FirstCutAI for iOS App FAQs and Support

Coming in May 2026!

FirstCutAI — TIPS & GUIDE

ABOUT AI RESULTS

Q: Results can vary between runs — is this normal?

A: If you run the same photo through the same analysis twice, the results will usually be similar but not identical. Dimension estimates, species identifications, value ranges, period attributions, and condition grades may all differ slightly from one run to the next. This is not a malfunction — it is how large language models (LLMs) are designed to work.

LLMs generate responses by sampling from a probability distribution of statistically likely next words. A setting called temperature controls how much variation is introduced into each sample. A higher temperature produces more creative, human-feeling responses; a lower one produces more conservative, repetitive ones. FirstCutAI is tuned for thoughtful, analytical responses rather than rigid consistency, which means each run is a fresh, independent assessment — not a cached lookup.

Q: What does the variation actually tell you?

A: Think of each run as one appraiser's opinion on a given day. Two competent appraisers looking at the same piece would reach broadly the same conclusion but might phrase condition differently, weight certain features differently, or land on slightly different price ranges. AI analysis works the same way.

The more distinctive, well-lit, and clearly framed a piece is, the more consistent the results will be. Where the AI agrees with itself across multiple runs — same period, same species, similar value range — you can treat the result with higher confidence. Where results shift significantly between runs, treat both as hypotheses worth investigating further with a better photo, a close-up of the joinery, or a run of the Research tool.

Variation is a built-in honesty signal: results that stay consistent across independent runs deserve more weight than results that shift.

GETTING STARTED

Q: How do I sign in?

A: The first time you run any analysis, you will be asked to sign in with your Apple ID. This connects your token balance to your account so you can use the app across devices. Your Apple ID is never shared or used for marketing.

Q: How do I set my email address?

A: Open Settings (gear icon, top right) and enter your email address. This is where your PDF results will be sent when you tap Email PDF. You can also set it by tapping "Join Email List & Set Email for Results" on the home screen. Leave it blank if you prefer to use Share PDF instead.

Q: How do I choose a mode?

A: The segmented control at the top of the home screen switches between three modes: Make (Woodworker — cut lists and plans), Thrift (Buy · Sell · Replace — identify and value), and Style (Designer — furniture and home matching). Each mode has its own set of tools and its own background colour so you always know which mode is active.

TAKING GOOD PHOTOS

Q: How should I frame the shot?

A: Capture the entire piece of furniture in the frame — ideally from a 3/4 angle so the front, side, and top are all visible at once. This gives the AI the most information to work with and results in more accurate part counts and dimensions.

Q: Does lighting matter?

A: Yes. Shoot in even, natural light whenever possible. Avoid deep shadows that hide joinery details, door lines, or drawer fronts. Overhead flash tends to flatten detail; window light from the side reveals the most texture and construction.

Q: How do I get the best wood identification?

A: The end grain is the single most reliable identifier. The pore structure visible on a freshly cut end is far more diagnostic than face grain colour, which varies enormously with age, finish, and lighting. If you can photograph both end grain and face grain in the same session, the confidence of the ID increases significantly.

Q: How do I photograph a tree for identification?

A: A single trunk photo rarely gives enough information for a confident species ID. If possible, photograph the bark up close, any visible leaves or seeds, the overall tree form from a distance, and a fresh cross-cut from a fallen branch. Combining several of these angles dramatically improves accuracy.

Q: Any tips for antiques and thrifting photos?

A: Show the whole piece in frame and capture any maker's marks, labels, or hardware details as separate close-up photos if you run multiple analyses. The Identify & Value and Research tools rely heavily on style details, proportions, and condition — a full-length well-lit photo works much better than a cropped or dark one.

WOODWORKER MODE

Q: What does Research This Furniture do?

A: Photograph any piece of furniture and get a detailed breakdown of its style, historical period, likely origin, joinery techniques, construction details, notable design characteristics, and recommended books and plan sources. A Wood Match profile of the identified species is automatically added, covering grain, hardness, workability, and finishing notes.

