Cutting Boards

[ASLNROX]

Hi ALl,

So what wood do yo uall use for cutting boards? I may cut up soem corian, but in case I need wood, decided I would check.

I am think about some laminated maple. No? What do you all use?


Blessings,

--Mark

[link:home.earthlink.net/~maspaulding/ | Mark's Garage Shop]

[Burt]

Usually hard maple or hickory.

[Keystone]

Mark,

Just about any hardwood you've got in the scrap heap will do. Mix and match to get nice patterns. Cover it in Mineral Oil when you're done! :)

[ASLNROX]

Burt and Ken.

Thanks. Maybe I will get creative withteh scrap bin!

Thanks again!

Blessings,

--Mark

[link:home.earthlink.net/~maspaulding/ | Mark's Garage Shop]

[drew725]

I would disagree with Keystone that any hardwood in your scrap bin is acceptable.

I have read that porous woods such as Red Oak should not be used because it traps food particles and liquids that may not come out with washing.

[Limey]

A close grained "hard" wood ..would certainly be better..the harder the better..to a point.
Maple and Hickory as mentioned have enough give not to blunt a blade and at the same time will last a lot longer before breaking up.
No self respecting owner of a quality knife would get any where near Corian it's the "stud" of cutting boards..... "it'll f****K a blade quicker than you can say "knife" " :+

Limey

[Glen]

Limey cut to the chase, he did.
I've used scrap birch and cherry with good results also.Walnut would
make for nice accents.
I still contend no finish is best. An occasional cabinet scraper taken to it and a wash with a mild water and bleach solution will
keep it clean and safe. Flush after with plenty of warm fresh water. If you want to seal it initialy use a light cut of varnish. Any build up of finish will end up worn off and in the soup anyway. Though most finishes are "safe" when fully cured. I just have an aversion for poly glazed carrots ;)

Glen

[Lazarus]

I made a butcher's block for a butcher once, and he was insistant that the block hade to have the end-grain as the cutting surface. If your blades are of good quality, then maybe you should think about this technique also. Granted, it took a long time to laminate the top, but it turned out very nice, and the butcher was happy!

[robsweet]

You said 'cutting board', not 'cutting block' but just so ya know, blocks are made by gluing a bunch of small (often 8/4 x 8/4) wood together so that the end grain is exposed as the cutting surface. The end grain holds up much better than long grain because the knife edge will just separate the wood fibers instead of slicing them.

Also, you'll want to avoid woods like oak due to their high tanin content (at least I *think* that was the reason) because the acids in foods will react with the woods and cause discoloration. It's not likely to come up in this particular project but don't use spalted woods around food either as the spalting itself can be toxic.

Rob Sweet
Web Geek by Day, Woodworker by Night
rob@ldg.net

[ASLNROX]

Thanks Rob and All,

Yes, inded I said board as that is what I am replacing. I have made a couple chopping blocks in the past (maple) but nothing as simple as a board before. Go figure.

Thanks again for all the ideas.

Blessings,

--Mark

[link:home.earthlink.net/~maspaulding/ | Mark's Garage Shop]