What Are Telescopic Drawer Slides?

telescopic drawer slides

Drawer slides are critical for furniture with drawers, from private kitchens to aeronautical applications. The right slides ensure your drawers are smooth and operational, limiting noise and boosting longevity even in challenging conditions. In contrast, choosing the wrong slides can impact your furniture’s usability or even collapse under the weight of storage. 

With many types of drawer slides available for different applications, selecting the right option for you can be challenging. The more you know about telescopic slides, the better you can make a decision that suits your unique industry and business requirements. 

What Are Drawer Slides?

Telescopic slides allow drawers to slide in and out in a smooth, linear motion. As the name suggests, they consist of multiple sections that slide within each other, expanding and retracting like a telescope. When you pull a drawer equipped with telescopic slides, the interlocking sections extend, allowing the drawer to open fully and providing maximum accessibility. 

Most telescopic slides use simple components. They also support the weight of the drawer box and reduce friction as you slide the drawer in and out of the housing. A drawer box operating without a telescopic slide would create constant friction as it moved against the housing, wearing down both components over time. 

Types of Telescopic Slides

Telescopic slides come in several varieties to suit different draw functions and weights, including:

  • Ball-bearing telescopic slides: These slides feature bearings on the cabinet and drawer components. They offer effortless operation and significant reliability and durability, making them ideal for heavy-traffic areas such as office workstations and storage manufacturing equipment. 
  • Center-mount telescopic slides: Center-mount slides consist of a single slide mounted at the bottom center of a drawer. They’re mounted from the back to the front of the drawer, making them best suited to small, light-capacity drawers. 
  • Friction slides: These solid-bearing, self-lubricating slides feature interchangeable inner members. They’re cost-effective, easy to install and suitable for various heavy-duty applications. They also allow for total extension, making them ideal for rugged applications like military and aerospace. 
  • Full-extension telescopic slides: These slides facilitate extension up to 100% of their length, giving you complete access to the drawer’s contents. They withstand heavy-duty use, making them suited to applications requiring maximum storage space and quick access to the drawer’s contents. 
  • Locking telescopic slides: These slides prevent drawers from opening or closing accidentally. They’re ideal for transportation applications, such as recreational vehicles (RVs) or use in ambulances, as they ensure the door remains closed while the vehicle moves. 
  • Push-to-open telescopic slides: These telescopic slides are ideal for applications with limited space. They fit with a spring mechanism that enables the user to pop the drawer open when they push it at a particular angle. 
  • Roller slides: These slides provide a cost-effective alternative to ball-bearing slides. They consist of a cabinet and drawer member equipped with plastic rollers. These rollers slide over each other to facilitate smooth opening and closing. 
  • Side-mount telescopic slides: Side-mount slides are mounted horizontally on the cabinet member and the drawer. They offer a traditional, versatile and cost-effective mounting option, making them ideal for many drawer types. 
  • Soft-close telescopic slides: As the same suggests, soft-close slides have a damping mechanism to prevent the drawers from slamming. They’re ideal for keeping draw contents in place, making them a popular choice for aerospace and defense. These slides minimize the effects of wear and tear during use and are perfectly suited to heavy-duty applications. 
  • Three-quarter extension telescopic slides: Three-quarter slides allow the drawer to open up to 75% of its entire length. They’re ideal for small spaces and are common with side or center-mount slide styles. 
  • Undermount telescopic slides: Undermount slides are attached beneath the drawer box and connected to locking devices beneath the drawer, hiding the mechanism from view for a sleek, modern appearance. 

The Benefits of Telescopic Drawer Slides

Telescopic slides offer significant benefits for a range of applications, including:

telescopic drawer slides have many applications beyond furniture, making them a favorite in aerospace, industrial and automotive applications
  • Space optimization: Telescopic slides allow you to fully extend drawers out of the furniture frame, making accessing items at the back of the drawer easier. As you can access stored items quickly, you can make the most of your storage when you have limited space, making them ideal for applications that prioritize organization. 
  • Smooth and quiet operation: The mechanism in telescopic drawer slides allows them to slide open and close with minimal friction, making them quiet and easy to operate in busy environments. 
  • Versatility: Telescopic slides have many applications beyond furniture, making them a favorite in aerospace, industrial and automotive applications. They also boast many customization options for your unique needs. 
  • Durability and longevity: As telescopic slide mechanisms reduce friction, many are suitable for challenging applications. Their durability makes them cost-effective in the long term as you spend less time and money on repairs and replacements. 
  • Length and extension: Drawer slides come in three extension options. Full extension, allowing the drawer to open completely. Three-quarter extension, opening up to 75% — and over-travel, extending past the cabinet front. Telescopic slides allow all three extensions. They consist of separate beams that extend to 75%, 100% and 150% of the drawer’s length for maximum accessibility. 

Factors to Consider When Choosing Telescopic Drawer Slides

Choosing the right telescopic slide for your application is critical. Considering the following features can help you narrow down your options:

Load Capacity

One of the most important considerations is ensuring your chosen telescopic slides can carry the intended load. For example, heavy-duty slides use industrial-grade materials. They can hold weights of up to 500 pounds, while light-duty slides are cost-effective and ideal for household applications. 

Material and Finish

A slide’s material determines its load capacity and suitable applications. Aluminum, steel and stainless steel are common slide materials, each with benefits and drawbacks. For example, compact aluminum slides are ideal for industrial and outdoor applications. Steel is a popular and cost-effective alternative for industrial and outdoor applications. Stainless steel slides’ durability and corrosion resistance make the. 

Mounting and Installation

Consider how you want your slides to operate and ensure you choose a mounting option — side, center or undermount — that suits the cabinet’s design and application. For example, side mounts require between a quarter and half an inch of space between the cabinet and the drawer. In contrast, center mount and undermount slides are perfect if you want the slide mechanism to remain invisible. 

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Experience Excellence in Motion With Jonathan Engineered Solutions

The right high-quality telescopic drawer slides can streamline your operations and ensure you can trust your equipment. At Jonathan Engineered Solutions, we specialize in linear slide solutions that meet your needs, regardless of your industry or application. As a certified AS9100 and ISO 9001 manufacturer of linear slides with over 60 years of experience, you can trust us to deliver custom solutions that meet your industry’s highest performance standards. 

Contact us online today and an experienced team member will take you through the best options for your application and help you pick the ideal telescopic slides. 

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