Q: What does Make a Cut List do?

A: Photograph a piece and get a complete woodworker's cut list (every part with finished dimensions, wood species, and grain notes), a board-feet estimate for solid wood, square-footage for sheet goods, rough-stock thickness in quarter notation (4/4, 6/4, etc.), a hardware list with suggested suppliers, and regional pricing for each species. A second pass generates scaled orthographic shop drawings for every part.

Q: What is Run All Woodworker Reports?

A: Runs Research and Cut List in a single combined analysis and combines both into one PDF with a cover page and index. This uses roughly 10,000–20,000 tokens (versus 3,000–8,000 for a single report) but saves you the time of running each step separately.

Q: What is Tree & Rough Lumber Research?

A: Found in the "Below not in Run All" section of the Woodworker tab. Switch the top picker to Tree to identify a living tree by species, age, height, and wood profile. Switch to Rough Lumber to analyze a rough-sawn or milled board — you get species ID, NHLA grade estimate, board-feet calculation, current regional pricing per board foot, a list of any visible defects, storage and milling guidance, and best uses for that species and grade.

Q: What does Set Dimensions do?

A: After selecting a photo, tap "Set Dimensions (Optional)" to enter the actual width, height, and depth of the piece. Your measurements override Claude's visual estimate and are used throughout the cut list and scaled drawings. If you skip this, Claude estimates size from visual cues in the photo — the estimate is a useful starting point but manual measurements will always be more precise.

Q: What does Set Wood Type do?

A: Tap "Set Wood Type (Optional)" to type in the wood species before running an analysis (e.g. "White Oak," "Hard Maple," "Black Walnut"). This is passed to Claude as a strong hint and used throughout the cut list, pricing, and plans. If you skip it, Claude identifies the species from the photo.

Q: Why doesn't the hardware list include screws and nails?

A: The hardware list focuses on items you actually need to purchase: hinges, drawer slides, handles, pulls, shelf pins, and similar specialty items. Basic fasteners like screws, nails, and dowels are deliberately excluded because these vary so much by builder preference that listing them would add noise rather than value.

BUY · SELL · REPLACE MODE

Q: What does Research This Furniture do in Buy · Sell · Replace mode?

A: The Buy · Sell · Replace version of Furniture Research is tuned for on-the-spot appraisal rather than woodworking. It focuses on market value, condition assessment, collector demand, rarity, and where similar pieces are bought and sold. It does not include joinery details or construction guidance — use Woodworker mode if you want those.

Q: What does Identify & Value do?

A: Get a full field appraisal: style, period, age estimate, wood species, condition grade, estimated value in your local market and nationally, key factors driving the value up or down, authenticity markers to check in person, collector notes, and a buy / negotiate / walk away recommendation. This is the fastest way to know whether a price is fair.

Q: Can I enter the asking price?

A: Yes. On the Identify & Value screen, tap "Set Asking Price (Optional)" and enter what the seller is asking. Claude will return a specific assessment — Bargain, Fair, or Too High — with an explanation of why. This is especially useful when you are in the field and need a quick second opinion.

Q: What is Run All Buy-Sell-Replace Reports?

A: Runs Research and Identify & Value together and combines them into a single PDF. Good when you want the full picture on a piece you are seriously considering buying.

INSPECTION NOTES

Q: What are Inspection Notes?

A: Before running Identify & Value (or All Buy-Sell-Replace Reports), tap the Inspection Notes button beneath the photo to open the questionnaire. Each question asks you to record something you observed in person that the AI cannot see from a photo alone. Answering even a few questions gives the AI confirmed facts to work from instead of guesses, which produces a more accurate valuation and a more useful report.

Q: How do I use the Maker's Mark / Label field?

