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Screwed up. Need advice on repair.

2K views 21 replies 18 participants last post by  unclearthur 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Looking for some advice on how best to fix a screw-up.

I'm making 4 closet sliding doors and was routing a small finger pull in one stile on each door.
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Sure enough, on the last door I measured the location from the top instead of the bottom and routed it 2" too low.

So I squared off the hole, filled it as closely as I could by gluing in a piece of similar board. However, there was a small gap between the hole and the filled in piece on one side and the bottom. At its widest the gap is 1/64" at best, and tapers to zero over a few inches. I really don't think I could do a better fit if I try again.

So I tried to fill the gap with some sawdust followed up with a little CA glue. This left it perfectly smooth but also left basically a dark black line where the gap was. Doesn't look so good.

I then chipped out the CA glue along the bottom of the joint, which then leaves a gauge where the CA glue was.
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I have maple and cherry Timbermate but one is too dark, the other too light. Nothing else on hand to tint or stain.

Not expecting perfection, just trying to make it a bit better. Any suggestions appreciated.

(Sorry for the sideways pictures; no idea how to fix).
 

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#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
Are the doors the same on both sides? Patch the door, flip, and cut new finger pull leaving the patched side facing inside the closet if possible.

If not I would likely make the patch a little bigger to get away from the vertical lines of the finger pull running down into your patch. Go a little wider perhaps and dig through your scrap and match the grain and that color transition from darker to lighter effect you have on that board. The patch is just too light and grain absent compared to the door currently and just highlights the gap issue more.
 
#5 ·
Are the doors the same on both sides? Patch the door, flip, and cut new finger pull leaving the patched side facing inside the closet if possible.

- TravisH
The bottom part of the door is a raised panel, so the back is different. Also they are closet doors, so more or less one-sided. The back side was never meant to be seen and has its own issues.

I get what you are saying about a bigger patch. Have to think about that; if I get it wrong, then I've created an even bigger problem. Matching the wood was harder than I thought, even for the first patch, despite having lots of scrap pieces around.
 
#8 ·
Yes. Just went through that myself. CA does leave a dark line. I'd use a sharp chisel, cut a wedged groove and use titebond to glue in a patch of the same grain pattern. Wait til it dries then slice and sand. You will see it but nobody else will.
 
#12 ·
Depending upon how much clearance you have between the doors when they slide by each other, another option might be to route all of them to the same size and put in a piece that proud of the surface instead of using a pocket for the finger pull. If you make the part that is above the surface larger than the routed pocket (basically a tenon), it will cover any gaps. If you make the pull out of a contrasting piece of wood, it because a feature.
 
#17 ·
I think that no matter what you do patch wise, it is always going to look like a patch under a clear finish. Another alternative might be to use either router or table saw, cut the entire style down in thickness by 1/16"-1/8". Then, after filling in and smoothing the current finger hole, apply a veneer over the entire style, Then, of course, re-cut a new finger hole.

Frankly, I like the idea of removing the style and replacing it better; less work. The only tricky part would be to stop your cuts at the top and bottom of your panel to keep the panel edge that fits into the groove. Then, using loose tenons, re-attach a new style.

A modification of this solution would be to just rip off the part of the style from the inside edge of the finger hole outward and then edge glue a replacement piece. Of course, try to match color and grain to the extent possible. But, in the end, a continuous glue line will look better than a patch.

I agree. Nice looking doors. Good job.
 
#18 ·
I like the contrasting patch idea. If you can't hide it, highlight it. And you can make a nice fitting piece. Cut it about a 64th oversized and then sand it down to size constantly checking the fit. Remember only the face has to be perfect. Taper block so it fits like a wedge. Leave it a bit proud and then sand it flush. Pay attention to grain if you are attempting to make it match
 
#21 · (Edited by Moderator)
Remove 2 or 3 mm from the whole style. For example in a couple of passes on a router table.Fill the handle gab, precise is not nessecary, with wood or a wood filler Make a 2/3 mm oversized thin strip and glue it on the style. Make the strip flush. You only can see this fix when you open the door. After this you can make the new door handle recess.

You can repeat this as often as you want :)
 
#22 ·
Possibly, rout it back out and make all the others longer to match.
- LeeRoyMan
Yeah, that was my first impulse and remains my backup plan. Its not ideal though, as the door will have a lattice (they are shoji style doors) and the handle (in the right spot) lies equidistant between two horizontal lattices. It will look a little off, at least to my eye, to extend them down 2". But better than a bad patch.

..... another option might be to route all of them to the same size and put in a piece that proud of the surface instead of using a pocket for the finger pull.
Good idea but not enough clearance.

Turn it into a decorative feature. Route a larger mortise and fill it with a contrasting wood. Then recut your finger pulls in the contrasting patch.
- MPython
Thats an interesting idea, could look better than the original plan. Could also do with a commercial one as Ripper70 pointed out.

As for doing a whole new stile, I think that would mean either making a whole new door (saving the raised panel) or routing mortices into the end grains of the cutoff rails while they are still glued to the other style … probably the most professional solution but its too depressing to consider.

One other solution occurred to me, and that that on this style of door (if I measured right), the doors overlap by the width of one style. If I make another handhold on the other side of this door and change this door from a left side to a right side , and place it as the "behind" door then it should be hidden. As the other doors are already made, I'll have to make a 2nd handhold in another door and flip it as well.

Lots of options. Thanks everyone!
 
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