Hello Vince and anyone else having the same  experiences. Each housing dado is a learning experience and if worst comes to worst, bin ’em and start over. I feel proud of you for starting. I know how it feels and I know what it takes so press in and press on. Remember that the project is not what’s important but the process. Remember that it’s not what you make but how you make it. Get rid of false expectations and see that this is a course and you are right t the beginning. You may not be the problem, it could well be the saw or the wood or a combination. Even most new saws are junkers. I encourage you to consider the saw as the likely problem. Unless you bought a good saw, well set and sharp, you are going to have problems. There is not a tenon saw in Home Depot or B&Q that is suited to this work, so therefore it could well be the saw. Let me know which saw you are using. Send me pics as close up of the saw’s teeth as you can get. Above all, don’t be discouraged.