I'm seeing more cabinet guys skip pre-drilling for pocket screws, and I think it's a mistake, but maybe I'm wrong?

I noticed a guy on a job site in Charlotte last week just driving them straight into oak without a pilot hole and claiming it's faster, but I've always been told that skipping pre-drilling causes blowouts and misalignment over time, so who else has actually tested both ways and seen a real difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

jana_hart1817d ago

In Charlotte I saw three splits on one oak board alone from skipping predrills.

tylerj2217d ago

Oh man, did you catch that one board that looked like a road map? I had the same thing happen in Raleigh on a white oak stair tread. I was in a hurry and figured I could just nail it in but nope. By the third nail I heard that crack sound and there was this skinny split going from the edge all the way past the center. Had to pull it and start over with a fresh piece. Now I'm militant about predrilling even on softwood trim. It's just not worth the headache trying to save five minutes when you end up spending twenty fixing a split.