A: A maker's mark, label, or stamp is one of the most reliable ways to confirm the maker, approximate date, and country of origin of a piece. Look on the back of drawers, the underside of tabletops, the back panel of cabinets, and the back legs near the floor. Choose "Found — Readable" if you can make out a name, logo, or number. Choose "Found — Illegible" if you can see a stamp but can't read it. Choose "None Found" only after you have checked. Leave it as "Not Checked" if you did not inspect and want the AI to draw its own conclusions.

Q: What should I enter for Hardware?

A: Hardware condition is one of the clearest indicators of authenticity and affects value significantly. Original hardware (bail pulls, cast-iron hinges, hand-cut escutcheons) suggests the piece is unaltered. Replaced hardware usually reduces collector and auction value. Mixed is common on repaired antiques. To check: look at the back of drawer fronts for shadow marks where original hardware once sat, and inspect screw slots (old screws are off-centre; modern screws are perfectly centred).

Q: How do I know if a piece has been refinished?

A: Original surface finish — even worn, faded, or cracked — is almost always preferred by collectors and dealers over a refinished piece. A refinish typically reduces auction value by 20–50% on period pieces. To check: look at the underside of tabletops and the inside of cabinets for drips, brush marks in corners, or overly uniform colour that lacks the natural patina gradient of an aged original surface.

Q: What is Hidden Condition?

A: The AI sees only the surfaces visible in your photo. Pull out each drawer and look at the drawer box itself: water staining, swelling, warping, or pest damage here indicates structural problems that do not show from the front. "Excellent" means no issues found anywhere. "Good" means minor wear consistent with age. "Fair" means some damage present but not structural. "Poor" means significant damage that affects usability or repairability.

Q: What does Provenance mean?

A: Provenance gives the AI context for how to frame the buying recommendation. "Estate / Dealer" suggests the piece has some recorded history. "Thrift / Flea Market" is a neutral signal with no implied history. "Private Home" suggests you may be closer to an original owner. "Unknown" is fine if you simply do not know the source.

Q: What does Newly Made mean?

A: If you can tell the piece is not a genuine antique — it came from a contemporary furniture store or was clearly made in the last 20 years — select "Yes." This prevents the AI from speculating about historical period, collector value, or rarity. Signs of modern manufacture: cam-lock hardware, MDF or particleboard construction, perfectly uniform machine-cut dovetails, and branding stickers.

Q: What does Studio / Craftsman Piece mean?

A: This question appears only when you select "Yes" for Newly Made. If the piece was made by a professional craftsman or studio rather than a mass-market manufacturer, select "Yes." New handmade furniture has a thin resale market but a high insurance replacement value because commissioning an equivalent piece is expensive.

DESIGNER MODE

Q: What does Furniture for This House do?

A: Photograph the exterior of a house or building and get a full architectural style analysis — period, regional variant, defining features, historical background — plus a curated list of furniture styles that complement it, recommended wood species for floors, trim, and furniture, and interior design guidance on colour, proportion, and materials.

Q: What does House Style for This Furniture do?

A: Photograph a piece of furniture and get the architectural styles and interior environments where it belongs, with reference photos of each architectural style and guidance on creating the right room context around the piece.

Q: What does Furniture for This Wood do?

A: Enter a wood species by name or photograph a sample (or both) and get a complete profile: grain, colour range from fresh-cut to aged, Janka hardness, workability, finishing notes, historical furniture styles that favoured this wood, price tier, sustainability status, and substitute species with trade-off notes.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR RESULTS

Q: Why does the on-screen view look like a summary?

A: Every results screen shows a summary card with the key facts. The full report — complete cut list with every part and dimension, full hardware list, all research notes, regional pricing, plans and drawings, collector notes — is only in the PDF. Tap the orange "Tap to open the full PDF report" banner at any time to preview it.

Q: Why does the app use a tilde (~) symbol in its logo?

A: The tilde means "approximately." Every result this app produces is an approximation — a smart starting point based on one photograph taken under real-world conditions. Dimensions, species IDs, part counts, and valuations are educated estimates, not engineered specifications or certified appraisals. That is why the app is called FirstCutAI: it helps you make your first-cut decisions before committing to a final design or purchase.

