Bottom fix drawer runners.

[pren]

Mornin'.

I'm looking to use some bottom fix drawer runners for a drawer unit that I'm in the process of making.

Stupidly, I've already made the drawers up, origionally planning on using undermounted, 18 x 34mm wooden batons as runners, so there's only 1mm clearance between the drawer sides and the carcass walls, but 40mm between drawer side base and top edge of the one below (drawer front sticks up 38mm to fill the gap).

The drawers are 550mm (d) x 580mm (w) and with a full load of clothes in them, I'm a bit concerned they won't run particularly smoothly . Forward planning at its finest :roll: :lol:

Grooving the drawer sides for side mounted runners would be pretty well impossible without knackering the drawers as the fronts protrude by 15mm on either side. :roll:

I've just been looking at these bottom fix drawer runners from Screwfix.


Question:
In the catalogue pic, are the runners shown as they would be installed? ie> does the drawer sit on the protruding lip, with the body of the runner lying agaisnt the lower edge of the side (between the drawer and carcass wall? Or can they be inverted so the prodruding lip is uppermost, holding up the drawer from beneath? If I used 'non-self closing' runners, could I then invert them?


Hope that makes sense.

Thanks in advance.

Bryn.

 

[dennis]

Pren

You may possibly have the room to put a batten on the underside of the drawer to form a rebate for these runners,you need to check the depth of these runners against the available gap under your drawers and with a bit of luck might just have the room,if not you might be able to rebate a little out of the bottom of the drawer as well.

Dennis

 

[jasonB]

You will need 12.5mm either side of the draw for them, and they cannot be inverted.

Could you not use grove runners into a stopped grove? may be possible by using an overdepth groove if the draw sides are thick enough.

Do you have dust frames? as another way would be to use the ball bearing full extension runners which can be mounted flut under the draw base as well as on the sides of the draw.

Jason

 

[pren]

Dennis; JasonB: Thankyou both for your suggestions/advice! Much appriciated.

Dennis: It took me a couple of re-reads to get your cunning plan through my mental firewall, but yes! Using a batton under the drawer, set in 12.5mm, would work! Genius, Sir! =D>

JasonB: By an oversized groove, I guess you mean one which houses both parts of the side runner? I dare say that probably would have worked, but I've spent ages making the sodding drawers and I wouldn't have put it beyond me to have buggered them all up trying to make a stopped groove! :roll: :lol:

I wasn't aware that the side runners could be mounted flat, tho. Will bear that in mind for next time.

Oh, not using dust frames, btw.

Anyway: having bitten the bullet and assembled the drawer unit with wooden runners to see how they run, I'm fairly pleased to say that they seem to work just fine! I've sanded both faces and the slide over each other smoothly enough.

Thanks again for the help.

Cheers.
Bryn