Best Undermount Kitchen Drawer Slides?

[jacko9]

Hello Foggers,

Can anybody point me to a very good Kitchen Pantry system.  I want to build a full height pull out pantry for my son and I wanted to know who sells the best heavy duty slide system for a pull out pantry.  I'll build the case and Pantry door, I'm just looking for a heavy duty ball bearing pantry system.

After looking at pull out systems, I decided that I would rather have pull out drawers with heavy duty undermount slides.  What brand and model slide is the best on the market (this is for home and family installation).

Thanks,

Jack

 

[ccmviking]

Well... since you said heavy duty pull out, look at the Hafele hardware  LIke this unit and it's also available with soft close.  What do you plan on storing in the pull out, I mean are you sure you want a pull out?  There are a lot of options for storing and accessing pantry items.

Chris...

 

[jacko9]

Well... since you said heavy duty pull out, look at the Hafele hardware  LIke this unit and it's also available with soft close.  What do you plan on storing in the pull out, I mean are you sure you want a pull out?  There are a lot of options for storing and accessing pantry items.

Chris...

Chris,

Thanks, I couldn't find that unit but I did install one of those in my own kitchen and I like it a lot.

Jack

 

[semenza]

That's a cool pullout. Pull and rotate.  [cool]

Seth

 

[fshanno]

I've used Fulterer heavy duty soft close glides on three kitchens.  Seven glides total.  Up to the big 777 model with 450lb capacity.  In my experience the 165lb 775 is the smoothest working model.

In each case I built the unit out of wood and ply.  They all have adjustable shelves.  3 were practically floor to ceiling. 

These systems have an initial wow factor and a soft close on such a big unit is impressive.  But these days I'm not recommending them.

In my own kitchen, which I built first, I have simple drawer pullouts behind doors.  I used normal undermount glides.  The glides are mounted in 32mm system holes so the drawers can be configured.  There are three columns. Each has a drawer section up to 5' and shelves above.  Only the lower drawers have tall sides, all the others have very low sides.

Here's the thing.  The cook knows where everything is.  The cook goes straight to it.  Also, the drawers have low fronts.  The cook keeps the most used items close to the front and often does not need to pull out the drawer to get the item. 

With the fancy units you have to pull everything out every time.  It gets old.

An interesting product is the Tenn-Tex Plastics QuikTRAY plastic pilaster system.  It's pricey but fast and cool.

Narrow spice racks are a different matter.  They are thin and light and are fantastic.  In my kitchen I have a spice rack that is floor to ceiling.  I used heavy duty 30" Accurides.  If I had known about the Fulterer 775 back then I would have used it.

 

[jacko9]

Thanks, I used Fulterer slides on my last two projects and I like them a lot.  I'm re-thinking the pull out pantry for some of the same reasons you mentioned.  The pull out pantry I did in my house 25 years ago used the Hafele heavy duty slide and pulling out that whole pantry is getting old as my wife and I are getting up there in age.

I also might have to change out my old Hafele corner pull out slides when I spotted the LeMans 2 corner units.  One corner is a straight swap out but the other I built in a fixed shelf that will have to be notched in two places to accommodate the post hardware.

I'm going to build face frame cabinets and I'm still trying to decide between bottom or side mounted slides.  Thanks for the input.

Jack

 

[WastedP]

I have spec'd and installed the Kessebohmer pull-outs as well as Rev-a-Shelf's pull-outs in all different sizes and I definitely preferred the smoothness of the metal units compared to the the RAS wood ones.

When it comes to pull-outs vs. roll-outs, it's interesting to see what different people choose.  Some people really just want the gadgety stuff, even when it doesn't make sense from a functional standpoint.

In my own kitchen, the only pull-out I have is for the trash.  It always amazes me when I go over a design with a client and they say they'll just put the trash under the sink.  I also eschewed roll-outs for drawers, one less step than a roll-out (open door, pull shelf), faster access.

I'm going to build face frame cabinets and I'm still trying to decide between bottom or side mounted slides.  Thanks for the input.

Jack

Bottom mount slides are way more expensive and take up some of your drawer height, but I would choose them over side-mount in a kitchen every time.  I prefer the cleaner look and the tighter reveal between drawer box and frame.  I use Blum Tandem slides and have never had a single one replaced under warranty since I started using them in 2006.  I can't say the same for side-mount ball-bearing slides, or even the tired old epoxy Blum slides.

 

[fshanno]

I have spec'd and installed the Kessebohmer pull-outs as well as Rev-a-Shelf's pull-outs in all different sizes and I definitely preferred the smoothness of the metal units compared to the the RAS wood ones.

When it comes to pull-outs vs. roll-outs, it's interesting to see what different people choose.  Some people really just want the gadgety stuff, even when it doesn't make sense from a functional standpoint.

In my own kitchen, the only pull-out I have is for the trash.  It always amazes me when I go over a design with a client and they say they'll just put the trash under the sink.  I also eschewed roll-outs for drawers, one less step than a roll-out (open door, pull shelf), faster access.

I'm going to build face frame cabinets and I'm still trying to decide between bottom or side mounted slides.  Thanks for the input.

Jack

Bottom mount slides are way more expensive and take up some of your drawer height, but I would choose them over side-mount in a kitchen every time.  I prefer the cleaner look and the tighter reveal between drawer box and frame.  I use Blum Tandem slides and have never had a single one replaced under warranty since I started using them in 2006.  I can't say the same for side-mount ball-bearing slides, or even the tired old epoxy Blum slides.

