Making mistakes
In an earlier blog post I wrote about one of the ground rules in wood working:
"Woodworkers are bound to make mistakes, the key is developing the skills to fix them."
These words of wisdom have given me the confidence to make mistake.
It suggests that when you make a mistake, you deal with it, you fix it.
But recently I have learned that there is thin line between dealing with mistakes and coping with them. Here is what happened.
I was working on my second tool cabinet (see the plan below)
This cabinet includes two drawers. I've been deliberating whether I should add drawers. I felt I needed them for some random bits and bobs. But as Adam Savage's points out with one of his principles for workshop design: “drawers are the place things go to die.” I take his words as an advise to consider very seriously. And as you may remember, I've discussed before how one of Adam's other principles 'the first order of retrievability' has been fundamental how I set up my workshop.
Eventually gut feeling took over from rational thought. I felt I needed those drawers. And if things are to die in a drawer, in my case it will only be bits and bobs.
Building the carcass and drawers went surprisingly well.
Assembling the carcass
Fitting the drawers, using poker playing cards as spacers for accurate fitting (it's an old wood workers trick)
It was easy sailing, until I got to the point where I had to cut out the 'finger grips'. These are recessed drawer handles that are cut out with a special router bit (see below). I wanted these handles to be recessed, because I have a (very) tiny workshop and little space to manoeuvre. I don't want my shirt or trousers get caught, or get myself bruised or injured, by handles sticking out.
Finger grip router bit (image from viddton)
I already had the template.
So, based on these dimensions, I created a new template for handlers that were supposed to be more rectangular.
I following the nerve wrecking cutting process (unfortunately I forgot to take pictures, because I was focussing on the process), and the result turned out perfect.
But then, after I installed the drawers, and looked at the result, and looked at the finger grips that I did for the other cabinet. I felt there was something off. There was something wrong with the proportions.
The second pair of grips that I cut out, turned out to be slightly bigger (with height of 38 mm) than the first pair (with a height of 33 mm). It's probably not visible on the photos below, but to my trained eye – that is trained to see imperfections in tiny details – it is!
I was massively frustrated at first. How could this have happened? But soon I found out that the first template had two sizes of circles (see photo above, all well documented with dimensions and which guide bush to use). I simply had picked the wrong one: the 55 mm template instead of the 45 mm template.
When I did my first test cut for the new pair of handles, I should have double checked. And yes, there is a rule in wood working that says: "measure twice, cut once". But the issue is, I did not do any measuring at all.
The mistake had been made... the logical next step would be to fix it.
It was obvious that there was no way to make this recessed grips smaller. Neither was making the grips of the first cabinets bigger – screws are fitted next to the handles and it also involved the risk of having to make new doors in case I messed up and that would take me at least 2-3 days of extra work.
The only option that was left, to get a new piece of plywood make a new set of drawer fronts, make them fit perfectly, create a new template for the finger grips (with the right dimensions), cut them out. It would take me half a day or so.
But... when you look closely at how the wood grain of the drawer front runs, you'll notice that it forms one continuous pattern – as it is made of the same piece of wood. For the doors, that are supposed to be fitted above these drawers, the pattern should continue as well. Such continuous patterns of wood grain is considered a quality mark of furniture making.
If I'd go for this latter option, it basically meant that I had to purchase a new board and cut out new drawer fronts and doors. So I asked myself, is it actually worth it to waste materials (and time) on this? It's probably only me who sees the imperfections and most likely, over time I'll stop seeing them.
I pondered upon this mistake for a couple of days and realised: that for making mistakes in woodworking, the question is not just "how to fix them?", but alternatively... "how to live with them", it's a coping mechanism.
And interestingly, in my everyday job I find it so much easier to live with the mistakes I have made – because most of them cannot be fixed. Whereas for my life as a amateur wood worker, my pursuit for perfection puts me in a very different mindset.
I guess it's my design training that kicks in. When it comes to creating things (especially design artefacts), there is no raison d'être for anything less than perfect. But interestingly, as a few weeks have passed by, I am getting less annoyed by these slightly bigger drawer grips... I stop seeing the imperfections. It suggests that there is way to live with imperfections – to me that is a revelation.