Took a chance on that self-leveling trim router jig and it paid off big time

I built a set of cabinets for a kitchen remodel in Green Bay last spring and was dreading the hinge mortises. A buddy kept pushing me to try a self-leveling jig he bought off Amazon for around $150, and I figured it would be just another gadget collecting dust. After the first set of six doors came out perfectly aligned in under an hour, I finally admitted my old method of marking each one by hand was costing me time and mistakes. Anyone else have a tool they resisted buying that ended up being worth every penny?

3 comments

3 Comments

nora_park25d ago

The ONLY tool I dragged my heels on was a laser distance measurer. Thought it was a gimmick for lazy people who can't read a tape measure. Then I was laying out a deck and figured I'd borrow my neighbor's just to prove a point. Ended up buying my own that same afternoon because marking by hand for 40+ joist spaces is a LEVEL of patience I simply do not possess anymore.

susan_wright3425d ago

Level of patience I simply do not possess anymore" speaks to my soul. I fought getting a cordless framing nailer for years because I thought I was somehow tougher for swinging a hammer. Finally used one on a shed project and realized I had been making things harder just to feel superior about it, which is basically my whole personality.

janarivera25d ago

Cordless framing nailer is the one I fought the hardest. I was the guy bragging about hand-nailing every joist hanger, thinking it made me a real carpenter. Then I borrowed my brother's gun for a weekend and finished two days of work in four hours. Pretty humbling to admit you've been a dinosaur for no good reason. Now I can't imagine building anything without it.