Had to pick between pocket screws and dowels for kitchen cabinets I'm doing in Portland

I was building 15 shaker style doors for a kitchen remodel and couldn't decide if I should stick with my Kreg jig or pull out the doweling kit. Went with dowels because I wanted a cleaner look without any plugs showing. Took way longer to line everything up and messed up two frames before I got the hang of it. Doors came out solid though. Anyone else switch methods mid project and regret it?

2 comments

2 Comments

barbarahill21d ago

Oh man, the old switcharoo in the middle of a project. I've been there and it never ends well. I once started a bookshelf with pocket holes, got halfway through, decided I hated how the screws looked, and swapped to biscuits. What a disaster. Spent more time filling and sanding than if I'd just used the Kreg jig and putty from the start. At least you got your doors solid in the end, that's the part that really counts.

wren_rodriguez21d ago

Hey @barbarahill I feel your pain but honestly pocket screws on shaker doors drive me nuts. The plugs always look off to me no matter how careful I am. Dowels take longer but once you get that square alignment jig dialed in the joint is way cleaner with zero filler needed. Messing up two frames ain't bad at all for learning curve. I'd rather spend extra time on setup than stare at ugly plugs every time I open a cabinet.