How to Set Up Metal Drawer Boxes in Mozaik

To set up metal drawer boxes in Mozaik (version 12.3 and later), open the metal drawer guide's editor from the Hardware library and use its newer options: bore the tray face for screw attachment, add a drawer front (subfront) to the box, and pick the 32mm line-bore reference so your system holes snap to the row you want. This guide walks through all three, following Mozaik's official version 12.3 walkthrough. Everything below is configured inside the metal drawer guide's editor, so the first step in each case is selecting your guide in the Hardware library and opening it for editing.

This guide follows Mozaik's official walkthrough. Watch the original on Mozaik's channel:

What changed in version 12.3

Mozaik added three capabilities for metal drawer boxes:

1. Front-bore a tray face — drill the front of a metal pullout tray so a tray face can be screw-attached.
2. Add a drawer front to a metal box — previously you could only add the back of the box; now you can add a front (a subfront) too, with its own operations and adjustments.
3. 32mm line-bore reference — for guides with two rows of system holes, choose which row your line boring snaps to (the 32mm row vs. the 44mm row).

How to front-bore a tray face for a metal drawer box

This lets you bore the front of a metal pullout tray so you can attach a tray face with a wood screw.

1. Products tab > open your cabinet in the Product Editor (double-click it).
2. Interior tab > add a tray to the cabinet. Because it's a metal drawer, the tray uses the metal guide.
3. Libraries > Hardware > Guides tab > select your metal guide, then open it in the metal drawer editor.
4. Cut List tab — confirm Add Tray Face is checked so a face is added to the pullout tray.
5. Front Bore section — Mozaik now shows options to bore the tray front. Switch units to millimeters if needed.
6. Add a new operation for the tray-front bore. In the example, the settings were: elevation 70mm, inset 65, depth 16 (to match 16mm material), and bore diameter 5mm. This bore goes through the tray front.
7. Copy that operation, paste it, and select the pasted copy. Set its depth shallow (about 3mm), then check Bore Tray Face and uncheck Bore Tray Front. This drills fully through the front but only "pecks" the tray face — a shallow hole so you can drive a wood screw into the face and fasten it to the front of the metal tray without going all the way through your finished piece.
8. Click OK.

To verify: re-open the product, go to View Product, switch to perspective view, and turn on high detail. With the back off you can see the two operations drilled into the drawer front; hide the front and you'll see the shallow pecks in the tray face.

How to add a drawer front (subfront) to a metal drawer box

This adds a front to the metal box itself — effectively a subfront — instead of only the back.

1. Settings — set your drawer guide to a liner-box style metal guide (the example used a liner box that requires both a front and a back). If the box option isn't installed, get it via Tools > Import Updated Data and select it.
2. Libraries > Hardware > select the liner box guide/size and open it for editing.
3. Cut List — check Add Drawer Front. Older behavior only added the back; this adds the front too.
4. Choose the joint orientation — bottom into front or front into bottom. (The example used bottom into front.)
5. Click Edit on the front detail to make adjustments and left-click the front to add operations for the fixing bracket. In the example the bottom was extended about a half inch so the front covers the guide itself.
6. Click OK.

To verify: re-open the cabinet, confirm the top drawer uses your liner box guide in Hardware, then in View Product turn on high detail. You'll see the new front on the metal box, the fixing-bracket operations, and the drawer-front fastener operations. A left/side view (wireframe) shows the front extended down to cover the guide.

How to use the 32mm line-bore reference

For metal guides that have two rows of system holes, this lets you choose which row your line boring snaps to.

1. Settings tab > Drawer Trays/Guides — confirm you're using a metal drawer guide that supports this (the example used a Richelieu Axios metal box guide).
2. Libraries > Hardware > select your guide/size and open it for editing.
3. Look at the Line Bore Reference feature and the reference picture. The guide shows two sets of holes: from the top of the stretcher to the first row of system holes is 32mm, and the second row is another 12mm up — so 44mm from the top of the stretcher to that second row.
4. By default the guides may be set to the 44mm elevation. If you want them to snap to the 32mm row instead, select the 32mm elevation, make a copy, paste it, and check Line Bore Reference on that elevation so you're referencing off it.
5. Click through and verify in Products > Elevation > cross-section. With the line-bore reference set, your line boring snaps to the 32mm row instead of 44mm; the measuring tool confirms 32mm, with the second hole an additional 12mm up.

In short: when a guide runs two series of system holes, the line-bore reference lets you snap your 32mm line boring to whichever row you want.

Get it done-for-you

You can set this up yourself using the steps above. If you'd rather skip the setup, PAC's Mozaik training and done-for-you services can help — phillanton.com.

Full disclosure: this guide is published by Phill Anton Consulting.

FAQ

What's the difference between boring the "tray front" and the "tray face"?

Boring the tray front drills all the way through the front of the metal tray. Boring the tray face only "pecks" a shallow hole (about 3mm in the example) so you can drive a wood screw to attach the face to the front of the tray without breaking through your finished piece.

Can I add both a front and a back to a metal drawer box now?

Yes. Before version 12.3 you could only add the back of a metal box. As of 12.3, checking Add Drawer Front gives the box a front (a subfront) as well, complete with its own fixing-bracket and fastener operations and adjustable to cover the guide.

My liner-box guide option isn't showing up — where do I get it?

Mozaik notes you can download added box options via Tools > Import Updated Data, then select the box you need.

When would I use the 32mm line-bore reference instead of the default 44mm?

Use it when your metal guide has two rows of system holes and you want your line boring to snap to the first (32mm) row rather than the second (44mm) row — for example, when you're offsetting system screws between the two rows and want a specific reference.