Walked into a cabinet shop near Raleigh and saw the owner throwing away perfectly good maple offcuts

He said they don't have room to store pieces under 18 inches, but I could have used those for drawer fronts and little boxes, has anyone else run into shops that just toss usable hardwood like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

olivias8821d ago

That tough calls every day" line feels like a cop-out to me honestly. Yes shops need to be organized, but tossing maple that's perfectly good for half a dozen small projects seems lazy more than practical. I mean, one decent plastic bin in the corner would solve the "tripping hazard" thing and make someone a little extra money down the road.

susan_nguyen24d ago

Man, I actually see it from the shop's side here. It's not just about having the space, it's about managing workflow and keeping the shop safe and organized. I've worked in a few shops and those little scraps pile up fast, and before you know it you can't even walk through the aisle. If they started saving every piece under 18 inches, they'd be buried in a month. I get that you could use them for small projects, but it's their business and their shop floor. They gotta move material through quick to stay profitable. Plus, offcuts that small can be a tripping hazard if they're not stacked just right. It's frustrating to see good wood go to waste, but running a shop is about making tough calls every day, not just what feels good.

kevin_sullivan24d ago

Yeah "tough calls every day" is pretty much the story of life honestly. It's like how people judge restaurants for throwing out day old bread but forget they'd be storing crap everywhere if they kept it all. Everyone wants to save stuff until they're the one who has to deal with the mess.