Clear Vertical Grain Fir Cabinet Mismatched Trim

[glenn bradley]

He also installed crown molding without scribing it- just bending it to follow the dips in the ceiling.

Yikes. At this point I would cut your losses, accept what you got and learn from the experience. If he was boasting that he is a super-pro, I too would expect super-pro work. Unfortunately, being a professional cabinet maker doesn't make you a good one. I know a couple who are quite good and one who is average. The average guy is always talking about how great his work is. The two guys who do really beautiful work let the work speak for them. Sorry about your experience.

[Jack Pinkham]

These are custom cabinets which the contractor built.

[Jack Pinkham]

Wall Cabinet out of Square 2.jpgWall Cabinet Out of Square.jpg

This may be some of the reason why the door reveals taper. The side of the adjacent cabinet, to which the cabinet in question is attached, is out of square by about 7/32" in 24".

[Joe Calhoon]

The color match is acceptable, as JR said within a year it will be the same. VG fir is used a lot in Colorado. There is a grade called 85/15 that will usually have a high ring count similar to the veneer panel. This is more expensive and not always that tight of grain. Some architects will specify ring count per inch on VG fir projects. For example 20 to 25 rings per inch. This gets very expensive and most lumber suppliers will not do it anymore.

[Jim Riseborough]

Is having a contractor build cabinets like a cabinetmaker do framing? seems odd the contractor would build them, and not have you buy some for him to install. Perhaps I am missing something. A good contractor would sub it out I guess.

[Jack Pinkham]

The contractor's name includes a phrase similar to "and Precision Woodworking". He is listed on Angies List as a cabinetmaker.

[Jim Riseborough]

Ah, ok. Well hopefully you get it sorted out, I would not settle for what I have seen. Certainly no precision there.

[Jack Pinkham]

Unfortunately he has the last payment in hand. Very foolish, I know.

[Andrew Joiner]

Jack, Did Angie's List give him a good rating?

[Matthew Hills]

The color variation doesn't bother me too much. I get that with some closet built-ins where I used birch plywood with solid wood edging. I liked the contrast in that case.
Might depend on how the kitchen looks as a whole.

Out of square is less satisfactory. (you did check that your square is square, right?)

I'm not great at working with contractors/tradesmen myself. Makes me really appreciate those who do good work.

Matt

[glenn bradley]

The side of the adjacent cabinet, to which the cabinet in question is attached, is out of square by about 7/32" in 24".

Well, a guy who would force molding to follow a curve as opposed to scribing it is the same guy who would force a (hopefully) square carcass as opposed to shimming it out square so that things worked correctly. This is why my thoughts are to get the guy out of your house and then address the issues with someone who does decent work. Trying to get someone who would perform the level of work this guy did for you and call it "and Precision Woodworking" to fix these things is not going to work out. He is most likely not able to do the corrections even if he were able to see them as a problem. If I see nothing wrong with something, it would be very difficult for me to "fix" it.

Jack, Did Angie's List give him a good rating?

Angie's List was a great concept but, now has gone the way of the BBB. Its like reading a review in Wood or Fine Woodworking; lots of info but, take it with a grain of salt when the service or product being reviewed also pays the bills. JMHO, I've been wrong before.

[Jack Pinkham]

Yes, but he didn't have that many reviews.

[Jack Pinkham]

Island Corner.jpgIsland.jpg

Here's how he built the island. I think that he lost concentration and built it as a base cabinet. After he had it onsite he added the rear panel and trim.

[Chris Tsutsui]

I agree with above that the wood should definitely change color over time so I wouldn't stress over the color difference. Even if he diluted a stain to get the colors to match right now, it might not match in the long run. I sort of like the slight color difference because it adds some contrast to the cabinet and it reveals information about the construction. Also, maybe you could perceive that the veneer is radial sawn and the trim is plain sawn which will definitely have a different grain look.

I can see burn marks on the carcass so you might think he used a cabinet saw to make the cabinets and a kreg jig for the pocket screws (assumptions). Maybe that's an excuse for not having everything machined perfectly because the cabinets were not CNC cut to high tolerances.

I'm a real sucker for focusing on all the nuances of something I pay a lot of money for. One example is when I bought a new car I was stressing over the tiny paint chip, tiny ding, slight rattling noise in the dash at certain highway speeds. But after a while I just drove the car and all of that anxiety just fades away. (especially now after 8 years of driving that car...)

If I can't turn a shoulder to something and it's bothersome all the time, then I would just fight the good fight to have it corrected as brilliantly as possible. If I lose, I might have to pay somebody that knows what they're doing to fix it. Ultimately you are paying a pretty penny for a functional AND cosmetic product, though imagine if there was a reverse angies list and a contractor could review this thread before he decides to bid on a kitchen. I imagine this thread would jack up the prices of bids. So this extra work that has to be done was maybe not a part of the original bid, thus paying somebody else to fix it might cost close to a single bid that had your correct scope of work.

Perhaps an overly detailed page of what is included and what is excluded in a contract that both parties sign and no assumptions is what's required.

I hope everything works out in your favor and you ultimately become happy with your kitchen.

[keith micinski]

I might get in trouble for this but I don't think scribing the crown is a very good solution. Losing the edge of the profile on the crown to scribe it seems unacceptable to me. If the walls and ceiling are that uneven that a little bit of movement in the crown is unacceptable to conform, then the problem is with the walls and the ceiling, not the moulding, and should be addressed that way. There is nothing wrong with wanting things that you undoubtedly paid good money for to be really nice but sometimes we get lost in the reality that really nice doesn't have to be "Perfect" and sometimes small compromises have to be made to the over all project. That box being that out of square, if it isn't your square and you should check just to make sure so you don't look like an ass, ask me how I know, is a real concern because that is an area that should have been able to be perfect or close to it. I have no problem with the color or the grain I hate to say it but I agree with his comment "that's wood" if you want perfectly matched pieces then you should use plastic. Even spraying pieces with toner to get an even color match, while it will work, will also take a "real" piece of wood and make it look like the laminates and plastics that everyone pays big bucks to avoid. I am biased on the color though because I admittedly even hate staining wood and hiding the natural uniqueness in every piece to try to create something that is uniform and fake looking SO my opinion on the color should be taken with a grain of salt.