Ikea cabinetry success

[mlang905]

Hi Folks,

I am thinking about taking out all of the old 1970s beat up cabinetry in our 73 Overlander and putting in more modern cabs. I am curious if anyone has had much success with installing IKEA cabinetry. I was reading about some of the work that SmokelessJoe was doing (great job, I might add), but am also curious if anyone else has gone this route.

Some thoughts:

1) Fairly cheap
2) Attractive design
3) Able to be cut down
4) Might be really heavy if I do not lighten it a bit
5) Dimensions are not necessarily built for trailer storage

What do you all think?

[FreshAir]

I would not do it. Airstream builds it's cabinets to be a light as possible. Ikea and most other cabinets on the market are way too heavy for your AS. The weight will add up quickly and for one be difficult on TVs and more importantly will destroy your coach. Think 'light' as possible
Neil

[HowieE]

Aside from weight the Ikea cabinets are mad of "Flake Board" and screws in it will not hold up to the road vibration. The doors hinge screws will be the first to go. Screws or bolts through the material into metal may work but any screw into the cabinet material itself will pull out in no time.

[Jim Foster]

By the time you modify the Ikea stuff to fit, you could make much lighter cabinets out of good material that would fit the space properly. No particle board to come apart as you go down the road..

Use the old cabinets as patterns to get the proper curve etc. You may be able to even use some of the hardware, or use new of your choosing.

I think you will be happier with the result.

[Pschoerrn]

Hi, there is a whole thread about Sergej's work on his Argosy Trailer and he used the Ikea Cabinets as far as I know... Read it and ask him Question, he is a very nice guy!

Greats,

BJoern

[fotochop]

-although I re-did my entire kitchen with Ikea medium-brown Adel and LOVE it, it does seem too heavy for Airstream use. I would lean more toward solid 1/2" solid ply glued boxes if possible. You could still get some serious cost savings with Ikea hardware (much higher quality now than 20 years ago, btw) and my wife just loaded our Safari up with lightweight, stylish dinnerware, storage, and bath supplies...oh and sheet

[LHall]

Originally Posted by mlang905

Hi Folks,

I am thinking about taking out all of the old 1970s beat up cabinetry in our 73 Overlander and putting in more modern cabs. I am curious if anyone has had much success with installing IKEA cabinetry. I was reading about some of the work that SmokelessJoe was doing (great job, I might add), but am also curious if anyone else has gone this route.

Some thoughts:

1) Fairly cheap
2) Attractive design
3) Able to be cut down
4) Might be really heavy if I do not lighten it a bit
5) Dimensions are not necessarily built for trailer storage

What do you all think?

We have installed Ikea cabinets in our Kitchen (ABSTRAKT Red) and they are awesome! Additionally, we have used them in one of our rental properties as well as our laundry room. We have found them to be incredibly durable and easy to install. They are made much better than anything you can purchase from one of the big box home improvement stores and the price is unbeatable. All of that being said, I would hesitate to put them into an AS due mainly to the weight. If you were only going to install a few cabinets you might get by with it, but my opinion is that they would be too heavy.

[utee94]

There are lots of ways to mimimize their weight. Segei explores this fairly extensively in his thread on the Comtemporization of his Argosy. Following those methods, I don't think that the increase in weight will be that significant.

For me, the main concern is not weight, but durability. I, too, have Ikea cabinets in my home's kitchen and I love them. But my home's kitchen doesn't bump along the road at 60 mph. I am really interested to see how Sergei's cabinetry performs over time.

I love Sergei's installation and think it is functional and beautiful. Only time will tell if it is durable. He's a very nice guy, and I have no doubt he will openly and honestly communicate his findings over time. He knows that he is somewhat of a guinea pig in this endeavor. Personally, I'd wait until he has at least one full season of travel under his belt before following suit.

And, not to speak on behalf of the OP, but I think this is something he was trying to get at-- does anyone have any long-term, practical experience with this type of installation? Sergei has just completed his trailer, and Jacob D is still in the process of renovation, so neither one of them has any experience yet with the cabinetry over time.

Does anyone else?

Anyway, to the OP, Good luck!

-Marcus

[muddy_hollow]

I agree with the majority of the responses that the cabinet bases are not good for replacements because of weight and material. But, the cabinet doors aren't so bad. You might consider having some carcasses made and then use the hinges and doors from Ikea.

I've used odds-n-ends from IKEA. My since is from there and the odd light, but I would not use most of their stuff in my airstream.

HTH,

Doug

[Ramp]

I just started taking apart my 1970 Safari. The faces are made of oak but the framework is thin oak plywood. Looks like 1/8 inch. All the frame work for the couches and beds are trhe same with some thin sheet alum. added. They went the lightest they could looks like to me. Must have been a good job it has lasted 38 years.

[craftsman]

Ikea in Swedish= landfill. Here's another opinion for someone who has installed a lot of different brands over the past 35 years and custom built a quite few . Ikea is overprice junk.

[Mike S]

I am thinking fo replacing my Argosy cabinets with one I would make from Sitka spruce frames and styles, with 3/8" Baltic Birch ply wood. I have studied the current AS cabinets and they are not only light, they are fragile and of poor quality.

The small size and relative simplicity of the cabinet layout would mean an easy job of building and replacing the original units. Besides, I do not like ankle level Tambour sliders.

M

[random 17]

How durable are the new Airstream cabinets supposed to be? I went over some rough road and off road stuff at relatively low speed this weekend only to find one of my cabinet doors completely off and screws and hinges loose.

[Janet H]

I don't have any recommendation about Ikeas stuff, but if you do decide to pull out the old stuff, someone might be interested in it for their restoration or repair. Put a note in the classifieds and see if anyone bites.

Shouldn't yours still be under warranty??