Best cabinets - Heat Pump/Air Handler

If you got enough money, you can have one custom built out of stainless steel.

to answer your question....Aaon

Let me repharse it. Of the major consumer brands who has the best cabinets? (ie Carrier, Trane, Lennox, York, Goodman, Ruud, etc). Or is it a crap shoot?

Carrier...same as Bryant both owned by United Technologies Trane...same as American-Standard both owned by American-Standard Ruud and Rheem... same unit owned by same manufacture (I think XLR) Lennox and York...same owners Goodman and Amana same owners

Doesn't really matter what brand, what matters is the quality of the installation. If the finish gets a little powdery or starts to weather, a coat of some good automotive paste wax will usually restore a "like new" appearance.

when did Johnson Controls purchase Lennox??

do your own damn homework. some manufacturers offer composite bases for their condensers, some are metal. Some have heavier guage galvanized steel than others. Only one goes to the trouble of baking a powder coat finish on the lowly screws holding the cabinet together. Some have copper aluminum coils that rot out rather quickly in coastal corrosion areas, some have all aluminum coils that dont rot out.