[blueman]

I am looking to build a cutting board (for bread) which I want to make
out of a subway-tile like arrangement of dark wood blocks with some
light wood picture framing the board and for creating some letters.

The choice of wood should be hard (to minimize wear-and-tear from
the knife) and should be otherwise appropriate for cutting board use.

I would like to mix several choices of dark wood to add variety and
interest to the background and probably a single species for the light
wood framing and lettering.

For the light wood, I was thinking of using maple but am open to other
suggestions.
I am not sure though what would be good choices for the dark wood and
would appreciate your input...

Thanks

[Ed Pawlowski[_2_]]

"blueman" wrote in message
...
I am looking to build a cutting board (for bread) which I want to make
out of a subway-tile like arrangement of dark wood blocks with some
light wood picture framing the board and for creating some letters.

The choice of wood should be hard (to minimize wear-and-tear from
the knife) and should be otherwise appropriate for cutting board use.

I would like to mix several choices of dark wood to add variety and
interest to the background and probably a single species for the light
wood framing and lettering.

For the light wood, I was thinking of using maple but am open to other
suggestions.
I am not sure though what would be good choices for the dark wood and
would appreciate your input...

Thanks

Most any hard tight grained wood is good. I've used maple, walnut, and
cherry to get a contrasting pattern. Stay way from ash or red oak. Careful
mixing several species on one item. Fine line between fine art and gaudy.

[walt stubbs]

I have been using Titebond III since it came out, and found it holds up
well. It also does well with walnut and dark woods.

Walt
blueman wrote:
I am looking to build a cutting board (for bread) which I want to make
out of a subway-tile like arrangement of dark wood blocks with some
light wood picture framing the board and for creating some letters.

The choice of wood should be hard (to minimize wear-and-tear from
the knife) and should be otherwise appropriate for cutting board use.

I would like to mix several choices of dark wood to add variety and
interest to the background and probably a single species for the light
wood framing and lettering.

For the light wood, I was thinking of using maple but am open to other
suggestions.
I am not sure though what would be good choices for the dark wood and
would appreciate your input...

Thanks

[Phisherman[_2_]]

On Sun, 21 Feb 2010 01:24:02 -0500, blueman wrote:

I am looking to build a cutting board (for bread) which I want to make
out of a subway-tile like arrangement of dark wood blocks with some
light wood picture framing the board and for creating some letters.

The choice of wood should be hard (to minimize wear-and-tear from
the knife) and should be otherwise appropriate for cutting board use.

I would like to mix several choices of dark wood to add variety and
interest to the background and probably a single species for the light
wood framing and lettering.

For the light wood, I was thinking of using maple but am open to other
suggestions.
I am not sure though what would be good choices for the dark wood and
would appreciate your input...

Thanks


Hard maple is the good and practical choice perhaps with dark cherry
or walnut for accent inlays.

[RonB[_2_]]

I have used titebond III with no trouble. If you think it is going to
get washed often, you can jig up a drill press and drill holes near
the ends and run a hardwood dowel through the whole thing. A
contrasting dowel looks nice (not sure how that would work with your
layout scheme).

I broke the rules with one I helped our son build for his mom. The
Maple was ok and the walnut was ok. The red oak and ash.....maybe not
so ok. I have seen lots of condemnation and damnation regarding open
grain woods. We keep it clean and oiled. Hasn't killed us in 15-18
years but I suppose it still could.

RonB

[Dangre]

Stay way from ash or red oak.

Don't know about ash, but I've made a few dozen cutting boards out of
red oak over the past 40 years and haven't had any problems whatsoever.
Well, except for that time my SIL put hers in the dishwasher and put it on
the heavy duty cycle.
There is a Northern and Southern red oak. I've been told the southern
variety is softer and maybe this is a difference whether to use or not. I've
seen the Wikipedia article claiming that red oak has large pores and the
dirt stays in, even after washing. This article also states you should not
use sandpaper on a cutting board because, those grits also stay in the
board, dulling your knife. It also claims oil prevents it from warping. No
cites on any of the info, so I assume its the author's own thoughts. I'll go
with my own experience.
I also use either white or yellow wood glue, but will try Titebond III
next time, and only mineral oil for the finish and upkeep.
Dan

[Steve Turner]

On 02/21/2010 09:58 PM, dangre wrote:
Stay way from ash or red oak.

