Rant: Pocket hole screws are not the answer to everything

I pulled apart a customer's DIY bookshelf last week in Arlington and all the joints were pocket screwed. Every single one was loose after 8 months. Glue and a dado joint would have held better. Has anyone else noticed these things are sold as magic but fail when real weight gets put on them?

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chen.jenny3d ago

Bought a cheap pocket hole jig years ago thinking it would speed up some cabinets I was building. Spent a whole weekend making these perfect little holes and then the screws stripped out on the test piece before I even got it clamped. Swore off the whole method right there. I still use one for face frames sometimes but even then I back it up with glue and a brad nail. The way people online talk about them you'd think they replaced joinery altogether, but they're really just for holding things together while the glue dries.