Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This paper towel holder is pleasing to the eye as other reviewers and photos testify. Unfortunately, outside appearance can be deceiving. Two problems with this version of a towel holder quickly came to light. (1) There’s no way to lock the towel roll on so that the whole roll can’t just drop off when you pull a towel off. Rolls slip into place and are held by tension on both ends supplied by the metal frame. That’s the same basic design that was used 50 years ago. Should you install this behind your countertop and need to reach over / around an appliance to reach it there’s a good chance you’ll pull the whole paper roll off the wall. Grasping the roll firmly with one hand while tearing off a towel helps - but still isn’t “idiot proof”. You’d think that over the past 50 years they’d have invented a better way to secure the towel roll to the holder. (2) There’s no template for drilling mounting holes included. Determining where to drill holes in wall or cabinet is difficult because the top of the holder before mounting is bowed / bent rather than flat (likely to provide necessary tension against the towel roll). When you begin to tighten down the mounting screws, the top part of the holder starts to flatten out, thus causing the two screw holes to move farther apart laterally. Possibly having one person press the rack firmly into place while another drills the holes or marks the spot with pencil would help. I don’t know. But working alone it took several tries to drill the holes in the right spots. Messed up a couple times and needed to repair the incorrectly drilled holes. I wish I’d looked harder and longer and considered more options rather than buying the first highly rated stainless steel holder I stumbled on. For the price, and considering the high reviews, I expected to be pleasantly surprised by qualities like clever design, ease of mounting and ability to hold rolls firmly. None of these proved accurate. Of course, once you have drilled holes into your wall or cabinet to accommodate this particular holder. it’s hard to change over to a different one. You’re more or less stuck with your choice. - Added February 22, 2018: I’ve now “had it” with this worthless dinosaur from the past. After 2 weeks of use it’s become such a pain that I’m taking it down and throwing it away. At least once daily the roll falls off despite my best efforts. Usually this happens at the worst possible times - either when I’m busy cooking or have managed to get my hands messy (reason we have paper towels in the kitchen). I’ve ordered another for a bit more money which looks nice and appears to possess the requisite qualities: (1) mounts securely to wall / under cabinet using screws, and (2) has a locking mechanism to prevent towel rolls from dropping off. After I’ve used it awhile, I’ll write a review. Check it out: “simplehuman Wall Mount Paper Towel Holder, Stainless Steel”