Two kitchens can look identical in a showroom and be ten years apart in how they age. The difference is under the paint. Here is what Luke checks.

Open a drawer and look at the box

A good drawer box is solid wood or Baltic birch plywood with dovetailed or doweled corners, at least half an inch thick. A cheap one is stapled particleboard with a plastic-wrapped face. Pull the drawer all the way out. If it wobbles side to side or the bottom flexes, walk away.

Check the glides and hinges

Full-extension, soft-close undermount glides rated at 75 pounds or more are the standard now. Side-mount glides with visible ball bearings are a step down. Hinges should be six-way adjustable European cup hinges. Ask the brand. Blum and Grass are the names you want to hear.

Knock on the cabinet box

Plywood boxes sound solid and hold screws for decades. Particleboard boxes are heavier, sound dull, and crumble around a screw the third time a hinge is adjusted. Both are common. Plywood costs a little more and is worth it on every sink base and every cabinet that holds weight.

Look at the paint on the edge of a door

A factory finish should be smooth on the edges and inside the panel profile, not just the flat face. Runs, orange peel or thin coverage in the corners mean the finish line was rushed. A painted door should feel like glass.

Ask two questions

First: is the face frame and door solid wood, and which species? Maple is the answer for paint. Second: what is the warranty on the finish, and does it cover peeling at the joints? A confident answer to both usually means a good cabinet.

What Luke does with them

Even a good box needs a good install. Level, plumb, shimmed to the wall, scribed where the wall is not straight, and trimmed with crown and light rail so it reads as built-in. That is the difference between the kitchens on this site and the same cabinets installed by a delivery crew.

How to Tell Good Cabinets From Bad Ones Before You Buy