My old shop lead said to always cut drawer sides a hair long, and 6 years later I finally get why

Tyler Thomas · 2026-09-25T06:30:03.311184+00:00

Back when I was starting out in a small shop in Bakersfield, the lead guy there, Larry, told me to always cut my drawer sides about 1/16 long and trim to fit instead of cutting to the exact number. I figured he was just being lazy or covering for sloppy measuring, so I kept cutting mine dead on. For a couple years it worked fine, and I quietly thought I knew better. Then last month I built a run of 8 drawers for a kitchen remodel, and the boxes were out of square by maybe 1/32 from the plywood bowing. Every single drawer I cut to exact size ended up too tight on one side, and I had to shave them all down by hand. The ones I left a little long sanded right into place. It was a dumb way to learn a lesson I got told for free in 2019. Larry, if you're out there, I owe you an apology. Anyway, curious how the rest of you handle this. Do you cut to fit or do you trust your numbers and cut exact?

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My old shop lead said to always cut drawer sides a hair long, and 6 years later I finally get why | Cabinetmakers - Talk Freely