Adjustable Cabinet Leveling Legs/feet

[Larry Edgerton]

I bought 7 brands recently when I used up the 1000 I bought a while ago and they were no longer made. Of those my choice was from cshardware.com and is part#36.410, plus clips part #36.4175.

Some of the ones on the market look like them in the catalog but the long part of the leg is screwed to the cabinet, not cool. It is weak when tipping up tall cabinets and if your cabinets are close to the ceiling will not allow you to tip them up. What I do is screw on all the bases, or use the hollow bolts in the back to allow for adjustment from the inside, stand the tall cabinets up and using a block and lever lift then, then reach under and insert the legs in the base. The ones with the leg attached to the base will not allow you to do this, nor will they allow you to tip the cabinet up. Regular base cabinets can have the legs popped into the sockets on site and then just flipped up.

The ones I pointed out come with nice strong metal clips and the lower foot pad is like a bearing allowing easier adjustment. Price is slightly more, just a few cents, but worth it in my opinion.

[Craig Andresen]

I recently built an outfeed table for my tablesaw. Since I added a router insert to the far side of it, I wanted to be able to adjust it perfectly level with my tablesaw so material I push through the router doesn't get hung up on the wing of my saw. I found nice long elevator bolts at Lowe's. See link below. I couldn't find an equivalent at Home Depot. I just attached them to a tee nut and they give me plenty of adjustability.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hillman-3-8...r-Bolt/3722632

[Charles Lent]

I use pinball machine feet. A threaded post with a large metal pad (see photo on the website). You can get them very reasonably from http://www.pbresource.com/legs.html You want part number "LEG2" for 2" threaded stem or "LEG3" for 3" threaded stem. $0.90 each plus shipping. Or Phone 845-473-7114 and say hi to Steve for me.

Charley

Why would you use elevator bolts over these? Pinball feet, like the one in the attached photo, swivel slightly to account for very uneven floors, and each can support several hundred pounds. I have found them ideal for supporting and leveling my workbenches, table saw out feed table, parts cabinets, scroll saw stands, etc. and the price is lower than most other adjustable height feet solutions. You need a threaded insert to screw them into, but elevator bolts need them too.

I'm a friend of Steve Young, the owner of PBResource, but have no connections with him or his business. I do buy from him occasionally, and find that these are the perfect solution for leveling my shop equipment.

Charley

[Ryan Yeaglin]

There are many types of adjustable feet out there. If it were me, I'd get a swivel base threaded type foot in 3/8"-16tpi and use a t-nut under the cabinet supported by a cleat. Amazon, many of the woodworking supply places, McMaster-Carr are all places to check out.

[tim walker]

My solution for this is to have the "toe kicks" separate from the cabinets...it's far easier to level a low platform prior to placing the cabinets on top of it. I started doing this when I renovated our kitchen in 2003 out of necessity...brick floor, not level, etc.

Jim, what do you build your bases with? I am assuming 2x4? Thanks

[Jim Becker]

Jim, what do you build your bases with? I am assuming 2x4? Thanks

No, I use .75" plywood for something like this. 2x4 would be serious over-kill and construction lumber isn't exactly stable/straight. Butt joints, glued and screwed and/or pocket screws and glue is more than sufficient for this application.

[tim walker]

Thanks Jim, I have little experience with T-Nuts. I assume they will fit on the plywood for the leveling method used, but how deep of a hole to drill? I guess it depends on how uneven floor is? Is there a standard length bolt that you buy? I also assume 1/4 or 3/8" diameter works?

[Mitch Fenneman]

I haven't used them yet, but I plan to try some of the levelers out from EZ Level. They look super easy to install and use.

[tim walker]

Mitch, looks very interesting. I assume on production cabinets that would speed up install substantially. For my workshop cabinets not sure it is worth $30 per box. FYI these look like or are very similar to the levelers that are on some kitchen appliances. I know my Miele dishwasher has adjustable rear and front feet without removing the DW from the cabinet.

[Ryan Yeaglin]

This would be my go to, but would use the nylon or rubber cover bases to prevent sliding on concrete.

[Charles Lent]

Ryan,

Give Steve at PBResource a call and ask if he has the covers. I've never used them, so never checked to see if he has them in stock. When pinball machines were popular, some locations did want the rubber pads to keep the machines from marring the floors. I haven't had a need for them. In fact, I like the ability to slide my scroll saws around on these metal feet. They don't move on their own, but I don't want to have to lift them when moving them, so the sliding ability is a plus. Before installing the pinball feet, the metal legs would dig into my wood shop floor and make moving the saws very difficult. The pad part of the feet are made with a loose connection to the bolt, so they pivot and tilt to sit flat on the floor, even if the floor is not smooth. The other bonus is that these feet are cheaper than just about any other foot on the market, at $0.90 each plus shipping.

Charley

[tim walker]

Hi all, I am assuming these would screw in to a t-nut. Do you install your t-nut directly into 3/4" plywood or do you add a solid wood side piece and screw into that?Tee-Nut Plywood.jpg

[Charles Lent]

You would be better off to add the solid wood block than to drill the plywood for one of these pinball feet. If 3/4 plywood there just won't be enough of the plywood left between the bolt hole and the surface of the plywood to be very strong. A side push with the foot caught on something would break the surface of the plywood. You really don't want the foot to extend past the side of the cabinet either, yet another reason for adding the block of solid wood under the cabinet for attaching the foot. T-nuts work well in most cases, but not so well if you have the foot screwed out so far that the bolt above the T-nut can't bare against the inside of the bored hole to provide strength in case of a high side load, as in pushing the cabinet sideways. If you have the space in the cabinet design to allow for the 3" bolt length of the longer foot, this would provide more resistance to side forces.

Charley

[Derek Meyer]

I used these for my garage cabinets:

71bgdVsI6gL._AC_SL1500_.jpg

They are rated for 2000 pounds each and will mount to either plywood or dimensional lumber. I bought mine from Amazon but they are available from many different places.

Derek

[Bruce Wrenn]

Leveling feet from washing machines. Dirt cheap, and can take a pounding.