I am a fabricator... and an engineer formerly involved in the design and manufacture of countertop stoneworking machinery.

I operated my shop for 4 years before I had enough business to support the purchase of a $250,000 CNC.

Any decent shop without a CNC necessarily has at least a moderate level of craftsmanship as that is required to do by hand many of the things a CNC does. There are some shops, typically the large "factory" shops run by the quartz manufacturers, that use multiple CNC's and do very mediocre work (or worse). A CNC, at best, can put a decent edge on granite or quartz. Poorly operated CNC's or worn CNC tooling produce finished edges that are noticably inferior.

So .. the lack of a CNC is not necessarily an indicator of an inferior shop. It could simply indicate the difference similar to the difference between a custom cabinet shop with 4 skilled cabinet makers and a larger cabinet shop with 30 employees and a wood CNC.

A small shop run by a real craftsman could be an excellent place to get countertops.

Ask for references from the company so that you can see in person what their work is like.

Thanks so much, that helps a lot. Their work looks fine that is on display except there is a slight difference in the edge work but otherwise I would not have noticed the difference. Good idea to see some installed work.

Oldryder, some very good points. I was hoping you would see this and post your thoughtful and experienced insights. Thanks, that explains a lot and is understandable in layman's terms.

I've seen some pretty horrendous sink cut-outs, so I'd pay attention to that detail.

Could I ask a dumb, partial thread-jacking question? Why does replacing the sink with an identical (I'm assuming) replacement require new granite--Or is the cut-out different? Sorry, I'm planning a kitchen reno and wondering if granite has some peculiar property that vetos sink replacement?

There are zillions of different undermount sinks out there, all with different cutout profiles, i.e. different shaped holes that fit ONLY them. But, the identical sink? No problem for replacement, though why would you need to ever repace it if you chose a good enough quality to marry in the beginning?

Like I said, it's a dumb question--there must be something I'm not getting here. If the OP is replacing a defective sink with the same model--which presumably has the same cut-out--I don't get why she has to replace her counter. And these days, even supposedly "quality" products aren't always, lol!

Well, if the original install involved incorrect install methods, like the use of construction adhesive or epoxy to glue the sink to the granite, or the sink base was too small and had to be ''scooped'', then it's not going anywhere without breaking the stone or dismantling the cabinet beneath it. If it were installed with sink clips or a metal brace type setter, and into a properly sized sink cabinet, it would be relatively easy to change out.

I missed the backstory about the whys and conditions for this particular sink change, so I'm in the dark on why new granite had to be sourced as well.

Thanks everyone, I got my sink from one supplier and the granite from another. Though the sink supplier would replace the sink they would not touch anything to do with installing it. The granite fabricator therefore has no responsibility in this. The sink was cheated into a smaller cabinet because the sink is right at where an angle starts on one side and the dishwasher is on the other side. This allowed for the sink to be put in easily while the COUNTERTOP WAS OFF because the flange underneath extends out past the sides of the cabinet underneath. So there is no way to lift it out without taking the countertop off. It weighs 126 pounds and is also 10 inches deep. The cab below has a post in the middle.

The reason I went outside of the granite supplier sink selection was because they had a very limited selection and none in cast iron.

I really like the sink but in the photo that shows the crack you might also notice that the glaze of the sink is cloudy, this after just cleaning it with Barkeepers Friend. We were told that since EPA regs outlawed a certain chemical used in the glaze etc, there have been failures. The company was wonderful and sent a new sink and I didn't even ask for one. I contacted them to see if they could recommend someone to fix it and they said no they would send a new sink at no cost but the install was up to me. Little did I know the the saga that would ensue.

This should be a post read by all of those people who think it's perfectly "fine" to put a sink into a too small cabinet and then scoop the sides to force it to fit. You aren't the only one who has had to try to retrofit a sink in that situation, unfortunately. Not picking on you, but I see that advice a lot, and I always try to explain why it's a bad idea. Nothing like having an example of why it's a bad idea shown to get the point across.

On the other hand, I had a client whose husband shot a hole in her 5 month old new kitchen sink while cleaning his gun, and $500 new sink + labor later, the whole thing was a funny/bad memory. Because the sink base was the correct size to be able to get to the sink clips, it was an easy remove old and install new.

You are so right live wire oak. I hope my experience will help someone else. I love that quote from Eleanor Roosevelt, "Learn from the mistakes of others, you can't live long enough to make them all yourself." I must say I didn't act alone in this crime, but on the advice that it would be "no problem" from the professionals involved. The install really was no problem at all...not accounting for having to get the sink out later is a huge problem. Live and learn..Thanks so much again.

I am absolutely positive I can replace that sink without removing/replacing that stone.

Pull the dishwasher. Rotozip the side of the cabinet out as required. Pull the sink out the dishwasher hole, reinstall the new; repair the cabinet side and reinstall the dishwasher. I'd beat the cabinet front off if I had to but I'd doubt it would get to that.

Seriously, this is a piece of cake.

I wonder if another option would be to reglaze the old sink in place? I don't know much about it but I've heard that it's possible to have old cast iron bathtubs reglazed.

First of all, while I do think that Treb has the skills to do what he says, I would NEVER EVER allow 99.9% of stone pros to touch any cabinets. For that, I'd want a cabinet guy to do any alterations. Second, for the amount of time to properly support the counter, then do all the carpentry, you are probably coming out cheaper to replace the stone.

''Reglazing'' is a scam. It's a paint job. One that wouldn't hold up at all in a kitchen. Actual reglazing requires cast iron to undergo refiring in a very very hot furnace. And with tighter regulations on lead, and the high cost of shipping, all of the actual reglazers went out of business. There isn't any place left in the US to have cast iron reglazed.

"Second, for the amount of time to properly support the counter, then do all the carpentry, you are probably coming out cheaper to replace the stone."

Replacing the sink in place is without question the most cost-effective action in this case. I'd estimate 6 hours. If gr8day emails me, I could possibly suggest someone; I've got a few connections nationwide.

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