Don't know about ash, but I've made a few dozen cutting boards out of
red oak over the past 40 years and haven't had any problems whatsoever.
Well, except for that time my SIL put hers in the dishwasher and put it
on the heavy duty cycle.
There is a Northern and Southern red oak. I've been told the southern
variety is softer and maybe this is a difference whether to use or not.
I've seen the Wikipedia article claiming that red oak has large pores
and the dirt stays in, even after washing. This article also states you
should not use sandpaper on a cutting board because, those grits also
stay in the board, dulling your knife. It also claims oil prevents it
from warping. No cites on any of the info, so I assume its the author's
own thoughts. I'll go with my own experience.
I also use either white or yellow wood glue, but will try Titebond III
next time, and only mineral oil for the finish and upkeep.
Dan

Have you ever put stain on red oak? Not that I like to use stain, but sometimes the job
calls for it, and a couple of years ago I had to use it on a large round kitchen table made
of red oak. Whenever I stain an open pored wood, I like to go over it with compressed air
to get the stain out of the pores so it doesn't sit there taking forever to dry, and
constantly "weeping" out after you wipe it down and walk away. On this particular table I
remember blowing out the pores, and depending on where I aimed the blast of air you could
see stain coming out of the pores *at the other end of the board*, up to three or four feet
away. Another cute trick is to take a red oak dowel, hold it up to your mouth and blow
through one end; you can feel the air coming out the other end (kids love this trick). I
would NOT use red oak for a cutting board...

--
"Our beer goes through thousands of quality Czechs every day."
(From a Shiner Bock billboard I saw in Austin some years ago)
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/

[Russ Stanton]

Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo, osage
orange and yellowheart?
Also any thoughts on a finish, probably an oil finish but which one?
TIA, Russ
"RonB" wrote in message
...
I have used titebond III with no trouble. If you think it is going to
get washed often, you can jig up a drill press and drill holes near
the ends and run a hardwood dowel through the whole thing. A
contrasting dowel looks nice (not sure how that would work with your
layout scheme).

I broke the rules with one I helped our son build for his mom. The
Maple was ok and the walnut was ok. The red oak and ash.....maybe not
so ok. I have seen lots of condemnation and damnation regarding open
grain woods. We keep it clean and oiled. Hasn't killed us in 15-18
years but I suppose it still could.

RonB

[RonB[_2_]]

On Feb 22, 9:02*am, "Russ Stanton" wrote:
Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo, osage
orange and yellowheart?

I have seen cutting boards with cocobolo and purpleheart accents that
look nice. I would think Osage Orange would be dense enough to resist
bacteria because it is very heavy.

BTW down here we don't consider Osage Orange to be exotic. We burn it
and call it fence posts :^}

[Doug Miller]

In article , "Russ Stanton" wrote:
Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo, osage
orange and yellowheart?

Stay away from cocobolo for anything involving food contact -- allergies to it
are fairly common. I think if you search the archives of
rec.crafts.woodturning, you'll find at least one report of a turner who had an
allergic reaction severe enough to require medical attention.

Can't comment on osage orange or yellowheart.

Most native North American hardwoods should be fine, though. Cutting boards
are most commonly made of sugar maple, but anything hard and tight-grained
will do fine. Other woods fitting that description include hickory, pecan,
beech, yellow birch, and white oak. Stay away from red oak, however: it's
porous, and has an unpleasant odor and taste when wet.

[Steve Turner]

On 02/22/2010 09:02 AM, Russ Stanton wrote:
Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo,
osage orange and yellowheart?

Mesquite makes a *great* cutting board. Apart from being gorgeous stuff, it's very hard and
very stable, and holds up great to the rigors of kitchen use. My sister-in-law absolutely
*loves* the cutting board I made for her (about 10 years ago), and it shows no signs of
separation or failure (as I recall, I used one of those "glue joint" router bits on the
joints, but I don't recall what kind of glue; it was either Titebond II or epoxy), and I'm
sure it's probably been through the dishwasher more than a few times (ack!). Curiously,
mesquite gets *very* dark in this environment, which seems rather opposite to the "washed
out" look most other wooden cutting boards seem to acquire. Very attractive, actually.

