Comments on: Error in Cutting Lists

By: Ross Manning

Ross Manning — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 22:21:54 +0000

I would like to put in a vote for Ians suggestion, coupled with Merlins comment "…cut list to price and buy materials…". This should help newcomers from making this mistake reinforcing the correct approach – build to the project, not the plans.

I would not like to see cutlist dissapear. Personally, I find complete cutlists very helpful in interpreting drawings that may not have all the details shown (I notice that Popular Woodworking often has assumed construction knowledge in projct articles – for example the Shaker Stepback drawings in the most recent edition do not show the drawer guides) And it does make life simpler when ordering wood for projects.

By: Mark Salomon

Mark Salomon — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 22:52:30 +0000

I think that you miss the broader point. Why don’t magazines such as yours and your competitors maintain an errata page? We all run across mistakes and I’d be happy to let others know of it if I had a forum. Sure, we can send a note to the editor and maybe it will get published but who is going to be able to remember or find that correction a few months down the road?

By: jeff

jeff — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:10:41 +0000

Some of you guys may mean well but come off pretty arrogant. That type of attitude is what makes some of us noobs scared to ask "dumb" questions or display our work for you "experts" to rip apart. For one thing, it appears that Mr. Humphrey wrote an email directly to Chris, and did not intend his mild upbraiding to be public. Chris made it public as a means (I imagine) to let all of us learn from the writer’s mistake. So for you guys to pile it on, reminding us of your brilliance and the silliness of cut lists, is really unfair.

By: Toronto kitchen renovations

Toronto kitchen renovations — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 11:01:37 +0000

If cutting is not perfect then looking becomes worst… Thanks for your post…

By: Merlin Vought

Merlin Vought — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:20:28 +0000

In my experience the only reason for a cut list is to price and buy material… Other than that they are of NO good use. If you are going to make 20 or 30 then it’s not a hand crafted project it’s an assembly line. So right on all you guys that have responded.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 22:22:06 +0000

I drew up a cut list for the first time for my current project and it was mainly to help me price the project.

In more than 20 years of woodworking, I have never used a cut list to cut stuff.

By: Bruce Jackson

Bruce Jackson — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:34:45 +0000

I like Ian’s suggestion!

By: Ian Wigle

Ian Wigle — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:43:35 +0000

Granted a more experienced woodworker appreciates the value of measuring twice (from the work piece, and not the cut list) and cutting once, but Gordon’s education on this point does seem to have been a tad painful. While it is true that experience is the great Teacher, and Gordon will not soon forget the lesson, perhaps a word or two at the top or bottom of a cut list might help folks through this necessary lesson a bit less painfully.

Something like "No project in the real world ever goes together exactly the way the original did. This cut list gives you a general idea of what size and shape to expect your parts to be, but you should always measure your based on the workpiece, and not the cut list alone."

Maybe it helps, and maybe it doesn’t. Or maybe this warning could be attached to the cutlist for the introductory "I Can Do That" articles.

My 2 cents.

By: Matt Gray

Matt Gray — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:22:04 +0000

I think it is sad that we have become a society that blames everyone else for their problems or mistakes. Granted, the cut list might have had an errror or two. Heck, the 21st century workbench plan has some errors as well, but I just worked around it. Whatever happened to "problem-solving" instead of writing letters to editors criticizing their work?

I’m not an older guy (33), but I guarantee if you talk to some older craftsmen, they had to learn how to solve problems like this or they didn’t have a job anymore.

Sad that it seems that society has forgotten these critical skills.

Matt

By: Chris C

Chris C — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:43:17 +0000

When Gordon gets a little more experience under his belt, he
will realize that measuring and excessive pre-planning is for the birds.

I’ve seen OK cut lists for things like plywood boxes. For anything
else they always seem to fall apart before I even finish getting my
stock prepared. I just ignore them. Work off of the piece sitting in
front of you, not a theoretical model in a magazine.

Chris