Avoidable mistakes

[shmokes]

I just had what I think is a great idea for a sticky post -- a thread where we post easily avoidable, but easy to make mistakes.  People who come here and are about to embark on their first project can read through this thread and say, "Oh wow . . . I could totally see myself doing that.  I'm glad that guy did it instead so I can avoid making the same mistake."

I'll start out:

[shmokes]

I just installed T-nuts into a top panel to connect it to my side panels.  Spent a bunch of time drilling and counter sinking, so that everything was all nice and flush.  I was very meticulous and careful, making sure that everything lined up perfectly.  I fastened everything down with bolts and all went perfectly until I was screwing in the last bolt with a wrench.  I was turning and turning and it started getting a little tight, but wasn't in all the way, so I kept turning and suddenly I felt it give way suddenly.  I looked at the other side and the bolt had pushed the T-nut back out, along with big chunks of wood.  There was no way I was starting over again.  I had invested many hours into this panel (two sides had to be beveled perfectly to fit the adjoining panels since it lays on an angle.  And I'd already cut a circle into the panel to install an exhaust fan.  That meant repair.  I had to mix up some wood glue and sawdust, fill in the hole, let it all dry, and re-drill/router everything again to install a new T-nut.

Moral of the story:  Check your T-nuts before you install them.  The T-nut I installed in that hole had defective threading.  The bolt was able to screw about 1/4 of the way into it, but then got stuck.  Had I taken five seconds beforehand to make sure everything screwed together fine, I could have saved myself many many hours of repair-time.

[Jdurg]

1).  When cutting along a line, ALWAYS cut along the same side of the line on every cut.  That means that when you make your measurements and draw your line, make sure to include the line in your measurement and cut so that the line remains on the board.  Don't make a cut on one side of the line, then cut the other piece on the other side of the line.  Your pieces will be annoyingly off by that marked line and will cause frustration and explatives to flow when building your cab.

2).  Check and make sure that the path from where you are building you cab to where you are putting your cab is big enough to fit the cab.  The last thing you want is to build your cabinet, then find out that the hallway it has to go through isn't big enough to turn it and get it into the room.  Same goes for doorways.

[ChadTower]

1).  When cutting along a line, ALWAYS cut along the same side of the line on every cut.  That means that when you make your measurements and draw your line, make sure to include the line in your measurement and cut so that the line remains on the board.  Don't make a cut on one side of the line, then cut the other piece on the other side of the line.  Your pieces will be annoyingly off by that marked line and will cause frustration and explatives to flow when building your cab.

Measure your pieces after you cut them to verify that they're the right size so you don't find out later on they are not.

[DaOld Man]

(1) Always make sure you allow for the thickness of the saw blade or router bit.

(2) When primering or painting, use cardboard pieces to fill the T Molding cuts.
But remove the cardboard immediately after you are finished, so it doesnt stick.
The cardboard will keep the paint or primer from clogging the T molding cuts.