Reply by AandCstyle

Russell, when I rough cut wood, I leave it large in all 3 dimensions until I am ready to cut it to finished size. At that point, I try to complete the assembly because wood is always moving. However, it depends on the temp/humidity of where the wood has been stored vs your shop and if the wood was properly dried to minimize internal stresses. If everything has reached equilibrium before you make any cuts, you should be fine. HTH

-- Art