I'm a weekend woodworker without a table saw. On Friday, May 31, I took two 4 x 8 sheets of oak…read moreplywood (worth about $100) to Accent, asking them to cut the sheets into pieces for a cabinet I was making. Earlier in the week, I asked if they did that sort of thing for individuals. "Yes," I was told. "We'll just charge you for shop time."
When I delivered the plywood, I brought cut sheets which included clear dimensions, along with sketches of how the pieces should be positioned according to the wood grain. The shop manager deemed my writing "readable." He wrote up a work order that said, "Cut 2 pc customer's plywood to his dimensions labor only," and promised the wood within a few hours. Two hours later, I get the call that the plywood is ready; kudos to them for keeping a schedule, which is about the only thing that went right.
I picked up the wood, paying a $50 labor charge. I didn't check the dimensions at the time, because I assumed I was working with a professional millwork. Cutting plywood should be among the most basic tasks they do. The shop manager seemed to think so, and the work order promised as much. This assumption was my first mistake.
As I began work on my project the next day, I discovered that all of the pieces were out of square by about 3/16 of an inch. Accent is closed on the weekends, so I was faced with a dilemma. Should I try to salvage the crooked plywood, or should I give up a weekend of work time - plus time off from my regular job - to return the crooked plywood on Monday? Because I was pressed for time, I tried to make do with what I had. That was my second mistake; looking back, I should've waited and shown up on their doorstep the following Monday morning.
Instead, on Monday, I sent a letter to Accent explaining the situation. I said that, though I had assembled the body of the cabinet (using a power planer and shims to approximate squareness), the out-of-square cuts were evident for anyone with a tape measure. As of now - a week later - I've gotten no acknowledgement of my letter. At the least, I hoped for an offer to examine the partially-assembled cabinet, and the possibility of a refund. This, to me, is the absolute least that the company could've done.
For past projects, I've gone to Lowe's or Home Depot. Both stores will cut down plywood sheets to customer's approximate dimensions. They don't promise accurate cuts, and they display signs on their panel saws saying so. Notably, Lowe's and Home Depot don't charge a dime. This cabinet was special - a birthday gift for a family member - so I was willing to pay for accurate cuts. So, I paid a so-called professional millwork $50 to provide a service that was of no better quality than I could get for free at a home improvement store.
I don't know what Accent Millwork and Supply can do in terms of larger projects. Presumably, they deal with homebuilders and general contractors, and, presumably, they offer better service in return for the high volume and larger profits of these business customers. However, Accent had no trouble taking my $50 to cut a couple of sheets of plywood. They made a promise of quality service when they did so, a promise they did not fulfill. They cut my plywood inaccurately, exhibited no pride in workmanship, and showed no curiosity about whether or not my claims - the claims of a paying customer - were valid.
I don't know how well the company performs for their large customers, but if they can't cut a couple of pieces of plywood square, I wouldn't trust them to do anything else. And woe to the smaller homebuilder who might have to compete with a larger contractor for Accent's time, attention, and quality. This is my opinion, but based on how Accent treated me, their service, quality, and integrity is for sale to the highest bidder.