I went to an estate sale yesterday and in the basement gasped when I confronted this steel sink base — unlike any I’ve seen before. The deco-style design in the cabinet door is actually cut right into the outer layer of steel. I’ve identified 70 brands of steel kitchen cabinets from about 1935 onward. I wonder if this is a 71s? How exciting!
This is the only marking that I could find on the cabinet — Dupont Deluxe finish…inside the base cabinet door. So – that is the deco flower design looking from the inside out.
Here’s the inside — notice the bare steel rods. I am not sure what the story is with these. Like, were you supposed to put a board there? I have to admit, I think I was protein starved by this point, so my head was a little spinning. You can set the inside of the deco door, too…The steel is die-cut on the outer layer, and the inside layer to cut and molded around the die cuts in order to have the light shine through. This must have been tedious work….
The sink top itself was also really cool – notice how the bowl is rounded and the sink top is molded in a round fashion, as well. I also quite like that high backsplash.
Here is the pull.
Pretty cool, huh. I think this must be old… early 40s perhaps. And oh yeah you bet there’s more to show from this house. I was really quite excited 
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
very cool!! We have the old steel cabinets from our kitchen in our garage. I’m happy the previous owners didn’t get rid of them, they’re fun!
….::….I want it….::….
Pam – just LOVE this cabinet!!!! I’m going to say mid to late 30’s on this one. I looked up Dupont Dulux – some interesting history. This is the enamel paint used on the cabinet – more below.
Some history I found searching for DuPont Dulux labels:
DuPont has been using Dulux enamel in automotive coatings since 1926. Dulux actually owes its existence to a flaw in its more famous cousin, Duco. This nitrocellulose lacquer first brought color to automobiles when General Motors used it in 1923. It was thick and quick drying, which pleased carmakers, but frustrating for consumers who couldn’t apply it like the oil-based paints they were used to. So DuPont researchers tried mixing synthetic alkyd resins with oil and found that the resulting enamel’s drying time was slower than Duco but faster than that of traditional oil paint. Dulux alkyd resin, named in 1926, also had a pleasing high-gloss look. By the early 1930s it won over consumers under the label Dulux “Brush” Duco.
Dulux high-gloss enamels were also used widely in the 1930s on refrigerators and washing machines, outdoor signs, gasoline service stations and pumps, and railroad cars. Once tried as an undercoating for Duco auto paint, Dulux also found a niche as a low-cost alternative to Duco auto finishes. In 1954 some automobile manufacturers chose an improved Dulux alkyd enamel over Duco, and over DuPont’s new water-based Lucite® acrylic lacquer. However, Lucite® soon pulled ahead in household sales, and after DuPont developed a new acrylic polymer in 1957, Lucite® also outshone Dulux in the appliance and industrial markets. DuPont sold its consumer paint business in 1983.
Tami
ok @tami, you’ve inspired me to go look for the listing info on the house. i agree, the cabinet looks early. i am pretty sure it would have been original to the house…unless, i guess they brought it with them from the farm….stay tuned.
That is an awesome cabinet!
Now for the story with the wires under the sink – people used to think that it was necessary to maintain adequate airflow around drain lines for sanitary reasons. It is for this reason that the plumbing was exposed on most early fixtures. As streamlining became more popular, plumbing was concealed, but it was still vented to maintain airflow, hence the stamped design in the cabinet door. The lack of a solid bottom helps maintain additional airflow to the area under the sink, but the wires enable it to also be used for storage.