This has probably been discussed before, but when I tried to search for info, I got hundreds of threads that didn't actually relate. So, if this is redundant, my apologies.

I'm in the beginning stages of a 3 Dudes quilt. The one where you do the strip sets, cut them into squares and lay pairs of the squares at right angles, sew all around the square and then cut in an X.

I have been religious about seams. This is my first precuts quilt, and I have to admit the pinked edges are not a lot of fun. But, I've been very, very careful. Then, I was careful about pressing. Measured several of the strip sets and came up with an 8.5 inch measurement, which seemed right to me, mathematically. BUT...now that they're all cut, I find that I'm getting many squares that are significantly wider than that. I'm going to have to trim them to size, which is aggravating, but certainly doable. That's going to make it impossible to match up the seams later on, but so be it. I've read where several people have said that seam matching on this quilt is a bear, if not downright impossible.

So, my question is...are precuts (specifically jellyrolls) not reliable? Should I have measured every strip to make sure it truly was 2.5 inches? Should I have trimmed them to ensure uniform width, eliminating the pinked edges, but reducing the overall size just a bit???? I'm so frustrated about being super careful and still having a bit of a mess on my hands.

Is this normal for jellyrolls?