On Mon, 28 Dec 2009 19:40:23 -0800, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:07:56 -0500, the infamous Paul Franklin
scrawled the following:

Folks,

SWMBO wants drop down racks under kitchen cabinets for spices, knives
etc. The kind that are shallow trays that fold up under the wall
cabinets and can be swung down to access the contents. I'm sure I have
seen these racks in some catalog or a another, but all I'm turning up
are cheap plastic ones that get panned in reviews.

I've seen one pull down knife rack but it gets lousy reviews too.

K&V sells a drop down cookbook rack and I found the hinges for it:

http://www.thehardwarehut.com/catalo...p?p_ref=182416

But $33 a pair is pretty steep. I figure I need about 4 of these
racks to do the job.

Anyone have a source for either decent whole assemblies or the hinges
at more reasonable price? Or other ways to accomplish the job?

That's outrageous, huh? Most are $70-130! THUD

Why not build your own? http://fwd4.me/9hL good pic

Here's yet another style.
http://www.overtheedgeproducts.com/ ($28 + s/h, $5 if you build it)

Build a small shelf and notch a board so it hangs right when it's
pulled out. No big deal. A bit of trial and error might cost a few
hours, but I'll bet you had a working unit or four in a day.

Combine the best features of the 3 styles, eh?

But first, ask these big questions:
Do you know anyone who owns one?
If so, do they like it?
And most importantly, do they USE it?

Lots of things look great but aren't really that useful once you get
down to it. Pools, spas, and convertibles (especially in the northern
states) are 3 which come to mind.

Thanks Larry and Leon!

The Family Handyman link listed Lee Valley as a source for the hinge
brackets, but couldn't find it on the web site. Dropped them an email
and within an hour had a reply saying the manufacturer discontinued
them in 2006, but they took the time to surf the web and identify the
KV alternative I already found. Usual A+++ service from LV!

Leon, your suggestion's a good one and I'm going to give it a go
before spending $120 bucks on hardware.

As for the big questions, my first house had 2 of these and they were
great! I think the reason they have fallen out of favor is that they
can interfere with under cabinet lighting, and they don't work on Euro
style cabinets without face frames. (They work, but look extra ugly)
And they reduce the clearance under the wall cabinets. But none of
those issues will be a problem for me.

Thanks gents, for the helpful advice.

Paul F.