Anyone making fitted kitchens?

There must be someone who actually uses their CNC once it's built?

The missus thinks that by slowly destroying MY kitchen bit by bit will mean she gets a new one. I've been slowly rebuilding & repairing the damage but have finally run out of spare drawer & cupboard handles.

The kitchen is only 20yrs old & was built & fitted by a local craftsman who retired 8yrs ago.

The original handles are a recessed pull type & made of plastic. If you yank & slam the handles hard enough the plastic lip that her fingers engage with splits away.

I have trawled many specialist suppliers & have never found the original handles, I've found some very nice aluminium ones which will fit but they cost £15+ EACH ! The recess which is cut into the door means that 99% of the handles that are currently fashionable are useless.

I need either a recessed pull type handle or a surface mounted one that will cover the recess.

I need 50off, which includes a few spares.

I don't have the spindle speed to work with wood, I've looked at making my own from alloy but being limited to ball nose cutters has its drawbacks.

Anyone help keep a perfectly serviceable kitchen alive for a few more years?

Do you have a drawing of what the draw front looks like? I might know a few folks that can help or be able to get new ones made to fit the job (or a slightly different design that still fits the bill). What color are they? send me an e-mail and will see what can be done to help you.

Michael

Can you post a picture of the handles? Someone here may be able to make 50 for you.

Post some pics up Chas i may be able to help you.

There's a channel routed into the drawer/cupboard surface measuring 106mm long X 40mm wide.

Whatever happens, I don't want to be routing out a bigger hole. I have found similar & very,very close, but nothing that will cover these holes.

Attachment 8073

The original plastic ones are simply glued in.

Picked up one of these today from one of the DIY sheds : £4.99 ea 'BARGAIN'. Sad thing is I've tracked down the importer from the label & they're only 5mls away from me. One quick phone call & they refuse to supply anyone not bona fide kitchen manu' or massive rip off DIY retail shed chain.

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It's not recessed so it would have to be surface mounted. There's 2x screw holes on the back, so I'd have to simply drill 2x holes in the draw & cabinet fronts & screw in from the back. It's totally unfinished & if it weren't from China I'd say it was Beech. Do they have Beech in China?

It's 115mm long X 50mm wide. At it's deepest it is 20mm. It looks to be made using 4 diff tools on 4 operations, the last of which would be the recess for the fingers which would also involve rotating the part.

I'm not fixated on this design, anything will do as long as it's aesthetically pleasing to the eye & it uses or hides the existing holes.

Just a thought, I've had a cheap'ish router & table on my list for years. Could something as simple as this handle be knocked up easily on one?

P.S. I have never worked with wood before.

I don't think that would be at all easy on a router. I think even on CNC you'd have to make it in two parts as you can't cut the part where the fingertips go without a clever 4 or 5 axis machine.

I'm sure someone here who is a pro kitchen fitter will order them for you.... or knock up a website offering your kitchen fitting services with some googled photos; ta-da you're a pro!

This rare beast is the last in the world of the original plastic handles.

Attachment 8075

Easily splits into 2x parts. It's the lip that the fingers grip which is failing. It fractures at one end then quickly splits along the grain.

Attachment 8076

Whilst I've got the camera out, picked this lot up today for £120 :semi-twins:

I used to think I had a lot of tools . . . . :cool:

Attachment 8077

Thats easy to do by using a hand router and some jigs
one cutter here Buy Axcaliber Drawer Pull Router Cutter 3 from Axminster, fast delivery for the UK
there are others with a rounded bottom to them, cant find them at the moment but they are available

peter
Oops just realised that Axminster cutter has a rounded bottopm!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tenson

I don't think that would be at all easy on a router. I think even on CNC you'd have to make it in two parts as you can't cut the part where the fingertips go without a clever 4 or 5 axis machine.

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That's a strange thing to say, it's quite clearly a single piece of wood.

By "two parts" do you mean it would have to be rotated?

You would use an under cut tool like this,

Attachment 8079

I was thinking of ball-nose mills. Looks like one of those specially shaped bits would do the job well.