millworkman, I still don't know if they're split or not. The test of how easy it is to budge the door stop, I'm not going to do, because I don't want to replace anything else about the doors, or even repaint them. The split-jamb casings are supposedly attached with lots of staples at the factory, and these certainly do have the staples. I did cut through the paint at the casing/sheetrock line, as well as the casing/jamb, but that didn't always help...because when the chisel applied force to pry the pieces apart, it didn't always apply force where I scored the paint. In those cases, the alkyd paint pulled off some of the wall paint in the surrounding area, even though I had scored it where I thought the joint was (under all that paint). I do know that no DIYers or renters were ever here...this workmanship was done by the builder. The builder is long out of business, built a bunch of homes and condos for our community in SoCal. A friend did put a bunch of coats of this alkyd paint on the doors and casings about 10 years later. weedyacres, I did consider cutting out the bottom and putting in a plinth. I also considered building up the width and depth by adding another piece on the outside of all the casing. But, I just think that a larger, flat, plain casing is the look I'm going for. So I'm gonna rip 'em all out, as I redo the flooring in each room. EngineerChic, I have a cheapie Harbor Freight multi-tool I haven't used yet, but I've been watching videos on what the different blades will do, and I think it will come in handy for my remodel. I've never done more than tap in a picture nail before this. That is really thick stock your contractor is suggesting! I was thinking 1/2" or so for base, 5/8" for casing so it's a little deeper than the base. I need some samples to see if this looks good. It seems to be hard to find this plain style of molding around here. I found a 5.5" high base that's only slightly rounded on the edge (do NOT want bullnose), but I haven't found any casing that's about 4" wide and a little more than 1/2" thick...

I think you can and should do the taller baseboard molding. It will look better than small. We are doing ours right now too and I have the same issue. I am actually doing a 5”. baseboard.

I would have no problem with the base you want to use being paired with the door casings that you have. The bevel on the base is complimentary to the door casings. Remember: some homes have a certain character. Leaving a bit of that character in place while updating other areas is perfectly fine. The Europeans do it all the time. Apartments in Paris, London, Berlin, Rome, Milan, etc all have these types of concerns. They have updated elements (like kitchens and flooring) while other parts are simply left alone (like doors and casings). Go ahead and do what you are planning on doing. If it looks good to you, then you know you are fine. If you feel an eternal itch to change the door casings (like after a year or two) then go ahead and change them out. You have to deal with the consequences regardless. I would push through your planned renovations and ignore what you cannot fix/change. I can guarantee that in 6 months you won't even remember you questioned the look.

I have a 1910 house that had original Shaker cabinets yet had baseboards even curvier than the ones you show. I think it depends on the style of the house--mine is Renaissance Revival, so all the moldings have a bit of a neoclassical flair. I'd look at the age and style of the house and go from there.