RTA cabinet boxes only?

11 years ago

I'm looking for an RTA cabinet company that will sell me just the box (no doors, drawers or face frame), made from formaldehyde- free 3/4" plywood.

I have a friend who is a very talented woodworker, and we had talked about having him build my kitchen cabinets. Unfortunately, he needs to make a living, and I can't afford to have him build what I really want.

We had planned to do inset doors and drawers out of a beautiful figured big leaf maple (native to our area), and do the face frame out of walnut.

The wood for the face frame and the inset doors/drawers is not actually that expensive. So now we're talking about buying RTA cabinet boxes and pre-made drawers, and having him build and attach the face frame and drawer fronts, install the drawer slides & do the installation.

He's working up an estimate of his time for that, and I'm working on finding an RTA cabinet box that will work with this plan. There seem to be quite a few RTA cabinet companies around, but I'm wondering if any of them specialize in providing just the box.

If any of you out that have done this sort of thing, and/or have a recommendation for a good company, please let me know.

I have been looking at CabParts, and have called twice to ask a few questions. The prices for their stock materials seem quite reasonable, but the material I want will be a special order, and I don't yet know how that will affect the cost

Also, I would really prefer to work with a more local company. I live in Oregon, so if I could find something in the Northwest would be my preference.

Featured Answer

redtartan

11 years ago

Have you considered building them yourself? The formaldehyde-free 3/4 plywood is easily accessible (we paid $50/ 4' x 8' sheet in Ontario, Canada). All you really need is a table saw and a kreg jig. It took longer to stain and varnish than it did to cut and build the cabinets. We're handy, but this was the first time we ever built our own cabinets.

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Comments (9)

catbuilder
11 years ago
The boxes are the inexpensive part. Your friend could probably do it just as cheap as an RTA company. If you're planning on assembling them yourself, you could instead help your friend assemble them to save some there.
Anne thanked catbuilder
adja
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
Hello! Since you live in Oregon the one company that came to my mind was barker cabinets. They are located near Portland and do RTA. Check their website and email the owner chad barker. He might be able to help you. Good luck
Anne thanked adja
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User
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
No one is going to be able to build what you want cheaper than your local guy. If you can't afford that, then put the project off until you save more to make it doable. Or, lower your requirements. You have some pretty high end requirements that do not at all mesh with RTA or DIY.
Anne thanked User
sheloveslayouts
11 years ago
I'd email Barker in Tualatin
Anne thanked sheloveslayouts
steph2000
11 years ago
I third the recommendation for Barker's. You can get on their website and create your boxes and see what it would cost, in fact.
Anne thanked steph2000
weedyacres
11 years ago
Barker was cheaper than "my local guy" for doors by about 25%.
Anne thanked weedyacres
Anne
Original Author
11 years ago
Catbuilder, I probably could do that, but assembling the RTA cabinets that I'm looking at just requires a screwdriver. If my friend does the cutting & such, we would have to drill the holes for doors & drawer slides, then they would probably have to be glued up & I'm not confident that I could get them square. I've assembled a lot of furniture though, and I am confident of that part. Plus, its really a matter of being able to afford his time. The materials are not expensive at all.

I looked at Barker. I guess I need to call and ask how to order without
doors and drawer fronts, because there doesn't seem to be a way to do
that on their website.

Sophie, I'm not going to have any more money later. I know that what I
want is considered high end, and I am not complaining that my friend
needs to make a living. I just can't afford to pay him to do the part I
can probably do by myself. I am hoping I can afford to have him do the
face frames and door/drawer fronts & the installation (which I can help with). If not, I
will probably go with a full-overlay. Right now though, I'm still
trying to figure out a way to get what I want and still be able to
afford a countertop to put on top of the cabinets. ;-)

Little Monkey, I did think about building them myself. I probably will build a few of them, because it would be difficult to get what I want otherwise, but doing the whole thing is a bit overwhelming for me. (See my first comments to Cat Builder.)
Anne
Original Author
11 years ago
I contacted Barker, but they don't do just the cabinet box - only the whole thing, door & drawer included.