Ramblings
It's Never Quick
I replaced a drawer pull on my nightstand. You wouldn't think this would be worth writing about but, in some self-deprecating way, it kinda is. This post should be short and sweet, but we'll see how that goes. Let's get into it.
Context
I've had this bedroom set for probably 20 to 25 years now. It really looks good in the bedroom because the wood matches the trim here at 173 which is old growth chestnut that's never been painted, and they have that old school look that I like. One of the things I really like about the dressers is the simplicity of the drawer pulls or knobs just wood with a simple black paint.
Problem
The problem is, the other day I was opening the drawer and the knob felt a little loose so I gave a little twist. I didn't tighten down really hard, but as I turned it, the knob just snapped off right in my hand.
Solution
Okay so this was a a simple fix. Of course, when I say simple I usually don't know what I'm saying. Or what's ahead of me. In this case I started the fix by just going to Lowe's and picking up wooden knob about 1/8 wider than the original - just because that's all they had. The next step was to paint it, and I used a satin finish Krylon black spray paint. Nothing fancy but the knob doesn't have to be particularly fancy so I went with what I had.
A Week and a DayDown at the corner of Boulevard and Street,Every “quick job” turns into utter defeat.“Hang up this mirror? Ten minutes, no sweat!”(An hour goes by and it’s not even set.)“Swap out a light switch—shouldn’t take long!”(An hour and a half… what on earth went wrong?)“Twelve little boards on the back stoop, that’s all!”(Three days later, still cursing each nail and wall.)I’m huffin’, I’m puffin’, I’m red in the face,Even in winter I’m sweating the place.The dog tips his head, then he wanders away,Like he’s thinking, “I’ll check back… in a week and a day.”GB Shaw Jr.2022
The BIG Problem
The problem came when the paint dried and I was ready to install the new knob. But - the pilot hole in the bottom of the new knob was a little bit too big for the original screw. Now, don't laugh at me... wait a minute, let's rethink that. Go ahead and laugh at me because that's all I can do too.
What I did was, instead of just using the screw that came with the knob because it was a little bit larger round than the hole in the front of the drawer, I played around with smaller screws, one of which was too long. So I just grabbed some washers and was going to try that.
I have no explanation for this. Anyway, I did eventually come to my senses. Grabbed the screw that came with the knob, screwed it into the drawer, then screwed the knob onto that screw... the way it should have been done to begin with!
The Tools
But in all that trying I ended up using a pair of pliers a screwdriver that little stubby screwdriver. So I didn't have to take stuff out of the drawer which I ended up doing because it took all of like maybe 10 seconds to take everything out. I'm telling you this is just absolutely inexplicably insane behavior on my part.
Installed
And here it is - installed. Doing it right, not counting drying time for the paint, should have taken no more than four... maybe five minutes. Max. Not the 12 or 13 minutes, and four trips to the workshop and back.
I think Gary Busey was right when he said, "If you take shortcuts, you get cut short."
One day, I'm going to remember these lessons and do it right the first time. Either that, or I'll be the very definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome.
My father called people like that, numbskulls.
Don't be a numbskull!
Hey, thanks for stopping by - see ya' next time!
