I don't use a scant 1/4. I like to use #50 or #60 thread or if all I have is #40, I press my seams open. And I am having much more accurate seams doing this. And this way I can use different sewing machines on one quilt without a lot of hassle. Before I learned this, I did measure, sew the test strips, and set my seam every time I started a new project.