Craftsman Grip Latch drawers

[dps]

Can anyone tell me why the Grip Latch drawers have two catches? As you slide a drawer closed, the latches will spring into a "receptacle" that will hold the drawer in a position that's about one inch from being closed. If you continue to push the drawer, the latches will drop down and rise back up on the back side of these "receptacle" pieces, and now the drawer is fully closed.

To open the drawer you have to lift up on the handle long enough to clear both latching points before you can release the handle or it will re-engage in that one-inch-open position.

Is there any reason that I couldn't modify the cabinet such that the latch only grabbed on the further in, fully closed position?

Thanks,

Dave

[Deafautotech]

i am own the craftsman 40 in wide eight drawers griplatch... i had no problem to open or closed... i just push drawers to closed itself when it is loads... i am rather to use latches instead use detents because it is wear out fast and broke it... my older model KR1200 use detents and it already broke...

[Chris Adams]

Good question.
I notice on one of my chests the 'second' or outer latch doesn't bite well on really small drawers. Still works, but it could open if you were moving the unit with a heavy load in the shallow drawers.

On the top boxes the second outer latch is good for allowing you to close the lid, but still access the drawers with them still latching.
On my intermediate boxes it seems to serve no purpose except maybe as a 'safety' catch.

[Chris Adams]

Forgot to ask, Why do it?
I like the Griplatch on the four units that have it. I like it better than all the other types I have (Mac, Waterloo, Homak,Husky, Kennedy, regular Craftsman) and I wish they were ALL Griplatch.

[dps]

I could see the point of it for a top chest with the lid down, I guess. My mid chest has the Grip Latch and it bugged me too much so I stuck pennies under the handle so they're always in the "open" position and they act like the regular ball bearing drawers (after removing the plastic humps at the back of each slide and replacing just one of them with a slightly shaved down version for just the slightest bit of resistance to opening). But I just got the 40" chest (love it!) and it must be ever-so-slightly be tilted downhill because the drawers started sliding open (after doing the same penny trick) when opening and closing a drawer, so the pennies came back out. But it just bugs me to have to hold the handle up for the first two inches or so of travel.

I'll experiment on covering the first hole that the latch pops into and see what happens...

[dps]

I put some tape over the hole portion of the latch plate, and it works pretty well for eliminating that extra (unnecessary?) stop on the way in and out. Will replace the tape with a thin piece of metal shim to make the latch glide across it better.