I put the Blum trash kit with the Servo Drive in my daughter's kitchen.  Used the recommended Blummotion glides that screw to the deck.  The soft close broke after a year and a half.  It still closes but it sort of slams itself shut.  Could it have something to do with the grandkids?  I wonder.

 

[SGCrain]

I agree with the previous posters. I have been designing and building high end kitchens for over 20 years. I've tried all the pantry options and agree that pulling out your entire pantry every time gets old. I prefer individual pullout drawers for sure. My shop almost exclusively uses the Blum legrabox drawer system now which looks great and operates like butter. Wood drawers are great too with undermount drawers slides. I tend to prefer a single door with pullouts behind as opposed to a pair of doors with wider pullouts but that's just a personal preference.

 

[jacko9]

My current thinking is to use bottom mounted soft close drawer slides with a inset drawer face,  While that works great for the bottom drawer, what about the next two higher drawers?  Traditional furniture is sure a lot easier to build [eek]

Jack

 

[WastedP]

My current thinking is to use bottom mounted soft close drawer slides with a inset drawer face,  While that works great for the bottom drawer, what about the next two higher drawers?  Traditional furniture is sure a lot easier to build [eek]

Jack

I think you would definitely have to use bottom mounted guides (bottom of the drawer) that mount to the sides of the frame or box.  Here's two ways:

[attachthumb=1]
This factory-built box has rails between the drawers.

[attachthumb=2]
They attach the guides to a socket in the back and a plastic bracket that mounts behind the faceframe.

[attachthumb=3]
This inset built-in I made (but still haven't trimmed out) has no rails between the drawers, just the frame.

[attachthumb=4]
I flushed the sides to the frame, so mounting guides was as easy as a frameless cabinet.  I referred to the ton of info that's on Blum's site for the measurements.

I put the Blum trash kit with the Servo Drive in my daughter's kitchen.  Used the recommended Blummotion glides that screw to the deck.  The soft close broke after a year and a half.  It still closes but it sort of slams itself shut.  Could it have something to do with the grandkids?  I wonder.

Maybe they were giving it more than a tap to open it and pumped the shock to the point where it broke.  I've never seen it happen with Blum guides, but the first Salice integral soft-close hinges were prone to popping if you cranked the door real fast.  We have a trash with Servo-Drive in the showroom, and once kids figure out it's a robot garbage can they can't stop messing with it.

 

[jacko9]

I have been looking online about bottom mounted slides like the Blum and the Accuride.  The Blum Tandem seems to have a lot of plastic components in the system vs the Accuride Eclipse.  Are these slides comparable or am I looking at the wrong set of slides?

 

[pugilato]

A client I build a kitchen for wanted a pull-out pantry. When I showed her the prices for the Hafele units, she asked to come up with something less expensive. This is my solution... Two years later, she still loves it. Very inexpensive. The only thing I would change is the runners.

[attachthumb=1]

[attachthumb=2]

 

[WastedP]

Re-reading this thread, it occurred to me that I use the terms bottom-mount and undermount interchangeably, and that's confusing and technically incorrect.  I use undermount guides, but I attach them to the sides of the cabinets, even on pull-outs.  When I think side-mount, I'm thinking of ball-bearing slides like the Accuride ball-bearing slides or epoxy-coated ones like Blum 230's.

 

[jacko9]

Re-reading this thread, it occurred to me that I use the terms bottom-mount and undermount interchangeably, and that's confusing and technically incorrect.  I use undermount guides, but I attach them to the sides of the cabinets, even on pull-outs.  When I think side-mount, I'm thinking of ball-bearing slides like the Accuride ball-bearing slides or epoxy-coated ones like Blum 230's.

With the undermount slides that attach to the cabinet sides, which brand and model is the most durable or higher quality?  I don't care about cost since it's going into my son's kitchen (and I don't want to be doing adjustments later).  I have seen both Accuride and Blum slides online and the Blum seem to have more plastic components which may or may not affect long term durability?

Jack

 

[WastedP]

I have not used the Accuride undermount slide, so I can't directly compare it directly to the Blum.  I have no complaints about Blum's slides.  I used them for a pull-out hamper in a dresser that I built for my daughter.  It has held up to child-inflicted abuse for about six years now with zero issues.  I used the same slide (Blum562H with Blumotion) for regular drawers and the trash pull-out when I built my own kitchen three years ago, and it still works just like new.

 

[tjbnwi]

I use KV side mounts and hang the pullout. I find it more stable than a bottom mount.

This is a vanity, I do the same with pantries, no pics for some reason ???

Tom

 

[mastercabman]

I don't really like side mounted ball bearing
I use Blum under mount
Much smoother and easier to remove/install

 

[tjbnwi]

I find the undercounts unstable on tall pull outs.

Been doing the base cab pull outs with the slides in this configuration to pick up the 1" in width.

On regular drawers I use Blum Tandem with Blumotion.

Tom

 

[WastedP]

I find the undercounts unstable on tall pull outs.

Been doing the base cab pull outs with the slides in this configuration to pick up the 1" in width.

On regular drawers I use Blum Tandem with Blumotion.

Tom

The configuration in your photos looks identical to the way Rev-A-Shelf's taller pullouts are done, and having a third guide on top is magnitudes more stable than a pull-out with only undermount guides.  For full base height (27" or taller) pullouts with shelves, I have been using the RAS units.  For shorter units, I have been building the pullout like a really tall drawer with undermount guides only.

Several years ago, I did build a pull-out bookcase for a medical office that was 15" wide by about 28" tall by 30" deep.  I used side mount Accuride slides on top and a single fixed caster on the bottom to support the weight when extended.  It was a good solution for that office, but I'd never consider using a caster in a kitchen or bath.