Dry-Fit

A dry-fit assembles a joint, or an entire project, without glue -- checking that everything actually fits, aligns, and closes up the way it's supposed to before committing to a real, glue-committed assembly that can't easily be undone. It's standard practice before any glue-up with real time pressure or complexity: gluing multiple pieces together only to discover a joint doesn't seat properly, or clamps don't reach where they need to, is a mistake a dry-fit catches for free, while the same mistake discovered mid-glue-up, with open glue setting on the clock, is often unrecoverable.