Also any thoughts on a finish, probably an oil finish but which one?

I don't place much stock in most of the "curing" food-safe finishes (which I think are
usually based on tung or linseed oil, or perhaps some other kind of vegetable oil); they
just don't seem to hold up to the constant onslaught of hot soapy water. No matter what you
use it's going to have to be periodically refreshed, and I don't see the average cook or
housewife breaking out the tung oil. To me, a periodic rub-down with mineral-based oil is
probably as good as the "curing" oils as far as moisture protection goes, and applying it is
easily done by most any owner without having to "send it back to the shop" for maintenance.

--
"Even if your wife is happy but you're unhappy, you're still happier
than you'd be if you were happy and your wife was unhappy." - Red Green
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/

[Jack Stein]

Phisherman wrote:

For the light wood, I was thinking of using maple but am open to other
suggestions.
I am not sure though what would be good choices for the dark wood and
would appreciate your input...

Hard maple is the good and practical choice perhaps with dark cherry
or walnut for accent inlays.

Here's one I made 35 years ago and I use it every day. My wife is a
baker so it gets lots of use.

http://jbstein.com/Flick/BreadBoard1.jpg
http://jbstein.com/Flick/BreadBoard2.jpg

I'm still waiting for the Elmer's woodworkers glue to give up....
So far, so good.

--
Jack
The Second Amendment is in place in case the politicians ignore the others.
http://jbstein.com

[Russ Stanton]

I checked on wood allergies and I believe that the cocobolo allergy was to
dust. I would think it would be OK once made into a cutting board.
Thoughts??
Russ
"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
In article , "Russ Stanton"
wrote:
Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo, osage
orange and yellowheart?

Stay away from cocobolo for anything involving food contact -- allergies
to it
are fairly common. I think if you search the archives of
rec.crafts.woodturning, you'll find at least one report of a turner who
had an
allergic reaction severe enough to require medical attention.

Can't comment on osage orange or yellowheart.

Most native North American hardwoods should be fine, though. Cutting
boards
are most commonly made of sugar maple, but anything hard and tight-grained
will do fine. Other woods fitting that description include hickory, pecan,
beech, yellow birch, and white oak. Stay away from red oak, however: it's
porous, and has an unpleasant odor and taste when wet.

[Doug Miller]

In article , "Russ Stanton" wrote:

[top-posting corrected; please don't do that]

"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
In article , "Russ Stanton"
wrote:
Any thoughts on the use of more exotic woods specifically cocobolo, osage
orange and yellowheart?

Stay away from cocobolo for anything involving food contact -- allergies to it
are fairly common. I think if you search the archives of
rec.crafts.woodturning, you'll find at least one report of a turner who
had an allergic reaction severe enough to require medical attention.

I checked on wood allergies and I believe that the cocobolo allergy was to
dust. I would think it would be OK once made into a cutting board.
Thoughts??

You're right, the allergy was indeed to dust -- but don't you suppose there
could be adverse consequences from *eating* it too? I wouldn't take the
chance. Stick with woods that are *known* to be safe for food contact, e.g.

maple (all species) -- widely used for cutting boards and butcher blocks
beech -- the most commonly used wood for wooden spoons and other utensils;
also used for casks for aging beer
white oak -- used for wine barrels
hickory -- used for smoking food
mesquite -- used for smoking food

[Steve Turner]

On 02/22/2010 11:32 AM, Russ Stanton wrote:
I checked on wood allergies and I believe that the cocobolo allergy was
to dust. I would think it would be OK once made into a cutting board.
Thoughts??

I think I'd still shy away from it. I'm no expert on the matter, but my thought is that
it's probably the *oils* in the dust (normally ingested by breathing) that's causing the
reactions, and I'd guess you're going to pick that up from a cutting board as well.

--
"Even if your wife is happy but you're unhappy, you're still happier
than you'd be if you were happy and your wife was unhappy." - Red Green
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/