5 Responses to “Safety 1st 48447 Spring ‘n Release Latches 3 Pack”

1. Amanda J on January 28th, 2010 1:57 am

   agree with the other reviewers that there is a serious design flaw (you have to push the latch down to close the drawer) and that the flaw was so obvious that I only tried installing one before returning all of the ones I had bought. These are awful.

   I instead used the Safety 1st wide latches (pack of 7) which don’t have great reviews on Amazon, but were easy to install, and work well for me. They are not spring loaded.
   Rating: 1 / 5

2. Kargs on January 28th, 2010 3:26 am

   I’ve bought tons of stuff on Amazon and this is the first time I ever felt the need to post a review to warn people away from something.

   These latches look fine but have a fundamental design flaw. The slope where the two plastic pieces come together isn’t correct. If you position the pieces properly so the drawer won’t open unless the latch is pushed down to clear the lip, then the drawer won’t close smoothly on it’s own. You have to push the latch down when you’re CLOSING the drawer as well, which clearly isn’t what people are expecting (or what the designers intended). I tried many tiny adjustments in the positioning and found none where the drawer closed smoothly but remained secure when closed.

   Insanely bad design. If the plastic pieces were sloped just a bit differently, it would work fine. What were they thinking?
   
   Rating: 1 / 5

3. Unbiased Reviewer on January 28th, 2010 3:37 am

   Pros:
   
   None except: function of first installed latch was so poor it was obvious they could not be used. This saved me the trouble of having to install / uninstall more than one latch.

   Cons:
   
   1) almost impossible to align; tip of latch changes locations as you tighten screws because soft plastic distorts. If tightened prior to plastic distortion then latch is loose / unsecured.

   2) latch is too short. My hands or medium sized and I cannot fit my fingers in between door and frame. I needed a tool to press down on latch.

   3) screws too short. They were sufficient length to install latch but not for catch. Catch had to installed upside down.
   Rating: 1 / 5

4. L. Marine on January 28th, 2010 3:42 am

   Got these because they were the only ones at the store. They looked good in the package, but looks were deceiving. They are really difficult to install correctly, and I have lots of experience working with wood and cabinets. They are made of a light weight plastic that distorts when tightening the screws, causing the latch to go out of alignment. Alignment is critical. If the latch is a little low, it doesn’t catch. A little high and it jambs against the catch and breaks off. I’ve replaced about half of the latches in about a year’s time. I’m replacing them now with sturdier latches from another manufacturer.

   I do not recommend. Moreover, I am more critical of any product from this company.
   
   Rating: 2 / 5

5. Ambrogio on January 28th, 2010 4:13 am

   My cabinets are wood – maybe harder than pine – but still wood. The screws provided in the kit to install the latches actually couldn’t handle the torsional stress needed to put them into the wood. I now have two bits imbedded into the inside of my rather expensive kitchen cabinets. Hidden – yes – however… how hard is it to provide real screws. On the plus side, I can now open my cabinet door with a strong magnet. Avoid this product… and it you have it already… go down to the store with the screws and pay the money for real hardware.
   Rating: 1 / 5

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