Question
I have a client that wants a mirror mounted on the back wall of his walk-in closet. He wants the mirror to open exposing a shallow depth set of shelves and then close back up to look like it's mounted right onto the back wall... melamine paneling. The size of the mirror will be approximately 40"w x 84"h and will have beveled edges, so probably 1/4" thick.
The action of a Euro style cabinet door hinge would be perfect, where the door opens out and away from the face of the cabinet. Unfortunately I don't think they would be anywhere near strong enough even if I spaced them pretty close together.
I'm thinking of using a heavy duty continuous hinge, but the clearances make it very difficult if not impossible to do. I think in order to have it open a full 90 degrees, I would have to have it stick out too much. I really only have room for a little more than the thickness of the mirror, say 1/2" total. Or the mirror will be in the way of the drawer clearance.
I've also thought of using SOSS hinges, but in this particular situation they would be hard to mount. The wall face is 3/4" melamine, under which is a 3/4" veneer core ply, which would be ideal to mount to.
I've looked through my normal catalogs but haven't found anything that seems suitable. Anyone have experience using a specialty hinge that would fit the bill? Seems like something that would be pretty common, but I can't seem to find a heavy duty solution.
Forum Responses
(Architectural Woodworking Forum)
From contributor S:
I have used Roton hinges for difficult door problems like this. Check the Hagar Roton line catalogue. Many of these gear hinges allow high loads and unique geometry.
I had also looked at the Tectus hinges before and was concerned about the size. I may be able to use the 1" wide version and just have it mounted between the 2 pieces of 3/4". Just seems a bit hairy? I'd be concerned the screw location would get too close to the seam between the panels.
I've never hear of Index-D. I'll have to look them up. What's a ballpark price for one of the Tectus hinges?
I've been brainstorming this all day and I think my best option may be to use a bunch of smaller SOSS hinges. Say 5 or 6 of the 5/8" wide ones. Not ideal, as they would have to be mounted into an MDF edge as opposed to the plywood, but I don't think what I want exists. I'm thinking if I keep the weight of the door frame itself as light as possible, and replace the stock screws with a longer (maybe 2" or so), version, I might be okay. The weight would likely be under 80lbs, so probably doable? Though not having adjustment is a bit of a pain!
I installed some from Sugatsune for a job last year and they are very nice (and pricey) hinges. Much too thick for the job I posted here, though. I ended up using 7 of the smaller SOSS hinges to get that job done!
