Make sure that you know the following:

1. The kind of reveal -- negative, positive, flush -- for your sink if you have an undermount sink. Many posts on GW on this topic.

2. How much overhang on the counters. There have been many posts on GW on this topic as well. I preferred less overhang so requested a 3/4" overhang. If I hadn't requested that, they would have template for a larger overhang.

3. If you have an L shaped counter, how do you want the inside edge/angle? Do you want a slight curve? Do you want it squared off? I just assumed it would be gently squared off so I didn't say anything. In fact, they gave me a swooping curve that extends farther over my base cabinets than the rest of the counter. I hate it! (I think I may not be describing this problem very well.)

4. Last, and most obviously, what kind of edge profile do you want for your granite? Eased edge, ogee, bullnose, etc.

All obvious stuff... except point #3.

I don't have any direct experience, because I did my own templating. (Talk about on-the-job training!) However, have you seen this thread:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg011405034796.html

Also, do you have your appliances on site?

My fabricator already had my layout and knew I wanted ogee edge. Mine was for an island with no sink, so no cutouts. I have square posts (legs) on my island and wanted the marble cut around the posts so the corners of the island were squares. When he showed me the template (digital), it looked all straight. I asked if it stuck out around the posts. He said no. I said oh, well that was the whole reason for the posts and it must do that! Thank God I took the time off work to be home when he templated! He re-did it and the posts came out perfectly beautiful!

When my granite perimeters were done, I wasn't home for the templating or installation. I told them I wanted ogee edge and a negative reveal on the sink (I think it's negative where the lip of the sink shows), and they told me beforehand where the seam would be. When I came home after install, all was perfect.

Thanks for the suggestions. Dh and I will both be here for the templating and we have the appliances, sink and faucet.
francoise- I'm not sure I'm following about the inside angle/edge. My kitchen will be U-shaped, kind of like two peninsulas so I guess I'll have two inside corners. Even thought I don't quite understand the point you are making, I'll ask the fabricators what to expect the corners to look like.

Rockett...
I thought I was ready for everything - then they wanted to know about sink reveal and I was clueless - so scurried on to GW and asked questions. I went with a negative reveal (no sink showing) and it is great - there is a a piece of my that wanted to switch to a positive reveal - but DH actually had an opinion (for the first time in the kitchen) and went with his choice.
Surf GW sink reveal and you will see many answers - there is no middle ground on sink reveal...
The best one showed where grunge lives on positive, negative, and over mount sinks - so go with what you like as far as appearance.

Fran... Great questions to ask!
Good luck!!!

Angie- I forgot to say thanks for that thread on templating!! It was incredibly helpful.

If you have an area where you could be doing a side splash, make sure they know what you plan to do. I definitely did NOT want a side splash and the guy doing the template didn't listen. The gap between the wall and the granite isn't as tight and the cut isn't as clean. If my GC hadn't done such a great job of filling in the gap (and my granite wasn't so busy), I'd have made them redo it. Don't assume anything.

The inside edge that was francoise47 was talking about can be seen in these photos. Do you want a curved inside corner or a square corner?

Good luck! Looking forward to seeing pictures of the finish product.

Supervise, supervise, supervise!

Supervise the templating.
Supervise the placement of the templates on your slabs (go to the workshop)Take photos
Supervise the installation.

Alas, those who have failed to heed this advice are doomed to post their tearful horror stories (after the botched job) on this forum with loads of photos. Followed by advice from the others on how to tear it all out, how to ask for a discount, or how to cover it up with appliances :)

jusayin...

Hi Poohpup -- thanks for explaining the inside edge choices so well with your useful photos. This is very helpful. Hopefully it will help others make the right choice when fabricating.

I also made a copy of his layout with measurements before he left. (even a quick photo with your phone if you don't have a copier!) Of course I assumed he knew what he was doing..and he did, except he didn't. He miss-wrote a number and my counter came in short. So....check the measurements. Just add them up, as a second pair of eyes.
Oh and when the guys came to install, they had their own set of measurements and could not figure what had happened at all until I produced my copy of the original where the error showed.

If you have a sink that is designed to hold things on a shelf (like the Kohler STages) make sure to say it out loud to the person who is in your house doing the templating and to give them the accessories along with the sink. Just because when you met the fabricator earlier and the guy who does the layout with the template said "oh one of those fancy sinks that has all the accessories..." doesn't mean they will remember that when the actual time to template comes around even though you give them the sink w/o accessories. Ok, that's very specific...can you tell I'm still not happy about not being able to fit my accessories in my Kohler sink?

