Bullnose Corner Bead: The Ultimate Guide

There’s something timeless about a rounded edge — they’ve added subtle charm to interior corners for about as long as we’ve been building houses, and they show no signs of stopping anytime soon. That’s why Bullnose Corner Beads remain top-sellers within the Trim-Tex catalog year after year: their soft, rounded profiles are always fashionable in residential construction. But “Bullnose” isn’t just one bead. It’s an entire family of beads. Let’s dive into each member of this diverse product family — from the wide to the narrow, the archways to the kerfed ways, the tools to the accessories — in this ultimate guide to Bullnose Corner Bead!

For larger rounded drywall corners: ¾” Large Bullnose Drywall Corner Bead

The classic ¾” Large Bullnose profile, with its boldly rounded angle, spices up your corners with some Southwestern flavor. This larger Bullnose edge is always one of the most popular designs for corner trim. Why? It adds noticeable flair to your interior without overpowering it! Plus, especially for homes with small children running around, these soft edges make for a safer recreational environment.  

¾” Large Bullnose: Flexible, Archway & Specialty Bullnose Beads

¾” Medium Bullnose is available in an archway variety for curved surfaces, which will make your interiors look like their made from adobe. For wider off-angles, there’s the ¾” Large Bullnose Splayed Corner Bead, designed for 135° edges. And then you’ve got the ¾” Large Bullnose Kerfed Bead, which can create perfectly rounded encasements around doors, windows and other details (like this ceiling medallion).

¾” Large Bullnose: Transition Pieces, Trim Options & Accessories

Trim-Tex offers tools compatible with this bead to make your installation process easier and faster. There’s a simple Finishing Tool you can use to ensure you’ve evenly applied pressure along the entire length of the bead when applying it to your corner. There’s a handy Cleaning Tool, used to easily wipe down mud along the bead’s curved nose, which minimizes your time spent sanding.

For accessories, if you need to transition a Bullnose corner to straight, 90° base trim, you’ll want to pick up some time-saving base adapters. And, finally, wherever multiple ¾” Medium Bullnose beads meet, we make a variety of molded corners for a faster finish. To make cutting this bead at an angle easier and more accurate, get yourself a ¾” Large Bullnose Miter Marker.

For a balanced curved corner bead: ⅜” Medium Bullnose (350 Bull)

The next-most popular curved corner bead is the ⅜” Medium Bullnose (formerly known as 350 Bull). With a slightly narrower radius, we love the way a corner outfitted with this bead looks — it’s stylish and subtle, but still unmistakably Bullnose. It’s an aesthetically interesting alternative to 90° corners, and like all our Bullnose beads, it will stand strong for years to come.

⅜” Medium Bullnose: Flexible, Archway & Specialty Bullnose Beads

⅜” Medium Bullnose are available in an archway form. Unlike its larger cousin, this bead is also offered as a Mud Set Bead, installed with only compound — no glue or staples required — for an unbeatable bond strength and matchless durability. Like ¾” Medium Bull, you can also get this bead in kerfed and splayed varieties.

⅜” Medium Bullnose: Transition Pieces, Trim Options & Accessories

For tools and accessories, once again, pick up a box of base adapters to transition this bead to base trim, and molded corners to connect two or three beads along an architectural detail. And, finally, Miter Markers are available to make more reliable cuts at an angle.

For tight curves: 3/16” Small Bullnose

The latest addition to the Bullnose family features a tightly rounded profile — in fact, it’s the smallest-radius Bullnose bead on the market. 3/16” Small Bullnose offers a highly contemporary look, perfectly suited for a minimalist, modern home. If you love a rounded edge but want them to be less noticeable, this is going to be your go-to bead.

3/16” Small Bullnose: Flexible, Archway Bullnose Bead

The 3/16” Small Bullnose bead is available in an archway variety, making tightly rounded edges look great along a curved surface, as you can see in the above photos.

For extra-wide, extra-rounded inside corners: 1 ½” Jumbo Bullnose

Finally, to give your inside corners corners a wide, rounded aesthetic — while standing up against dents, whacks and other daily wear-and-tear — choose the 1 ½” Jumbo Bullnose Inside Corner Bead. The giant bead brings Bullnose flair to 90° inside angles, elevating your space with softer transitions between walls.

Techniques for Installing Bullnose Corner Beads 

Installing Bullnose drywall corner beads isn’t too different from most other Trim-Tex drywall corner beads, with a few very important distinctions. Let’s dig into how to install these curved classics.

Hanging drywall for Bullnose corner beads

Before you begin installing a Bullnose corner bead, you’ll first have to make sure your drywall is hung with the proper setback. The wider the radius, the further apart your drywall sheets should be hung. Use the above image as a cheat sheet for the proper setbacks for each Bullnose size — these are also found in the Trim-Tex catalog.

Cutting Bullnose corner bead

Cutting Bullnose corner beads, given their radius edges, can be more challenging than a straight 90° corner. This is especially true if you need to cut them at an angle, like if you need to wrap multiple beads around a window or entryway. 

To help you with this challenge, we offer Miter Markers custom-built for ¾” Large and ⅜” Medium Bullnose profiles — no miter saw required. Just hold the Miter Marker against the bead and mark your angle to make perfect cuts every time with nothing more than a pair of snips.

Installing Bullnose corner bead

If you’re using base adapters to transition to baseboards, install these first (as pictured above), with two coats of 847 Spray Adhesive and ½” staples; apply at least two per side.

Coat your corner and/or your bead with two coats of 847 Spray Adhesive. Wait for that to get tacky, then press your Bullnose corner bead into place. Apply pressure evenly along the bead’s nose and mud legs, perhaps using a Bullnose finishing tool to help. Then staple, using ½” staples, every 6-8” down the mud legs.

Now apply your first coat of joint compound. (You may need to use extra mud here, especially with an arch Bullnose corner bead, leaving about a ¼” hump, which will sand down to around ⅛”.) Use a Bullnose cleaning tool to easily wipe mud evenly along the bead’s nose. Once that’s dried, you can apply your second coat (and third, depending on your desired level of drywall finish) and sand.

Browse the Full Line of Trim-Tex Bullnose Products

Within the Bullnose family of beads, there’s a rounded edge for every kind of application, from your basic corners to your archways to your finer architectural details. Find your curved bead of choice by checking out the full line of Trim-Tex Bullnose products here — or just get your own free copy of the Trim-Tex catalog! Hit the button below to get started.