Set Perfect Cabinet Door Reveals With a Two-Board Jig

The Problem

Hanging cabinet doors is a three-hands job: one to hold the door at exactly the right height, one to keep it from tipping, and one to drive the hinge screws. Eyeballing the reveal — the even gap between door and cabinet edge — while also supporting the door's weight is how doors end up visibly out of line down a run of cabinets.

The Technique

Two pieces of 1x4 and thirty seconds of assembly replace the third hand.

1. Screw two 1x4 offcuts together face-to-face, offset so one piece overlaps the other by a small step — the size of the overlap is your door reveal.
2. Hold the jig so the lower piece sits flat against the bottom edge of the cabinet.
3. Rest the door on the overlapping step. The door now sits at exactly the reveal you built into the jig, held there by the jig instead of your knee.
4. Fasten the hinges, slide the jig out, and move to the next door — every door down the run lands at the identical reveal.