October 29, 2025
Description
I’ve long dreamt of creating a drawer system that uses Gastronorm (GN) containers — the standardized stainless-steel pans used in commercial kitchens. They’re high-quality, precisely dimensioned containers built to the EN 631 standard, and I’ve always thought they’d make perfect modular drawers.
For this project, I based my models on the excellent Gastronorm container designs by Harley Widdowson (huge thanks!) available here:
All Gastronorm Containers on GrabCAD
Harley Widdowson’s Profile
Since I already had a set of GN 1/3 containers (200 mm deep) at home, I decided to design a modular shelving and drawer system around them.
I initially tried aluminium rails, but they turned out too noisy and didn’t have the right feel — so I switched to PETG rails, which work beautifully.
The rails are primarily designed for the 1/3 size, but they should fit other GN sizes as well. Each rail is 162.5 mm long, allowing two to fit perfectly along the full 325 mm length of a GN 1/3 container.
They can be mounted directly next to each other for seamless alignment, and each rail includes a tiny built-in stopper on one end to prevent the drawer from sliding out completely. This means you’ll need to orient them carefully during installation if you want the drawer to “auto-stop” in the open position.
For each drawer, you’ll need four rails (two per side), and optionally one more if you want a backstop. The mounting holes are sized for 3 mm wood screws — four per rail section is probably overkill, but useful if you’re planning to store heavier items.
I print mine with 3 walls and 25% Gyroid infill, and they’ve been strong enough to handle a few kilograms with no issues so far.
License:
Creative Commons — Attribution — Noncommercial
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