B0032BYM4Y

For those of you that are unsure about buying a sink with barely any reviews:
I did a lot of research on a sink in this price range and narrowed down my options to this Kraus and a zero-radius Vigo VG3219C (with the strainer and bottom grid as well). Both were very close in price I couldn’t pick one from only looking online and reading the handful of reviews, so I ordered both (so I could touch them sinks for reals).
Both sinks arrived the same day (Vigo ordered from Home Cheapo). I don’t usually feel this compelled to write a review. Here is a comparison:

Company:
Kraus: You may have read on one review for the 32 inch version of this sink that Kraus sinks are made in China and try very hard to hide it. It’s true, it is made in China with a faux-German name – so if you are only interested in buying something made in North America or countries that are known for quality products (like Germany), then do not purchase this sink.
Vigo: Made in China, sold from New Jersey (side note: I don’t know why, but everything I’ve ever bought from New Jersey, or any e-tailor I have purchased from that is based out of New Jersey has always ended up being a scam or knockoff….weird).

Packaging:
Kraus (11 out of 10): Best packaging I have ever received anything in….ever. The box is air tight and made of that incredibly durable, thick cardboard, and everything is padded like crazy inside with styrofoam and the sink itself comes in a canvas bag. Note that this is actually a packaging job by Kraus and not Amazon.
Vigo (3 out of 10): Flimsy cardboard box. Poorly taped together. Thin layer of styrofoam on the top and bottom. The elements could certainly make their way in. I can’t say if Amazon would beef up the packaging, Home Cheapo sure didn’t.

Looks:
Kraus (10 out of 10): This sink has small radius corners and those grooves that go towards the drain, I know you are attracted to that style. It looks awesome – exactly like the manufacturer photos.
Vigo (10 out of 10): The sink actually looks very nice. Just like the manufacturer photos.

Finish:
Both were 16 gauge stainless steel. I know you are wondering if it feels as smooth as the 1000+ dollar sink you were drooling over at the kitchen and bath store, or if it feels rough. Here’s the deets:
Kraus (8 out of 10): It feels very close to those expensive sinks. I am actually very surprised how smooth it is. I think I would only be able to tell the difference if I had the two side by side. One note is that the corners of this sink are machined (unlike expensive zero-radius sinks which are soldered together by hand) and the high-quality smooth finish that is on the rest of the sink does not seem to feel the same in the corners. This actually doesn’t not bug me at all. The difference isn’t big, but it is noticeable. I didn’t want to try to scratch my brand new sink to see how it holds up to scratches. Sorry. There weren’t any on there, so that is a good sign. I will plan on using the bottom grid for added protection.
Let me re-iterate that the Finish of this sink is way above my expectations.
Vigo (3 out of 10): Feels horrible….like sandpaper. It arrived with plenty of scratches on the inside of the sink. It appeared that someone had already opened it up (I blame this on Home Cheapo for passing it off as a new item, I doubt they sent it back to Vigo to repackage). The quality of the Vigo was sub-par and the zero-radius corners (factory welded in China!) didn’t even go all the way up to the top in one corner, so there was literally a hole in the sink (speaks to their quality control).

Sound-deadening material:
Kraus (10 out of 10): Most, if not all, of the stainless steel sinks I have seen, have the entire underside coated with a hardened foam. This was applied thicker on the Kraus compared to most other stainless steel sinks I have seen (at all price points). This made me happy. There are also sound-deadening patches strategically located (look at the pictures). Location of patches is excellent. These patches are nice and thick, too.
Vigo (5 out of 10): Foam was not as thick as Kraus. Sound-deadening patches were also very thin and poorly placed. But hey, they were there.

Recap:
Kraus: The quality of this sink continues to impress me. It looks and feels like a very expensive sink. You can’t do better for this price point.
Vigo: Shipped from the ever shady New Jersey. Scratched and had a hole in one corner. Not smooth at all. It looked nice, but wouldn’t fool anyone. I returned it promptly.

UPDATE:
I have used this sink for a while now and my wife and I keep telling each other how much we love it. We have been using the bottom grate and the sink still looks as good as the day we bought it. We are using this sink with a Moen Lindley faucet and they go great together. Lastly, the small-radius corners have been extremely easy to clean and I am so happy we didn’t go with a zero-radius corner. I would purchase this sink again (if the circumstance ever arose).

I am a builder, so I feel like I have a pretty good background on the value and quality of sinks. This sink has done nothing but impress me. When our kitchen remodel had gone over it’s $40k budget due to some unforeseen aditional issues we had to try to make our money count but without ruining the end goal so we decided to take a chance on this sink because of the good reviews, and the specs. I have flipped a number of houses, from low end to high end, and I know that gauge and sound deadening are big issues to me. This sink is as good as the $1000 sinks we were looking at and even with my 30% contractor discount this sink was still way less expensive. We’ve had it for about 2 months and I’m still as satisfied as day 1. Some people have complained that it can scratch, all I can say to that us I’ve never seen a stainless sink that can’t. If you clean in the direction of the grain in the metal it should look awesome for many years. Take a look at the pictures to know what type of kitchen this went into.

Sink is awesome, and grate that it comes with is a very good bonus! The sink is HUGE. Only downside is it does seem a little easy to scratch, but the grate will help out a lot with that. Also, the sound deadening on this sink is great! Almost no noise at all, which is impressive for a stainless steel sink.
The main reason I bought this particular sink was it was the only sink of this size I found that was reviewed to fit into a 30″ IKEA sink cabinet. The rest of the sinks had a maximum basin width of 26″. The addition 2″ on this sink (28″ total) is a big difference.
Attached is a picture of it installed into a 30″ IKEA Sektion sink cabinet with the Insinkerator Compact 3/4 HP disposal (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000G837TW?redirect=true&ref_=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_4)

Pros: It is beautiful, and the perfect size and depth for our kitchen!
Cons: It scratches very easily and it does not drain well. The grid for the bottom has to be removed to really get at any food, etc. in the sink, and requires a lot of water to chase the particles around the sink into the drain. I wanted this sink because the grid was included, but because it scratches anyway and has to be removed to properly clean the sink anyway, so I’m not sure it was the right choice. Lastly, if you want to use the grid, you cannot extend your countertop lip over the edges of the sink, or you will not be able to remove it.

I really do wish I could give this 5 stars, as I would if it weren’t for the strainer. I was excited because I thought, with the depth of it, that it would hold a lot before needing to be emptied. Turns out it takes very little to clog it up. Very little. This morning I made some tea, dumped most of the leaves into the garbage when done, then rinsed the tea strainer in this sink. There were maybe about 5 spaghetti noodles left from a dish I had just rinsed before that. The water started to rise on the bottom of the sink and there it stood. When this clogs, the water drains very slowly. I’ve tried reaching my hand and lifting the strainer just a hair to make it drain faster; this does work, but I can see debris sliding down under the strainer. I’ve tried taking my kitchen brush and swishing inside the strainer to help the water drain faster. This sometimes helps but most of the time does nothing. There has to be a solution to this issue as I’ve seen others comment about it, too. I’ve also seen people comment about how great the strainer is and catches everything with no mention of it clogging and I’d like to know what these people may be doing differently. Love the sink, though!