We currently have a, now discountinued, cast iron Kohler sink with a drainboard, and we like the drainboard a lot. So, my initial gut thought had been to look for one with a drainboard. Initially we had been planning to reuse this sink but the rethought that thinking we would be fools to invest that much money in countertops to install an odd-sized sink that could not be replaced if something happened to it. The micro-edge does look lovely and we may yet end up with a stainless (even though I am more of the porcelain look person myself) solely because of some other issues we have with size constraints. We too learned many years ago that you get what you pay for, and an initial larger investment upfront pays off in the long run. Perhaps some of those complaints about disgusting looking stainless sinks were from people with the really low end sinks. Even though I know that the top mount sink came later than the era of my house, I too to seem to prefer them aesthetically. Perhaps it is because of the feeling they evoke of kitchens from a earlier era. It's too bad there isn't something similar to the microedge availabe in cast iron. OTOH, I can definitely also see the idea of thinking of my kitchen as not a period piece but as something that has evolved over the decades and has not been static set in one time. I'm sure the housewife who first coccupied it would have been thrilled to be able to upgrade portions of it to the latest technology like micro egde sinks.

The industry standard for sealing a topmount sink has always been plumber's putty. It is superior to silicone in most respects for that use. You just roll out a rope of it, place it under the rim of the sink, drop the sink in, tighten the clips, and then remove the excess putty that is squished out. Simple, and plumbers putty never hardens so always maintains a seal if you've used enough of it. It is NOT advisable to use it with natural stone as it's oil based and the porous stone can pull the oils out of it and become stained.

kulagal, I wanted to open your eyes to a few things you maybe haven't considered. I have had a white cast iron sink (Kohler) and now have a fireclay sink (Franke). I LOVE the fireclay. It is SO MUCH easier to keep clean. Basically, you just rinse it. Metal rarely makes marks, and if it does, a wipe with the soft side of the sponge cleans off the mark. The cast iron will require MUCH more scrubbing. Also, people seem to be very happy with their silgranit sinks, although I like the shiny look for a sink. The silgranit is matte. I would never again consider a cast iron sink. I was also warned repeated by people working in design stores that the new cast iron sinks are lead-free now and don't hold up nearly as well as the old ones. I especially wouldn't get an undermount cast iron sink. People love that orca. Many other companies make fireclay: Rohl, Shaw, KWC, Kohler, Franke, Whitehaus, etc. You may have already looked into this. Also, I just saw some very cool new colors in Caesarstone in a design magazine. As of a couple of days ago, they weren't even on on Caesarstone's website. There were three new blacks/dark greys. So if you are after that look, you should at least check them out. The Kohler Simplice faucet comes in two different sizes. With a small sink, the smaller one would probably look better. Can you check out the dimensions online and do a mock-up? Good luck!

Yes. I had a 50/50 before and have had to adjust:) The divided Whitehaven (70/30) had the smaller part on the wrong side for my set up. My old 50/50 cast iron sink, even though it was for a 36" cabinet, had much smaller bowls, so you might want to see that 50/50 in person - it might be big enough. I have worked it out by using a dish rack with sides which I keep in the left inside of my sink. I also have a little pretty wood rack for some depression glass and other hand washables. My drain is way to the right, but the Vault drain is in the middle - that might make a difference for making something like this work. : That one is by Simplehuman, but there are others. Here is a similar gray one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07539JCNB/ref=asc_df_B07539JCNB5298712/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=394997&creativeASIN=B07539JCNB&linkCode=df0&hvadid=216558267793&hvpos=1o3&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2460828519382747571&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9018505&hvtargid=pla-361925929854 Different company - I don't have any experience with this one: http://www.qvc.com/Squish-Dish-Rack.product.K305653.html?colorId=000&sizeId=000&ref=GAS&cm_mmc=GOOGLESHOPPINGFEED--GShopping|L|BrandProduct|cooking+dining--pla--sCaLVwTno|dc_400057871687__K305653-000-000&mkwid=sCaLVwTno|dc_pcrid_400057871687_pkw__pmt__productid_K305653-000-000&TZ=EST I recently got the sink grids for my sink because I did not want to ding the cast iron and now the in-sink dish rack won't sit flat - so I am keeping my eyes out for another. Many here on this forum do not use dish racks. I have rinsed recyclables and non-dishwasher pot and pans so understand the desire for a dish rack - but be prepared for some to tell you to live without one:) I hope Joe chimes in - he knows every sink out there.