I build/finish North American style homes here in Japan. Lately I’ve been making some cabinets for my houses, and also get some furniture orders here and there. I’ve been looking on the net for cabinet door makers- both paint grade and stain grade, but there are quite a few and I don’t know which ones to “trust”.
I’m looking for a relatively cheap, reliable cabinet door manufacturer, and preferrably one that’ll ship their product… I’ll go with standard door sizes/styles and make the cabinets to match.
Any recommendations on some reliable door manufacturers?? I’d appreciate some intros if possible – websites, etc…
Thanks a lot,
Scott S
Replies
I've used these guys quite a bit. About half the time the doors are perfect and they ship on or ahead of schedule.
The other half--well, I've had lost orders, cracked stiles, bluestain on clear maple, and warping.
But, their prices are reasonable, they always fix their mistakes quickly, and I have more problems when I make my own doors.
Their primed finish is incredibly smooth, but it's for a lacquer top coat.
They do a great job on drawers too. Never had any problems there.
What guys?
Oh yeah
http://walzcraft.com/index.html
Mike
You've had trouble with Walzcraft? I have been buying doors from them for 15 years and I dont believe that I have ever had anything less then very good come from them.
Doug
Yep, the first few times I used them they were perfect. Maybe something changed with their quality control, I don't know. Like I said, they always make it right.
I do have reservations about ordering from halfway across the country when there are bazillions of woodworkers here in New England.
I took yur word for it wth them some time back...
never a moment's problem...Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
The problem I have with Walzcraft is really just an annoyance, but I wish they could make it go away.
They can't.
They will take orders with sizes given in millimeters or fractional inches, but not decimal inches.
My software outputs buy lists for all doors and drawerfronts in decimal inches, figured to whole sixteenths. Thus a 12-13/16" dimension will read 12.8125".
I have offered them a little sixteen line conversion chart, printed in any size font they want, but they refuse.
Shame on them.
configure the software you use to read out right.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
configure the software you use to read out right.
OMG! Do you really think that Mr Micro didn't try that, even to go so far as to connect live with the developers of the software?
I did think of that and concluded that you were trying to get the world to conform to your ways.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
This thread has been hijacked so I'll hijack it some more, to give a little example of "conform to your ways."
It may be different in other businesses, and the new owners and operators at ThermaTru may operate differently now, but when I was there we let customers send in orders in any format imaginable, as long as the documents were in English.
Centimeters, furlongs, whatever. Any kind of dimension callout you wanted to use was OK with us. Want to order using your own callouts and part numbers, and ignore ours entirely? Fine. Want us to develop carton quantities unique to your needs? That's OK, we'll probably do it.
You might observe that in a biz like high volume manufacturing, selling to large distributors, that is understood and doable, but it would not stand for a biz doing lots of small accounts. But ThermaTru accommodated everyone, large and small, with this kind of flexibility.
It's an easy to do customer-friendly thing, but open to inviting errors in, imo
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Simple solution.
Don't send them your conversion chart - KEEP IT yourself and use it
You can create it for yourself in any size font you want
Simple solution.
Don't send them your conversion chart - KEEP IT yourself and use it
Don't need one. From years of doing numbers in engineering and surveying, I know all my conversions . . . fractions to decimal, a lot of the mm to inch criscrosses, and decimal feet to feet-inch-fraction.
And MS Excel will do anything else I need to do.
One of the door makers I do biz with has a downloadable product quote and order system, that accepts size input in either fractions or whole-mm metric. Looking as if it was done using Excel, it would be an easy jump to permitting input in decimal inches, then rounding up or down to the nearest sixteenth, if the input was odd.
Conestoga
http://www.maplecraftusa.com/
I have used these folks a few times and never had a problem. Good product and lineup. Good communications.
Welcome to the
Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime.
where ...
Excellence is its own reward!
I use these guys and love them. They do very good work.
http://kendorwood.com/
"I never met a man who didn't owe somebody something."
Precision Wood Products
2456 Aukerman Creek Rd
Camden, OH , 45311-9706
Phone: 937-787-3523
FAX: 937-787-4653
Couldn't find a website for them. It's an Amish shop in Southwest Ohio.
Looked at all of the websites, thanks for the suggestions, they all look pretty good. Now the decision is which wood species to go with. I imported some birch plywood for the cases, plus I'll be using lumbercore (maple skin) as well...
Much appreciated advice,
Scott S