Horizontal grain is one of the fastest ways to make a slab or slim-shaker kitchen read modern — a long, unbroken grain line across a run of drawers and doors. Shiloh and Eclipse offer it, but only on two door styles, and there are a few rules that affect the drawings. Here's everything you need before you quote it.
Which door styles
Horizontal and vertical grain options are available on Metropolitan and Napa door styles only. To specify, select the door and drawer style on your Order Cover Sheet or in 2020 Design Flex:
| Vertical grain | Horizontal grain | |
|---|---|---|
| Door | METRO-V / NAPA-V | METRO-H / NAPA-H |
| Drawer head | DF-METRO-V / DF-NAPA-V | DF-METRO-H / DF-NAPA-H |
The newer Pacifica and Ventura styles also offer vertical or horizontal grain on their drawer fronts; see that post for their rules.
Rules that change your drawings
- Horizontal grain applies to doors, drawer fronts, and decorative door end panels only. Cabinet finished ends stay vertical grain.
- Want horizontal grain on the cabinet sides? Use Decorative Door End Panels — that's the recommended way to carry the horizontal look around an island or the end of a run.
- Some height SKUs aren't available in vertical-grain cabinetry. Check the individual cabinet page in the spec book before you lock the elevation.
- Size limits on horizontal-grain doors. Horizontal-grain Metro and Napa doors aren't available above the sizes in the table below. If you go above them, the door is built as two doors pinned together with a standard reveal (3/16″ gap) between them — which interrupts the continuous grain line your client is paying for. Design around it, or show the client the seam in the drawings.
Horizontal-grain door height availability
| Species / material | Up to 48″ tall | Up to 60″ tall |
|---|---|---|
| Alder | Yes | No |
| Cherry | Yes | No |
| Hickory | Yes | No |
| HPL | Yes | Yes |
| Maple | Yes | No |
| Red Oak | Yes | No |
| S.A. Poplar | Yes | No |
| Walnut | Yes | No |
| Recon. Walnut | Yes | No |
| Recon. White Oak | Yes | No |
| Qtr. Sawn White Oak | Yes | No |
| Rift Cut White Oak | Yes | No |
| TFL | Yes | Yes |
| PV | Yes | No |
Bottom line: in real wood species, plan horizontal-grain doors at 48″ tall or less. HPL and TFL go to 60″. Tall pantry doors above those heights will be split into two pinned doors.
Questions
- Pinnacle Sales — send the elevation through Submit a Request and we'll flag any door that will split before it goes to the client.
- W.W. Wood Products customer service — 573-624-3526 or customer.service@wwinc.com.