Do you have a Lowe's nearby?

They carry Schuler. Schuler/Medallion = same company.

Yes, but sadly they do not carry Schuler's at the Lowes in my region.

There are pros/cons to both:

SOLID PANEL
PROS: more durable, solid feel, consistent finish
CONS: You can have some 'striped effect on center panels, more $$

VENEER PANEL
PROS: less money, no striped effect on center panels
CONS: less durable, finish might age differently around the frame and center panel.

I prefer the solid panel. What's the cost savings between the two?

Potter's Mill is a pretty basic shaker-esque style...Medallion has several other great looking reverse raised panel doors. I love Central Park West because it doesn't have a flat edge where the center panel meets the door frame. That flat "ledge" will catch dirt more. Central Park West has a rounded, routed edge there instead. For some reason, the dust/dirt doesn't collect on it as much. Central Park also has a slightly wider rail...yet not too modern looking. Has a slab drawer though.
Providence is another great looking door.

Here are some pics:
Also...by the way....Medallion just started a FREE drawer guide upgrade for all their lines...including their lower end Silverline series. Might be worth checking out Sivlerline. I'm posting a photo of their McCall door below.

This is Central Park West. Sorry photo is so dark.

Next two photos are Providence. Very transitional door style. Can look country or modern.

This is Medallion's lower end line called Silverline. The cabinet sizes are more limited.

dalcolli...are you still around?

kompy, yes IÂm here, and thank you for replying - I was hoping you would. Unfortunately, I can not see photobucket at work and didn't have time to check last night at home like I usually would, but thank you for posting. I will check tonight.

FWIW, I did realize after first posting this that I was not wanting the Potter's Mill, but the one with wider stiles - Mendocino I think. I had considered the Central Park when I saw it on the website but did not like it as much in person - I prefer the crisper inside edge. However, the dust/dirt issue makes me think I need to revisit.

The cost savings for the veneer door just between the independent guy and Menards - same door, different names - is significant. Menards is $3k less ($19k vs. $16k). There are two other factors.

First, the independent guy repeatedly promises a timeframe for getting answers back to me and has consistently taken about twice as long (he volunteers without prompting from me to have something ready in "20 minutes" or "in 1 week" and then it is always a day or week later, so far he has done this every single time without apology or even acknowledgment). He also offered to rework my design for some price savings  it was terrible. On the phone, he laughed and said he basically ignored most things I specified wanting but did get the price down (turns out he left out some cabinets, too). OTOH, at Menards, I liked the kitchen guy a lot. So, Menards-2 (KD and $$), independent guy-0.

Second factor, Menards offerings are limited. The good news is they do have the veneer version of Mendocino (Sonoma maybe?), they call it Camden and it felt much more solid than the Kabinart veneer I was trying to avoid. The bad news is that they donÂt even offer the solid version. They also limit the cabinet offerings  the main issue there being that I want two tip-up appliance garages and they offer only door or tambour (I dislike both). So now, Menards-2, independent guy-2 (solid door and tip-up).

One of my deciding factors is whether the veneer door will be OK. It would mean the difference of $3k.

And thank you very much for the drawer glide info as I definitely wanted full extension either way  great news!

I understand your dilemma. Have you considered asking the dealer why he is almost 20% more than Menards? That is a pretty big difference. Was the quote apple for apples?

As to his horrible design skills....what do you do????

Let me think about it. I have a client coming in soon, so I need to run. But I'll post back here later. Maybe others can chime in about it.

Kompy

Ps. I have done one kitchen in Sonoma in the past and it was beautiful!!! I wish I had photos! Original owners sold last year, I heard.

Thank you, kompy, for pointing out the dirt/dust issue on shaker-style doors! When I was cabinet-shopping, I wanted to find a door that had a very "shallow" ledge for just this reason. When I mentioned this to cabinet salespeople, they thought I was nuts! So I'd go over to their cabinet displays, run my finger along an edge, and show them how much dust I picked up!

I remember there was one style of cabinet door I saw with an extra-deep edge. I was astonished - who designs these things???

I did end up buying a shaker-style door - the wide shaker from Kraftmaid. Not too deep an edge, and I liked the style enough to put up with some dust. ;-)

Wow, thanks Charlikin,
That's funny about the KD's and the dust story. But to be fair to them, sometimes you just have to experience things yourself. I admit that before I, myself, put in a shaker kitchen....I had no clue about dust/dirt getting imbedded into the ledge area. A routed edge helps. And I think that raised panels help to keep the dust from falling too far as well. Is that a stretch?? :-) But I had a standard raised panel in my last house (KraftMaid Kingsbury Hickory-Sunet) and I didn't notice the dust/dirt getting down into the panels as much. With my cherry shaker? I notice it a lot more.

Kompy

Thanks kompy and charlikin. I've wondered about the dust issue so it is interesting that you would both bring it up.

As for the design skills, it isn't too big a deal really because I have depended more on what I have learned myself, especially from gw, and designed my own layout that is pretty final. I gave him the design and he thought he could rearrange some things but it was a huge disappointment - I wish he hadn't bothered wasting his time on it. I gave the same design (mine) to Menards so they are pretty close comparisons.

The local guy claims to give a large discount to help drum up business (60%) in the area (people have never heard of Medallion here). The Menards discount is listed as 66%. They also have additional sales every 6 weeks or so, the upcoming one being for another 10% off plus free sink base (The $3k lower does not take the additional sale into account). I have thought of speaking to the independent guy about it, but really donÂt know what to say. Do I tell him the discount offered at Menards and ask him if he can match it? Would that be insulting to him? I always feel guilty and nervous about asking people for better pricing (though I will shop around for the best price on everything). That said, that $3k+ means a lot to me as we are already pushing the budget.

How would you prefer to be approached by a customer in this situation?

Kompy...I seem to recall that other KDs here have mentioned that if you have a flat center panel the veneer is often preferred because it will not warp as quickly or as much as solid wood with humidity/temp changes.

I take it that is not your opinion... Do you then think that a solid wood door is more stable than a veneer in changing humidity/temp conditions?

buehl, that is part of what I am wondering as well.

I have not noticed any more warped doors on reverse raised panel doorstyles with my clients. I have them and live in a humid climate...no warped doors. If other KD's prefer veneer, I am interested in hearing about that. This would also suggest that raised panel doors warp more often? Again, I have not noticed any more with one way or the other.

However, I have had two clients that chose the veneer panel (budget constraints) and complained about more of a rattly and/or clonky noise when closing doors. That was before soft close was invented. I'm sure soft close hardware would help that.

I had originally intended to get Potter's Mill with the veneer inset. I brought a sample door home and the difference in color between the veneer center and the solid border was very obvious--the center was quite a bit lighter. I switched to the solid center (I can't remember the name--maybe Bayside?). Then I decided I liked the wider stile, so switched to Sonoma. Then I decided I wanted the routed edge inside the frame to reduce the collection of dust/dirt so I switched to Central Park West. (I'm sure I was kind of a pain to work with, but I was ordering a LOT of cabinets so no one complained.) While I can see some of the "striping" that is a result of having solid wood in the center instead of veneer, it is much less noticeable than the center being a diffent color, and the doors feel really substantial. The cabinets are lovely, and the finish is really beautiful. I got painted Potter's Mill in my laundry room and like the wider stile on the Central Park West much, much better.

sally123, this has been my exact thinking about the wider stile and solid door. And kompy already has me really considering the Central Park West.

Kompy, I finally got a chance to look at your posted pictures at home - they are gorgeous!! Thanks!

Thanks dalcolli-
Did you ever order your cabinets? What did you decide?
Kompy