Customer said my dovetails looked 'too perfect' and it bugged me for a week

A guy in Dayton last Tuesday watched me cut a drawer joint and goes "you must use a jig, those are way too clean for hand work." I've been at this 14 years, hand cut every one since I started. At first I was pissed, but then I looked at my recent stuff and he was right, they had zero character. I started leaving the tiniest bit of variation in the pin spacing now, just enough to show it's not machined, and sales actually picked up. Anyone else get told their work looks fake or factory made?

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jordan1341mo ago

Yeah, that "too perfect" comment hits different when you realize they're not insulting you, they're just used to seeing CNC stuff everywhere. I had a client once ask if I used a laser for my inlay work, and I almost lost it. But then I started doing the same thing you're doing, leaving a hair of asymmetry in the tails, like maybe 1/32" difference in the baseline, and it's weird how people respond to that. It's like they can sense the human touch even if they can't name it, and suddenly they're asking about the process and willing to pay more for the story. I also stopped sanding the pins to glass smooth, just a quick hand plane and let the tiny milling marks show. Takes a few tries to find the balance where it looks intentional but obviously hand cut, but once you dial it in, it actually becomes a selling point instead of a problem.