That moment a retired cabinetmaker pointed out my door reveals

I was fitting a set of shaker doors for a kitchen remodel in Springfield last Tuesday. An older guy watched me for a bit, then tapped me on the shoulder and said "Son, your reveals are off by a hair on the bottom right." I checked with my caliper and he was dead on. He showed me how to hold the door against the frame differently to check before drilling hinges. I must have hung fifty doors before that day and never caught this habit. Has anyone else had a random tip from an old timer that saved them hours of rework?

3 comments

3 Comments

julia_lee1mo agoTop Commenter

Oh man, I actually gotta disagree with this one! I've had way too many old timers give me bad advice that I had to undo later. That cabinetmaker might have been right about the reveal, but I've had retired guys tell me to use glue on things that should never have glue, or to skip using a level because "you can just eye it." One old electrician told me to twist wires clockwise instead of using wagos and I spent an afternoon fixing shorts. Sometimes they're just stuck in their ways from 40 years ago when materials and tools were totally different. I'd rather trust my caliper and my own method than take random advice from someone who hasn't hung a door since Reagan was president.

adam_thompson532mo ago

Seventy year old plumber saved me from buying the wrong trap once.

the_tessa2mo ago

Did that old timer teach you anything about the trap or was he just easier to trust than the kid at the hardware store?