The finish carpenter’s field manual.
Twenty-plus years of doors, trim, and stairs - the techniques, tolerances, and sequences we actually use on the job. Every guide free, no filler.
Straight to the work.
Every category is a full walkthrough - exact tools, cut lists, and quality checkpoints. Find the job in front of you and get building.
Doors
13Pre-hung, slab, exterior, pocket, bifold - hung plumb with an even reveal.
View guides →Moldings
14Baseboard, casing, crown, jamb extensions, window frames - tight and gap-free.
View guides →Stairs & Handrails
11Skirt boards, newel posts, metal balusters, garage steps, wall-mount rails.
View guides →Specialty
7Shiplap walls, ceilings, and three-sided fireplace wraps at every height.
View guides →Closets
3Standards, layout design, and building basic shelving that holds.
View guides →Hardware
2Locksets and bath accessories set clean, level, and solid.
View guides →The three every carpenter should nail first.
Master these and the rest of the trade gets a lot easier.
Install a Pre-Hung Door
The most common task on every job site. Shim, plumb, and case it so the reveal is dead even.
Read the guide →
Install Baseboard
Tight scribes, clean copes, no gaps. This is where amateur and pro part ways.
Read the guide →
Install Stair Skirt Boards
One of the hardest cuts in the trade - the drop-in method, step by step.
Read the guide →Written by working carpenters - not copywriters.
Every guide reflects how we actually do the work: not theory, not textbook answers, but methods refined across thousands of homes.
Keep the cheat sheet in your truck.
Our finish-carpentry tool & setup checklist - the exact gear list and cut references we run on every job. One clean PDF.
Built for the trade - open to everyone.
Sharpen your sequence
Settle shop debates, tighten your process, and train a new hire with a single link.
Learn it right from day one
Get the knowledge that usually takes years on site - and skip the bad habits.
Get hired-out results
Follow professional technique step by step and finish like you paid a pro.
Built from 20+ years on the job site.
Let’s Build Stuff started as the training resource for our own finish crews - a way to teach new carpenters the right techniques without pulling a lead off the job. We’re fourth-generation carpenters - passing the trade down is the whole point.
If it was valuable to our guys, it’s valuable to everyone. So we made it public. Every guide is battle-tested across thousands of homes.
More about us →We only list gear we actually run on the job.
