undermount slides

[eag111]

I'm planning some kitchen cabinets and am considering using blum tandem undermount slides. Anyone have anything good/bad to say about them? And do I need the drilling template to install them? It costs about $60, I think, and I'm only planning 5 drawers at this point. Thanks, Eric

[mark scheidt]

Eric,

I find the action on the slides to be very smooth, and the self closing mechanism works well. If you have it in the budget, the "Blumotion" slow closing option is very impressive, although I cannot speak to this feature's durability, good or bad. One or two minor complaints that may or may not be of importance to you...when the drawer is fully extended, it tends to move easily from side to side. (I hesitate to call this a wobble) Also, you lose a bit of drawer depth, but that's the price to pay for hiding the hardware from sight. Overall, I really like them.

You definitely do not need the drilling template. If you want, you can make one of your own. You can use Blum's spec's to properly notch the drawer back and drill the holes for the "pin" that each runner has.