Cabinet Manufacturer's Lines
When shopping for cabinets an important thing to be aware of is that most manufacturers offer several cabinet "lines" (usually two or three), and the "lines" are simply cabinet quality grades. This enables the manufacturer to offer cabinets at varying price points to fit varying budgets of consumers. It is in these price points that wood species, construction methods, cabinet features and hardware are grouped by which cost more or less to purchase, manufacture or produce. In the cabinet industry manufacturers use the term "lines" with catchy marketing names, which is deceiving unless they distinguish that their "lines" are not only different types of cabinets but also represent quality. Few cabinet manufacturers actually point this out and they do so by using the words: "Good", "Better" and "Best". That is a very honest presentation and is representative of most cabinet manufacturers that have multiple "lines." If a cabinet manufacturer has only one "line," what you are looking at is one grade of cabinet. A particular cabinet "line" isn't necessarily about good or bad; "Good",
"Better" and "Best" more accurately describes them. Not everyone can afford the Highest Grade (meaning highest quality offered, as the Lowest Grade would reflect the lowest quality offered). You should look at each of these cabinet "lines" as you would with most any other product. You get what your budget will allow you, in relation to how important you feel about the quality and features of the product that you're considering purchasing.
The major differences between the different grades of cabinets are:
The Cabinet Case: the part behind the face of the cabinet.
The Cabinet Face: the part that is used on the front of the Cabinet Case behind the Cabinet Doors.
The Cabinet Door: the style of, and the material that is used.
The Cabinet Drawer: the construction and the material that is used.
The Cabinet Finish: usually only relevant to the face of the cabinet (face frame, doors, and drawer fronts), or the sides of the cabinet case when a plywood upgrade or higher grade cabinet line has been chosen and as an upgrade to open cabinet interiors or when glass doors are chosen.
The Cabinet Hardware: hinges, hinge plates, and the drawer slides (not pulls or knobs).
About the Cabinet Case that most cabinet companies manufacture, unless you order all plywood construction as an upgrade option, if it is available, you will be getting cabinets constructed of particleboard that has a Vinyl or Melamine coating and a simulated wood grain appearance. Even with the plywood upgrade option, the plywood may have the same Vinyl or Melamine coating on it that the particleboard does. This coating isn't a bad thing for the plywood though, because it actually seals the plywood and is an easy to clean sanitary surface. This doesn't mean to just go down the street to a custom cabinet manufacturer and everything will be all right. There are pros & cons with what they manufacture, too. For instance, the majority of the time, as a standard, you will receive Veneered Plywood Finished Ends without the Vinyl & Melamine coating which is a good thing. However, too many times the insides of the cabinets don't have any finish at all, and when it did it was just one coat of sanding sealer which was sanded to not be rough and that was it. Another major difference found in the custom cabinet industry is that the use of plywood is pretty standard. It is usually thicker than what a pre-manufactured cabinet company would typically use which is a plus, but they tend to use a lot less of it in the manufacturing of their cabinets. Even to the point of inferior construction compared to the pre-manufactured cabinet. A lot of "custom cabinet" companies don't even use backs in the cabinets that they build. Consumers that unwittingly purchase cabinets without backs or their home came with them; likely see a sheetrock wall each time they open their cabinets. There are other pros & cons of both the custom and pre manufactured cabinets.