Q: Should I verify results before acting on them?

A: Yes. Use the cut list as a planning framework and verify every dimension against the actual piece before ordering lumber or cutting anything. Use Buy · Sell · Replace valuations as a starting reference point and always inspect a piece in person before making a purchase decision.

Q: What do the confidence ratings on wood identification mean?

A: Tree and Rough Lumber analyses show a High / Medium / Low confidence badge. High means multiple independent features all point to the same species. Medium is the correct default for most single-photo IDs — useful but not certain. Low means the visual evidence is ambiguous. Even a High rating is an AI estimate, not a lab result.

Q: Why do my results look wrong?

A: If a cut list looks wrong — too few parts, odd dimensions, wrong species — try a clearer photo with the full piece in frame and good lighting. You can also add a wood species hint or manual dimensions before re-running the analysis. The quality of the output is directly related to the quality and completeness of the photo.

Q: Will Claude use my manual dimensions even if they look wrong?

A: If the dimensions you enter look physically impossible for the furniture in the photo — for example 3" × 3" × 3" for a bookcase — Claude will ignore them and fall back to its own visual estimate. When that happens the PDF shows Claude's estimate rather than your entry. This keeps the summary card and cut list consistent with each other.

GETTING YOUR PDF

Q: How do I get the PDF?

A: Every results screen has three PDF options. The orange "Tap to open the full PDF report" banner opens a system preview where you can read the full document. "Email PDF" sends it directly to your saved email address. "Share PDF" opens the iOS share sheet so you can save to Files, AirDrop to another device, print, or forward via any app.

Q: Why isn't Email PDF working?

A: The "Email PDF" button uses the iOS Mail app on your device. If Mail has not been set up, or if you have not entered an email address in Settings, the app will show you an alert explaining which one is missing. If you prefer not to use Mail, the Share PDF button always works and lets you choose any destination including Gmail or Outlook.

Q: What can I do with Share PDF?

A: Tapping Share PDF writes the PDF to a temporary file and opens the iOS share sheet. From there you can save to iCloud Drive or Files, send via AirDrop to your Mac or another device, attach to a message or email using any app, or print. This option does not require any email setup.

TOKENS & USAGE

Q: What are tokens?

A: Tokens are the currency that powers each AI analysis. Every time you run an analysis, the app sends your photo and prompt to the AI and receives a detailed response — both directions consume tokens. A single analysis typically uses 3,000–8,000 tokens. Run All reports combine multiple analyses and use roughly 10,000–20,000 tokens.

Q: How do I check my balance?

A: Open Settings (gear icon, top right) and tap "My Usage" while signed in. You will see your remaining token balance, total tokens used, total deposited, and the number of analyses you have run.

Q: What happens when my balance is low?

A: When your balance drops below 30,000 tokens the app will show a warning before starting an analysis. You can choose to continue anyway or cancel and purchase more tokens first. If you run out mid-analysis, the current step will stop — any steps that completed before the balance ran out are still displayed and saved.

Q: How do I get more tokens?

A: Open Settings and tap "Purchase Tokens" to see the available options. Your new tokens are added to your balance immediately after purchase.

Q: What is the difference between characters and tokens during analysis?

A: While an analysis is running, the progress display shows a character count. Characters are the raw count of letters and punctuation in the AI's response as it streams in — they update smoothly and give a clear sense of how much of the response has arrived. Tokens are what is actually deducted from your balance (roughly 4 characters of English per token). The exact token count is shown on the My Usage screen after each analysis completes.

Q: Are my photos private?

A: Photos you submit for analysis are sent to the Anthropic API to generate your results. Anthropic's API terms explicitly prohibit using customer inputs and outputs for model training. Your images are processed to generate your report and are not retained, stored, or repurposed by Anthropic or by this app.