Credit is due to Southco:
BCC28 #116 (Zygote) is fitted, along with several of
her sister-ships, with Southco flush pull latches on
cabinet doors and drawers.
Zygote has 11 of the Southco latches. They are Southco
model M1-64; the model number is specific to the
colour (black), the thickness of the panel in which
they are inserted (22 mm), latch composition (a
polycarbonate/polyester blend with passivated series
300 stainless steel pins), and whether they have an
integral key lock (no). The latches have a one year
warranty (Zygote’s latches are 2 years old).
The point of all this is that two weeks ago I
discovered that one of the latches had cracked. I
don’t know why and still cannot figure out how it
happened. I contacted my local distributor for Southco
products (Gripwell Fastenings (Malaysia)); they quoted
me USD26 per latch and a minimum order of 5. I was
reluctant to add four pricey latches to a locker, so I
e-mailed an inquiry to Southco’s global customer
support center.
I was very pleasantly surprised at the response:
Southco was prepared to mail free of charge to me in
Malaysia, two M1-64 latches. I have requested instead
that Southco send the latches to a friend of mine in
NY, from whom I’ll pick them up next week when I’m in
the US.
I’m impressed with the manufacturer’s response. aI
recommend the Southco latches to anyone considering
latches. And I compliment Sumio (and Roger before him)
on having chosen to equip Zygote and her sisters with
quality equipment from quality manufacturers.
The Southco M1-64 latches are easy one-hand open and
close jobs. The only maintenance needed has been a
little fine-tuning of the keeper bar, to remove play
from closed cabinet doors. As always with
polycarbonate products, avoid contact with alkaline
detergents.
For those wanting more info on the Southco latches,
browse http://www.southco.com and type in M1-64 in the
product search box. The Southco website also has
details of local distributors.
Cheers
Bil