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What is the most commonly used width for the rails and stiles on shaker cabinets?
On the drawer front, at what point do you abandon the rail and stile construction and use a slab of wood? The image below shows the top drawers using slabs.
![[Image: a4f00df6c7ea49e017b9ad5c1d21a938.jpg]](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a4/f0/0d/a4f00df6c7ea49e017b9ad5c1d21a938.jpg)
But in this picture they are showing reduced width rails to accommodate the smaller drawer:
![[Image: dayton-urban-stone-10343-inside-corner-400.jpg]](https://www.cliqstudios.com/images/dayton-urban-stone-10343-inside-corner-400.jpg)
I will be using almost all drawers for the lowers (except under the sink).
Any help would be appreciated.
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Its a matter of taste somewhat. At some point the rails and stiles versus the size of the panel starts to get aesthetically unpleasant for me. Both of your examples look fine to me. If the drawers in the second pic were 20" wide the top drawer would look awkward BUT, as I say, it is a matter of taste.
When I was young I sought the wisdom of the ages. Now it seems I've found the wiz-dumb of the age-ed.
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(05-06-2020, 11:37 AM)GeeDub Wrote: Its a matter of taste somewhat. At some point the rails and stiles versus the size of the panel starts to get aesthetically unpleasant for me. Both of your examples look fine to me. If the drawers in the second pic were 20" wide the top drawer would look awkward BUT, as I say, it is a matter of taste.
OK. I found some references online.
Traditional rail an stile = 2.25"
Modern = 2.5" to 3.0"
Drawer front: 6" or less = slab, otherwise rail and stile like cabinet drawers.
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I think the dividing line should be: if the vertical height of the panel would be less than or equal to the width of the rails, you should go with a slab.
JMHO
DC
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05-06-2020, 01:59 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-07-2020, 07:42 AM by Cooler.)
(05-06-2020, 01:04 PM)DCarr10760 Wrote: I think the dividing line should be: if the vertical height of the panel would be less than or equal to the width of the rails, you should go with a slab.
JMHO
DC
That would mean:
rail: 2.25"
Panel: 2.25"
2nd rail: 2.25"
Minimum width 6.75"
I do see some where the rails are made narrower to accommodate the narrow width (the second picture in the first post illustrates that). It does not look too bad there.
This looks worse (and why the heavy seams between the rails and stiles?:
![[Image: Shaker-Cabinet-Drawer-Pull-Handles-Cente...p-Rail.jpg]](https://truepositiontools.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Shaker-Cabinet-Drawer-Pull-Handles-Centered-Top-Rail.jpg)
On this one they narrowed the rails, not as badly as I've seen in others, but it kills the proportions:
![[Image: Everyday-Cabinets-36-inch-White-Shaker-3...icy=medium]](https://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/12315230/Everyday-Cabinets-36-inch-White-Shaker-3-Drawer-Base-Kitchen-Cabinet-9555b8ba-c6be-4ceb-9836-45cb64ed4ec8_600.jpg?impolicy=medium)
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Only pic of my "new" kitchen I could find (its 20 years old now). Rails/stiles 2.25", drawer front 6.75"