Also, one thing I learned is the inside corners sometimes are not as tight unless you specifically ask. The machine that does the cutting has a difficult time doing a tight corner. I had an eased edge and the templater told me that I could "request" a 1 degree corner but he couldn't suggest it. So it had to be "my idea" vs his. He did say he thought it would look nicer, more clean lined....He said doing the 1 degree corner with the eased edge was not an issue, it was the ogee edges, etc that had a more difficult time.

Make sure you have a written contract with all the necessary details. There have been threads on granite issues where the poster did not have a written contact or it didn't have enough detail. Make sure it details everything like the items listed in the above posts. Also will the granite be sealed, etc. Have you seen examples of their seams? Let them know in writing your expectations.

Have someone else there during the install who can calmly look at the granite for any issues. You will be too excited to think straight. :)

I second (third? fourth?) making sure about your inside corners. When our granite was installed, it had a big radius on our inside corner. Just about everything in our kitchen; 0-radius sink, slab door cabs, island and tabletop, had 90-degree corners. The only thing that doesn't is the msg center granite, which was templated/cut with a curve (or radiused corners) in order to accommodate the pantry doors (they have 175-degree hinges?), allowing us to open the doors completely. We had even specified that our eased edge would not be overly eased (chose the look of the edge from a sample in their showroom), in order to preserve the straight lines we desired. So, why he even assumed we'd want this huge radius on our lone inside corner (to match the one small piece of granite on the other side of the room?) was a big (and unwelcome) surprise on installation day. They were able to re-cut the corner onsite, but if you look closely, you can see that the granite isn't quite straight as it approaches the corner. It's not horrendous, but it's certainly not as it should have been.

Don't know if we had any say/options with regards to sink cut-out corners, but would have preferred even less of a radius than we have had it been possible, so that's something to ask about, too.

Other things include overhang, your edge (and different variations within your chosen edge style, like ours), sink reveal, and something else not mentioned thus far, the width of the granite in front of your sink. We thought ours was going to be 3.5" if I'm remembering correctly, and it's 4". According to the installers, they usually do 4.5" so we were "lucky" I suppose. However, I really, really hate that it is as wide as it is and would much prefer to be just that little bit closer to the sink, without the reach forward. I know people here are often concerned about sink depth, but for me, it's the reach forward, not the reach down into the sink, that causes an aching back, and is an all-around PITA in general.

One other thing--depending on your faucet handle-clearance requirements, you might need to specify sink cut-out/spacing with regards to the back wall or a window sill behind the sink.

HTH!

the templater told me that I could "request" a 1 degree corner

What does that mean? Most corners are 90 deg.

Are you trying to describe the radius of the corner, maybe?

Thank you all so much for all your excellent advice. I feel much more prepared now for templating. I'll be heading to the showroom tomorrow to make final decisions. So excited!

yes, having experienced a bad fabrication job that had to be torn out, stone scrapped and entirely redone (GC had to absorb the cost) i have the following suggestions:

-make sure you are both there when templating for the entire duration

-make sure you are clear on the options and your decisions BEFORE the templating begins. as referenced above, things like how far down do you want edge to hang, how far out should stone go, reveals, surface (polished vs. honed), sealer options etc. if you are not sure of what you have to choose from have a pre-meeting to review all of your choices so you are clear on what you need to specify. you do not want to be making these decisions on the fly.

-mock up your choices in cardboard and live with them to be sure you like your selections. example length of counter edge, how far out it projects etc. these are important details that can throw off the look if done wrong, so take time to mock them up and make sure they look right, prior to the templating meeting

-have all of your requests written down, with a copy for you and a copy for the fabricator with pictures to illustrate what you mean (reveals, edges etc). make sure ALL final measurements and details are written down and each party has a final copy

-make sure the fabricator has proven experience with the stone you are using. i used marble and while the GC told me the fabricator had marble experience, the guy did not have a lot of it and really screwed up, causing a total re-do including the need to purchase a new slab!

AngieDIY, you know when I re-read that it is odd, isn't it? But that is what the templater kept calling the radius that was very tight vs one that was much more gentle swooping, coming out pretty far from the corner. THis one is much closer to the corner. THis is the only picture I have of my corner, not the best, but maybe it helps

Oh, well, I suppose it is a nonsensical term of art.