Why do so many guys crown cabinet doors before the box is even square?

I was at a client's place in Dayton fixing a run of upper cabinets and every single door was crowned on the hinge side. The boxes were racked by almost 3/16 of an inch from being set on a floor that was out of level. Crowning hides a lot of small stuff, but it can't fix a twisted box, it just buries the problem until the gaps show up on the other end. I've stopped adjusting doors entirely until I check the box with a level and a square first. If you've been chasing door gaps with the hinges alone, when did you start checking the box instead?

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sam_murphy391mo ago

How many of those crowned doors got crowned because the hinge screws were pulling the stile, not the box at all? Strip out a screw in particle board or cheap ply and the door sags, so guys crank the hinge to pull it back. Now the whole door is bowed and you blame the box. I check the box first too, but I also grab the door and see if it racks in my hands before I touch a screwdriver. A door that twists on its own will never sit right no matter how square the box is. And half the time the real problem is the box got set on a floor that drops, so the whole run leans and the doors follow it. Fix the floor line and the gaps close up on their own.

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