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kksmama

What is the deal with long pulls?

kksmama
10 years ago

Have I made a mistake in using wide drawer banks (30, 35, and 36")? I started looking at pulls and thought it would be nice to have them around 10 or 12" - rule of thirds is something I've heard around here somewhere - but OUCH! These lovely Amerock candler pulls are a totally reasonable $6-$7 in lengths up to 160mm, and then $40 for 203mm and $52 for 12"!


Can anyone suggest something similar that isn't so expensive in longer lengths? Is it weird and unusual to have such wide drawers?

Comments (31)

  • annkh_nd
    10 years ago

    I have one stack of drawers 34" wide - I'm going to put two 6" pulls on each of those drawers.

    Even if you do bite the bullet and get long pulls - the extra $30 per drawer is a LOT less than you would spend if you did two 15" stacks instead of one 30". And you get more storage space in the bargain.

  • kksmama
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I dunno - if I had two 15" 4 drawer stacks I could use eight 5" pulls - cost would be about $50. But for four 10" pulls on a 30" stack I'll pay $160? Not that $110 is a big deal in the scheme of a kitchen remodel...but we all know how easy it is to $100 and $200 our way to being way over budget :(
    I might feel better if I understood the "why" - but I'd probably still have to whine wine over it.

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Kk, I don't know about the quality of Hickory Hardware compared to Amerock hardware, but my Hickory pulls were not expensive. My largest pull was 12" and they were $15.57 each. I only got a few of those. Mine were the Greenwich collection.

    I got mine at WoodworkersHdwe.net. I checked the price of the Amerock, but it was more expensive.

    Peke

  • beachlily z9a
    10 years ago

    I have a bunch of 33" drawers and used 6" double pulls on all of them. The cost was reasonable and they look great. I used the same brand, and my pulls may even be identical to those you are considering.

  • kam76
    10 years ago

    I personally kinda like the look of two pulls on the bigger drawers...reminds me more of furniture. Just my two cents. :)

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Here is my stainless steel Greenwich pull.

    Kk, are you looking for zinc, brass, ????

    Are you wanting stainless steel or satin nickel?????
    Peke

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Pops, that last pic was Greenwich, but not mine.

  • Holly- Kay
    10 years ago

    I did two six inch pulls on my 36 inch drawers and love the way it looks. Actually the four inch pulls would have been adequate for everything except the dw and that would have been fine with a six inch pull. My six inch pulls were almost twice the price of the 4 inch pulls and an appliance pull was ten times the cost. The good thing is I only needed one appliance pull and eight 6 inch pulls. A word of advice, you don't need an appliance pull for the dishwasher like I did. It is one of the very few things I don't like so far. That pull is one honking big hunk of metal. It works great but it is way too big IMO.

  • kksmama
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you, Peke! Your pulls look great, and I love the prices at woodworkershdwe.net! I'm thinking satin nickel.

    This may be another case of not knowing what I really like -in my head it is one thing (long single pulls) but I remember loving holly-kay's pulls and beachlily's picture is lovely, too. I think we're still waiting to see annkh's kitchen (hint!) but I'm sure it will be gorgeous.

    Holly-kay, I remember you saying the pulls are the kitchen's jewelry, which is what led me to consider glass knobs and more dressy pulls than the streamlined arcs I'd first thought I wanted. I'm glad there are so many options, I just wish I didn't have to try every single one out in my head before making a decision!

  • annkh_nd
    10 years ago

    We're all waiting to see my kitchen, kksmama! My cabinetmaker had some equipment problems at the shop, so they weren't able to start "slicing and dicing" my lumber until last week. I don't have an install date yet, but I'm assured installation will be complete by Aug 9. Then I'll have a couple of weeks before counters are installed.

    I promise in-progress pics! The bare kitchen (albeit freshly painted) isn't much to see.

  • bpath
    10 years ago

    Question about 2 pulls on a drawer: in a kitchen, don't you almost always use just one hand to open a drawer? If the pull is out to the side, the force you exert on the drawer glides is uneven, right? Is this bad long-term?

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Kk, I love this one. Amerock Abernathy. Antique nickel and satin nickel. Peke

  • dljmth
    10 years ago

    I have a couple 33" drawer stacks and used an 8" pull. I was concerned it wasn't long enough and considered double 6" ones as the ones I wanted didn't come in 10". But, I thought that realistically I would only use one to open the drawer so I should just install one. I think it actually looks OK. I suggest blue taping it out on your cabinets to see what it will look like.

  • kksmama
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Peke,I love that, too! You may be the "Karin" of hardware! Is it wishful thinking on my part, or does that knob fit my vision of elegant yet comfortable and classic yet modern?

    Laurat88, your blue is so pretty! Your island handles look great and play nicely with the micro.

    If I stay with the candler, I'll have to choose 8" or 12" centers (10" or 15" long) for the 30s, and use 12" for the 36. I guess I'll use the 12" for the 42" long piano hinged cabinet over the fridge, too. The 18" is $68, sheesh! Or maybe knobs go there, 2 of them?

