16
Customer told me my dovetails were "too tight" and walked out
Guy comes into my shop last Tuesday, wants a custom jewelry box for his wife. I show him some samples, explain my joinery. He picks through a few pieces, runs his finger over some through dovetails on a walnut box, and says "these are too tight, I want gaps, it looks more handcrafted." I told him gaps mean the joint will fail over time, especially with wood movement. He said I was trying to upsell him on quality, then left. Has anyone else run into customers who want sloppy work on purpose?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
casey_wood219d ago
That line about "looks more handcrafted" really got me. It's like he thinks the sloppy gaps are what make something not machine made, you know? But here's the thing nobody's bringing up - maybe he's been burned before by those "perfect" dovetails that are actually laser cut or CNC'd and sold as handmade. There's a whole market of people who've been conned by production stuff, so now they associate any kind of precision with fakery. Sad part is, he walked out on real craftsmanship without even asking if you could do a slightly looser joint that's still structurally sound (which is totally possible, just not with gaps you can stick a dime through).
5
bettyroberts19d ago
@lindal13 nailed it, those folks buying fake handmade stuff ruin it for us amateurs who just enjoy making tight joints by hand.
2