Unpopular opinion: pre-drilling pocket holes is a waste of time on softwood

I used to pre-drill every pocket hole on pine like the old-timers showed me, but after 4 years of building cabinets I stopped and never had a split. Now I just send the screw in with a clutch set low and it holds fine. Who else still pre-drills and why?

2 comments

2 Comments

kelly.nora28d ago

Skip the extra step and you'll notice how often we overthink the simple stuff in woodworking and life.

phoenix2928d ago

Wait, are you telling me you just skip steps and it actually works out? That's wild. I've been out here measuring three times before I cut and still second guessing myself. Maybe I need to just trust the process more and stop overthinking every little thing. But honestly, the idea of skipping a step makes my eye twitch a little.