I’m debating between:

-RTA made in the USA maple cabinets from Cabinet Joint. Exact fit in our space. About 10k unfinished or 14k painted

versus

-Regular RTA cabinets, plywood and sourced in China, from Cabinet Kings. Stock cabinets so need a few spacers to fill our space. About 9k finished with Sherwin Williams paint.

How hard is it to paint cabinets and get a factory like finish? I’m leaning option 1 — better quality and painting ourselves. My wife sees value in cheaper and already painted — option 2. Thoughts?

I need to put a kitchen in my house that is being renovated and the demand is such that even if I was willing to pay 30k for custom cabinets, none would be available until summer. Some of the cabinet guys also sell a small line of what seem to be more or less RTA cabinets that they will assemble and install for around 20k, but they are so busy they can’t even make that guarantee.

I’ve looked at a few different internet sites and the main difference I can see in the RTAs I can find is that the recessed panel on my shaker doors would be made from MDF instead of wood. I would still get soft close doors and drawers, and dovetailed drawers and .5 inch plywood, lazy susans in the corners and slide out boxes in the base cabinets, 42 inch uppers and a few glass doors if I want them. My final cost would be around 10k (plus my time) and the various sizes available allow me to fit my dimensions perfectly, so I also wouldn’t need filler strips and would still get a “custom” look. Not to mention, they would ship out to me in a week. I’m perfectly capable of putting them together, hanging them and even making some minor modifications (like turning an 18 inch one drawer/one door base into an under sink cabinet for a small prep sink.

I’ll probably pull the trigger this weekend to get the benefit of the MLK day sales, but I’m nervous to even be spending 10k on something sight unseen and I was wondering if anyone had used them and would recommend any particular brand or vendor.

Thanks!