Old cabinet maker told me to stop squinting at my layout lines

I was at a kitchen reno last month next to this guy who's been building cabinets since the 80s. He saw me leaning over my square trying to read my pencil mark and goes "you're not a watchmaker, get a thicker lead." So I switched from 0.5 mm to a 2 mm mechanical pencil and I swear I'm cutting 20% faster now because I can actually see where I'm going. Does anyone else use a specific lead thickness or am I late to this?

2 comments

2 Comments

blair_gibson7812d ago

Honestly, I gotta disagree. A 0.5mm gives me way cleaner lines for tight joinery. Thicker lead just feels sloppy when I'm doing dovetails.

sandra69312d ago

Used to swear by my 0.3mm for marking out, but after that same advice I grabbed a 2mm and never looked back. Way easier to see and still plenty accurate for most cuts.