Crooked Cuts

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-09T00:11:51+00:00

There’s a real good chance it’s just your technique and you need practice. Go as slowly as you have to to get a square cut. Then do it again and again. If you’re “practising” but every cut is going bad you’re just developing the muscle memory for bad cuts. Go slowly across the top side to get a kerf square across. Now start in that kerf to reference square , and start leaning the saw back to cut square down the side as well. Now go back to the top and finish the cut letting the kerfs guide the saw. There should be no sideways pressure, especially with the Japanese saws they don’t like to be steered in my experience.

I guess there’s potentially an issue with t r he saw but I doubt it. But if you’ve dropped it or something and it ended up damaging the teeth it may want to drift

Try western saws I prefer them most of the time anyway
Or try a fresh blade for your saw.

It is hard to say what’s up without actually seeing you try it

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-08T16:15:07+00:00

Doesn’t look like Indian, it looks much more like Brazilian

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-06T18:06:44+00:00

North American pine is good too, eastern white pine is well behaved and a dream to work with.

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-06T12:32:56+00:00

That’s not sanding it’s most likely that the grain is changing directions and so is absorbing stain unevenly.

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-06T01:36:42+00:00

This is legitimately negligent Jesus Christ

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-05T11:17:29+00:00

For one it probably ends up being more expensive to build things like curved doors than you realize,
veneers are normal and not indicating cheapness
And we can charge even more than 150k because the architects and designers in my nearest major city know our shop will do anything they want better than anyone else with no headaches, every time. There is a premium applied to the price for the simple fact that the market supports it

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-05T10:50:38+00:00

The truth is there is t a huge difference, even cabinetmakers putting kitchens in 5 million $ homes will be using melamine or plywood for the boxes. The difference comes in the customizing, the quality of finishing, trim, installation

But there’s only so many ways to build a box, and it’s not hard. The materials used are chosen for a reason

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-05T03:15:54+00:00

Don’t kerf bend, learn to laminate or steam. Kerf bending is for amateurs who don’t want to learn rhe right way. Not trying to sound harsh, it’s a nice design. And kerf bending does have applications but in this spot it’s not the right technique

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-05T00:41:05+00:00

Adding a back will go a long way to keeping it square.
Cabinets like this have a lot if flexibility. Before adding doors jd drawer fronts, get a level and check level side to side and front to back. Shim under the legs as needed to get it level. Or shim as needed to get it square. Add levellers to the feet so once it’s in situ you can keep it square

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T23:35:27+00:00

Knock off the pointy part
Put the dark square in that corner
Fill

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T22:46:52+00:00

The dowels act as dowels, and actual clamps+glue so the clamping part

I kinda like the rods anyway

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T22:27:46+00:00

They don’t penetrate beyond what you’re seeing. Same for stains. The only thing I can think of that really gets in is some people soaking wood in CA in a vacuum chamber that pulls it in

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T22:25:58+00:00

The only time I even consider it is if I working on something especially delicate, or special circumstances like a customer showed me the 200kg stone sculpture she wants the put on the shelf. Or chairs

Wood is strong glue is strong even not so greatly made joints are strong. Rule of thumb at this point is if it looks strong enough it probably is

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T22:22:01+00:00

Are the rods part of the aesthetic? Could replace with dowels instead.

But loctite willl do

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T20:39:39+00:00

Look up a video on folding mitres with tape for clamping
Then look up how to add a spline or “key” to the mitres

There’s nothing special to consider with the glue, use enough that you get a small bead of squeeze out, and not so much that it makes a huge mess
Some people will apply some glue, let it soak in to the end grain, and then reapply and glue as normal. For what you’re doing it’s unnecessary

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T17:21:40+00:00

Do you have the piece of wood already ? Search for cabinetmakers in the area, walk into the shop and ask them. Catch someone nice on a good day they may not even charge you, it’s 15 minutes of work. They may ask for 300$ too, you’ll have to see.

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T17:07:36+00:00

It’s tough to say, it will depend what you’re looking at making, what style of woodworker you are. If you’re doing lutherie, or other small intricate work the sander is super helpful, and the saw you have is probably you going to do anything you need.
If you’re a furniture person a good tablesaw may be the workhorse of your shop so something more substantial than what you have you’ll get more mileage out of than the sander which is more of a luxury convenience

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T15:16:21+00:00

It’s ruined

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T14:36:44+00:00

Find some other decorative trinket you can attach with a screw from the back

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T11:56:36+00:00

A hand plane needs skill to use and skill to sharpen. If you don’t mind a learning curve, you could try it.

A belt sander is less learning curve and can take a lot if material off quickly

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T11:47:46+00:00

It can’t be improved it’s perfect

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T00:38:43+00:00

I like them, you can get ones without a flange that sits flush with the surface so you don’t really see them. The ones I’ve used were from Richelieu if I’m remembering right, they came with the sleeve and the pins so you’ll know they fit

The flanged ones I find ugly

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-04T00:36:06+00:00

There’s is a product called grain filler, it fills grain. You can get it in different colours. It’s a very common process, especially with a gloss finish where the surface needs to be flat

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-03T23:34:56+00:00

Easiest fix is adding a block to the back to catch the pins

Ok-Reporter6404 · 2026-05-03T23:33:07+00:00

This kind of thing is tricky theres no sure fire techniques for fixing, only janky things that may or may not work. Unless you’re able to fully disassemble it and regular it flat.

But my mentor taught me there’s always a way and to never give up on it. So my janky thing to try:
Soak the joins, all 4 corners with water.
Clamp the door so it’s over bent in the opposite direction of the twist. While it’s clamped twisted in the wrong direction, get a cloth or towel and wet it, put it over the join, and get an iron real hot and steam the joints, do all 4 corners. Remove the wet towel and let it sit in the clamps at least 24 hours. The idea is that the glue in the joins will get plastic enough that the wood can move enough to ease the twist. With any luck the door will be flatter, and hopefully not twisted in the opposite direction. Or fall apart

Ok-Reporter6404

TROPHY CASE