    WHY, Amerock?! One inch increments at reasonable prices (4, 5, and 6") but then 8, 12, and 18" at price points that gap even more?!

  • Linda
    10 years ago

    I'm not even close to thinking about pulls yet (awk! one more decision!), but I have noticed that IKEA has a lot of very large ones at extremely good prices. Does anyone know how they compare quality and appearance wise? Has anyone used them?

  • bpath
    10 years ago

    Legallin, my friend uses a long Ikea pull as a kitchen towel bar and it has been holding up for a few years now.

  • hortonbrass
    10 years ago

    I can answer the why.

    1. You don't get nearly the yield in production on a big pull. Most large pulls are made via some form of casting. This means hot metal is poured into a mold-larger pulls will not pour as well as small ones. The metal cools as it flows into the mold-if it doesn't fill in all the way then you scrap it (melt it down with your next batch).

    2. After the raw casting is complete-the secondary operations take far longer simply because there is so much surface area, and so many corners, that need attention.

    3. The time spent finishing larger pulls is exponentially larger than smaller pulls. Regardless of the finish process an individual company uses; it takes much longer to apply the finish on big pulls simply because the are finished in smaller batches. For example, we can finish 50 knobs in a batch but our largest appliance pulls (15") are done one at a time.

    4. Large pulls do use more raw materials, which does affect the price, but not nearly as much as you would think.

    None of this is bad-it just takes longer, which equates to more expensive.

  • jellytoast
    10 years ago

    laurat88, how did you measure for your drawer pulls placement? Did you measure equally from the top on all the drawers, or center the pulls on the smallest drawers ... ? It is hard to tell from your pics, but it looks nice that way.

  • kksmama
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you, Hortonbrass. It does help to understand the rationale. I got to see the candler pulls and Abernathy knob today, and with some compromises (I'll use the 160mm on my 30" drawers, and "only" have to buy 12 or 13 of the oversized ones) and Peke's internet dealer, the final price isn't awful. I'm super excited about the knobs, thanks again, Peke!

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Yay! I am glad you are getting what you want. I love the Abernathy. Peke

  • mrspete
    10 years ago

    I'd like to second Bpathome's question: if you use two pulls, but you end up using just one to open the drawer most of the time, will this harm the drawer long-term?

    This would matter to me, and I'd like to hear from the experts.

  • Holly- Kay
    10 years ago

    KK, I loved the Candler. It was the top contender in the Amerock line. I was going to use the chocolate bronze. I really loved it but I really wanted solid brass so I kept looking. I think it is such a classic beauty and I know you will love it.

  • dljmth
    10 years ago

    jellytoast - mine are all 3" from the top of the drawer. Since the first drawer is 6" it is in the center of the drawer. I like that I don't have to bend down so much to reach the middle of the cabinet. My GC said that because we had sturdy high quality cabinets that it was OK to do that way (the cabinet maker prefers it that way). The GC mentioned that with some less substantial drawer fronts it is sometimes better to center of the drawer to distribute weight.

  • ginny20
    10 years ago

    On pulling only one of the two pulls - I asked my cab maker this, and he said it wouldn't be a problem. Probably because he too builds sturdy, high quality cabinets. Also, the glides work with so little force. I had two knobs on my previous 50-year-old Wood Mode drawers, and I often pulled only one. No damage.

  • jellytoast
    10 years ago

    laurat88, do you think that slab drawers would fall into that "less substantial" realm that would require me to put the pulls in the center?

  • ginny20
    10 years ago

    My Woodmode were slab fronts. I think it's more about the construction than the style.

  • dljmth
    10 years ago

    Agree with Ginny20. I think it depends of the construction rather than the style. Also, as Ginny points out, if the slides are really good then pulling on one knob of two knobs on a drawer front shouldn't be an issue. I suppose however, if you had a super heavy drawer (stacked with pounds of dishes) it might be an issue, but I'm guessing that is not how you will be using the drawers.

  • chicgeek
    10 years ago

    We used 2 pulls on each of our 30" drawers. They look great and are easy to pull. And I rarely find myself reaching for just one handle.

  • better2boutside
    10 years ago

    Top Knobs has several handles that are 12" wide CC- very reasonable priced. I have these on my 30" wide drawers (1 piece centered)- the finished length is 14" wide.

    Check out the Sanctuary, Sanctuary II, but Passport lines if you want something more traditional

    Here is a link that might be useful: Top knobs-Sanctuary II

  • withoutanh
    10 years ago

    In answer to the query about IKEA handles, we used Metrik pulls. The kitchen is 5 years old and the pulls look like new.

    We have 8 3/4 in pulls on 32 in drawers, centered, and they look fine. Sorry, but I'm not able to send pictures.

    HTH,
    Sara

  • DreamItCanBe
    10 years ago

    We also used 2 pulls on the wide banks of drawers. It's been 2 years and no problems! I forgot about this decision until I read your post - but cost was certainly a factor in our decision as well!!