Fitting doors. Why so tedious?

[Gene Davis]

What am I doing wrong?

I'm making a batch of pieces each with a pair of small doors, so I have 5 pairs, each leaf with two hinges. I'm using non-mortised.

Sawed doors to a just-tight size so when they're test-hung they can be marked for final trim. Jig-drilled doors & frames for hinges, test-hang doors, trim for nice margins, then disassemble again. Mark & prep doors & frames for hardware,

Done!

All the disassembly and reassembly seems inefficient to me

[Dave Zellers]

It is what it is, and it is what it always has been.

Substitute tedious for inefficient per your title.

No way around it. Too many variables. The proper approach is to 'sneak up' on the final fit. And it can be a tedious process.

Some times you get lucky.

[Jeffrey Martel]

You could do it quicker by just sawing them to the final size. But then you likely wouldn't have even gaps all the way around and it may bind if you didn't make the case perfectly square. Part of woodworking.

[Leo Graywacz]

I use shims to size my doors. Since I use mostly Euro hinges I set my margins at 5/64". So I make 2 shims that are 5/64" each. I always size the height first. I use an edge sander to remove the stock. I'll put both shims together and when I can just slip the shims in they are sized. For me it's usually 6 passes on each end to get there. I always make my doors 1/16" taller then required. Same process for the width. If I'm doing pairs then I'll use three 5/64" shims.

Then it's just a simple measure to get the hinges on.

[johnny means]

When doing batches, which I've done often, I build and fit one perfect fitting piece using jigs. Once I know every thing works, all other parts are created using these jigs.

[Tom Ewell]

Perspective, I have an old Japanese apothecary chest with some 36 3-1/4" square front inset drawers (no hardware or glides) each drawer is fitted for it's own hole, they're all individually marked and not interchangeable. If the drawer doesn't fit, it's the wrong hole.

My guess is that the craftsman made everything within reasonable parameters for sizing and layout but was also fully aware that final fitting is just a part of the process.
Always wondered what that same craftsman could do with our modern tooling, methods and measuring devices.

[Gene Davis]

These are inset doors I am doing. The hinges offer no adjusting, and no matter how precise I try to go with the surround build for each set, without any serious fixturing for drilling hinge screw holes, hanging each door in its opening is a crap shoot. Teensie bits of hinge misalignment, thousandths and half-thousandths, cause the hung doors to wander.

Which is why inset doors like mine get hinged and hung oversize in their openings. I measure and cut for as tight a net-zero fit as I can, then hang, mark for trim, then trim, then hang again to see the margins, then remark for further trim, and all again if necessary.

Each cycle requires hinges to be installed, doors hung, then doors unhung, and hinges to be removed.

I guess it seems tedious, but that's life in the inset door biz. Much more easy when using euro hinges with full 3-way adjustment.

[Leo Graywacz]

Make a mortise jig that does both hinges at the same time. Make sure it can do the door and the opening. Then you size the door and then mortise the hinge.

[Jim Becker]

Doors have to be individually fitted because it's very unusual, if not nearly impossible, for every door opening to be exactly like planned and exactly square. Final fitting is what makes it all "look perfect" even when it isn't and that's an important part of the craftsmanship involved.

[Mel Fulks]

I guess the rare use these days of inset doors has made for low grade saggy hinges. Good ones would make the job a little easier. The convenience of using the overlay doors has superseded all pursuit of beauty.

[Dave Zellers]

I guess the rare use these days of inset doors has made for low grade saggy hinges. Good ones would make the job a little easier. The convenience of using the overlay doors has superseded all pursuit of beauty.
So True! Leaf Hinged inset doors require quality hinges. But WITH quality hinges and a solid carcass, they will hold their position after fitting.
When you think about what was involved in constructing the most revered cabinetry of the past, patience and tedium have to be at the top of the list.

[Kevin Jenness]

Like you, Gene, when using butt hinges with a small reveal (typically 1/16") I hang the doors oversize before marking. I then use a spacer and a knife or fine pencil to mark the finished size. With Euro hinges the doors can be marked prior to hanging. You could eliminate one step by sizing your door blanks slightly smaller than your openings so you can get them swinging without an initial trim. I cut just outside the marks with a sliding table saw using shims for tapers as necessary and clean up with an edge sander. Obviously the whole process is streamlined by accurate sizing and squaring of the openings. I use spacer sticks to locate the stiles and rails during face frame assembly and check diagonals to square up the frame before the glue sets.