.

Note that it is hard to locate parts exactly where they are supposed to be on the drawing. But note also that it is more important that each part meets joining pieces tightly rather than being located exactly. Because the shapes are irregular you have a fair fudge factor in locating parts. The drawing is a general reference, the fit of copes is what must be precise.

If your sticking templates are from free-drawn lines rather than specific radii, make coping templates by scribing a template directly from the line of the rabbet to which parts will join. Band saw the template, and hand sand to fit the rabbet. A small drum sander in a drill press is real handy here. How well the template fits the rabbet determines how well the part will fit. Note also that the part will fit in only one spot, you can't slide it along the curve as you can with a specific radius. You have less fudge factor with free-drawn lines.

The small parts are too small to join with dowels or tenons. The odd angles would further complicate any such attempt. But, the copes will keep the parts locked in place. Glue the parts in, or use epoxy if you wish, but remember that cleaning squeezed out epoxy from little corners is very difficult, whereas hot water and a stiff brush get glue out in a hurry.

Cut glass to fit the rabbets, and hold it in with glazing compound or silicon caulk. The latter holds like glue and will contribute to the overall strength of the small and weak joints of the internal components. Glass in such doors becomes a structural element to a certain extent. The four main corner joints are what hold the outer frame parts, but the glass can play a significant role holding together small wood internal parts and you might as well take advantage of that with caulk that works like a glue.

If you choose to make your parts with a panel groove instead of a glass rabbet, dry assemble the door and scribe templates for your panels by tracing to the arris of the sticking and part faces. This line is the same as the bottom of the rabbet, and shows the shape that the panels must be. Cut your panels slightly smaller than these lines, raise them if you wish, and install them when you glue up the frame.

But it is best not to glue up all these small internal parts in one large glue up. Glue each part in place as it is made, before you fit the next part to the first. This is because you can easily change the location of one part during the glue up, which will mess up the fit of the next part which rides against the first. If you make panels, though, this means making and gluing each panel in place as the parts that surround it are finished. If you have a lot of small internal parts with panels, this is really the only way to go to ensure that everything will be well aligned. With glass, you wait to cut and fit the glass until the whole door is fitted and done. Don't cut your glass according to your drawing, because the final fit of parts will vary from the exact locations of parts shown on the drawing. Use the finished door to trace templates on paper, or directly onto the glass, for cutting.

Resources For Doing Curved Cope And Stick Work