Man, those hidden bracket kits are such a scam and it drives me nuts how many people get talked into buying them. I spent way too much on a set years ago thinking there was no other way to get that clean floating look, and honestly the whole thing felt like a waste. The fact that your old boss just showed you a six dollar trick is exactly the kind of thing I wish someone had told me sooner. It really makes you wonder how many "specialty" products out there are just marked up versions of stuff you can grab at any hardware store. Good on him for passing that along instead of keeping it to himself.

My grandpa was a machinist and he always said his thumb was more accurate than his calipers after 40 years. Something about feel just beats numbers sometimes. Though I did read that even trained fingers can be off by a few thousandths depending on the day.