Trimming The Sauna Door

What would Norm Do?

One of the biggest lessons woodworking has taught me is this:

The project isn’t finished until you’ve figured out how to fix the mistake you didn’t know you were going to make.

Last week, I finally wrapped up the sauna project—a project I’m a little embarrassed to admit I milled the shiplap for back in 2024. It took longer than planned, but seeing it finally come together made it worth the wait.

The last piece of the puzzle was the door.

This wasn’t just any door. It’s insulated, has a tempered glass window, and took a fair amount of planning and work to build.

As I was getting ready to install it, I decided to give everything one last measurement. That’s when I realized the door was about 1/8 inch too wide on the hinge side.

I’m glad I caught it before hanging the door, but that didn’t make the solution any easier.

The door is 3¼ inches thick, the latch side has a 5° bevel, and the stiles were already fastened together with stainless steel nails. Taking it apart wasn’t really an option, and there wasn’t much room for error.

Whenever I run into a problem like this, I’ve learned that the best tool in the shop isn’t always a saw or a router.

Sometimes it’s time.

I’ll grab some lunch, work on something else, or simply step away from the project for a while. More often than not, the solution becomes obvious once I stop trying to force it.

After thinking it through, I decided to use the table saw. My blade only raises to about 3⅛ inches, so I couldn’t cut all the way through the 3¼-inch-thick door. I made the first pass at about 2½ inches deep, then used a flush-trim router bit to remove the remaining material.

It worked exactly the way I’d hoped.

I shared the process on YouTube and titled the video, “What Would Norm Do?” Of course, I’m talking about Norm Abram. I don’t know exactly how he would have handled it, but I like to think he’d appreciate taking a few minutes to think through the problem before making the first cut.

If you haven’t seen the video yet, check it out and take a look through the comments. There are some great suggestions, a few different approaches, and plenty of good conversation from fellow woodworkers.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one.