# one piece cutting board?



## mattblaue (Feb 11, 2012)

i was wondering if its better to use multiple pieces for a cutting board or one large piece?


----------



## Joelthemole (Feb 8, 2012)

thanks for the post. i am curious to see the responses. i am making two cutting boards using walnut stumps. i have ripped the pieces downs to random lengths, 1 1/2" thick. one board is 12"x18", the other is 8"x14". couldnt decide on one piece or a multi-piece board, so looking forward to input from the experts!!


----------



## mattblaue (Feb 11, 2012)

*me too*

i cant find anyone to give me a straight answer.


----------



## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

Really just personal Preference on this one. The cutting board has no structure so you don't have to worry about expansion and contraction like you would a raised panel door. Straight Enough

Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


----------



## tcleve4911 (Dec 16, 2006)

mattblaue said:


> i was wondering if its better to use multiple pieces for a cutting board or one large piece?


It will depend on the species, the grain and the size.

Open grain woods are not good.
Boards with a growth ring towards he outside of the tree will tend to warp.
Large pieces of wood move more than small ones.

Hope that helps a little.


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

I'm not sure what size or species board you are planning however for the most part it would be better to rip the board down and stager annual ring direction.

Cutting boards take a fair amount of abuse and are frequently exposed to moisture on one side. 

Unfortunately there is NO cut n dry (straight) answer. It's builder/user preference. If your asking which is more durable... A glue up, by far! Smaller the pieces of the board the stronger the board because of more glue surface. 

So what size and species?

~tom


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

MastersHand said:


> Really just personal Preference on this one. The cutting board has no structure so you don't have to worry about expansion and contraction like you would a raised panel door. Straight Enough
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


This is the real and correct answer.

All of the fancy cutting boards that you see are made purely for looks. For the use as a cutting board they are no better or worse then a single piece.

George


----------



## HandToolGuy (Dec 10, 2011)

It iSync understanding that the cutting board's cutting surface should be end grain, to achieve this, after you have flattened both sides of the board, you should rip the wood & flip the pieces so the cut sides are exposed, then glue them up.
I made cutting boards for Christmas presents in 2010 and this technique worked well. No warping at all.


----------



## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

firemedic said:


> I'm not sure what size or species board you are planning however for the most part it would be better to rip the board down and stager annual ring direction.
> 
> Cutting boards take a fair amount of abuse and are frequently exposed to moisture on one side.
> 
> ...


Def not afraid to Admit when I'm wrong. I never thought about the thing cupping. +1 Good Call

Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


----------



## Grinder (Nov 17, 2007)

A single piece, large cutting board will have more of a tendency to cup. Use quarter saw wood for more stability.


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

HandToolGuy said:


> It iSync understanding that the cutting board's cutting surface should be end grain, to achieve this, after you have flattened both sides of the board, you should rip the wood & flip the pieces so the cut sides are exposed, then glue them up.
> I made cutting boards for Christmas presents in 2010 and this technique worked well. No warping at all.


What is an "It iSync understanding ?"

If it was a good practise that a cutting surface should be end grain I would think that they would be common in retail stores. To the contrary I do not think I have even seen even one there.

George


----------



## tymann09 (Mar 4, 2011)

i have to voice my personal opinion on this one. when i make my cutting boards, i take a board, rip it down to aprx 3/4x 3/4" strips. and i rotate all the strips 90 degrees, then glue. what this does is uses side grain as the cutting surface. i personally believe that this results in a stronger more durable cutting surface. I don't believe it has anything to do with the glue, i think the grain orientation is a big factor. as other people have said, one board causes warping and cupping. a laminated board will not do that if done the way i described. however, there are still chances of it doing that if glued side by side using flat sawn grain pattern. I also agree with the fact that open grained woods are a no-no oak, hickory, etc, no! :thumbsup: again. just my opinion. 

forgot one thing, i do use one piece cutting boards when dealing with things such as cheese boards, which don't take alot of abuse. i'll take an attractive piece of tiger maple and label it as a cheese board. they don't take as much abuse as a cutting board


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

GeorgeC said:


> What is an "It iSync understanding ?"
> 
> If it was a good practise that a cutting surface should be end grain I would think that they would be common in retail stores. To the contrary I do not think I have even seen even one there.
> 
> George


George, you mean haven't seen them in the stores? They're their but expensive as all heck! I think that's why you don't see em at box stores.

~tom


----------



## tymann09 (Mar 4, 2011)

those end grain boards are dangerous! i witnessed a fairly new woodworker put one through the planer. it got about a quarter of the way through and shot it back out at probably 60mph. left a huge dent in the wall, thankfully he wasn't injured. did about 500 dollars worth of damage to the planer though :thumbdown:


----------



## GoIrish (Jan 29, 2012)

I have made several over the years and found that laminated hold up best. I would also go slightly thicker that what you see in most cutting boards. All the ones I bag given as gifts were 1 1/4" thick and never had much warping. I have made 1/2 to 3/4 for myself and the thinner boards cup more. Pretty simple to wet both sides when you clean them to keep them mostly flat. 

End grain should be very good but more time consuming and more wood loss.


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

tymann09 said:


> those end grain boards are dangerous! i witnessed a fairly new woodworker put one through the planer. it got about a quarter of the way through and shot it back out at probably 60mph. left a huge dent in the wall, thankfully he wasn't injured. did about 500 dollars worth of damage to the planer though :thumbdown:


:laughing: 

If cutting boards are dangerous then guns kill people.

:laughing:

~tom


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

firemedic said:


> George, you mean haven't seen them in the stores? They're their but expensive as all heck! I think that's why you don't see em at box stores.
> 
> ~tom


Well, now that you mention it I have probably have seen them sold as a decoration like the one in your picture.

George


----------



## HandToolGuy (Dec 10, 2011)

GeorgeC said:


> What is an "It iSync understanding ?"
> 
> If it was a good practise that a cutting surface should be end grain I would think that they would be common in retail stores. To the contrary I do not think I have even seen even one there.
> 
> George


I dunno where iSync came from. And I can't edit it out. Shoulda been "It is my understanding..." 
You know, the book that I read called it "end grain" but you're right: is isn't the end grain that you see when you look at the end of a board. But I think we are disagreeing about the term, not the technique. Everything I read suggests the flatten, rip, flip and glue technique I described above for cutting boards and bench tops to make the top surface harder for cutting tools to penetrate.


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

GeorgeC said:


> Well, now that you mention it I have probably have seen them sold as a decoration like the one in your picture.
> 
> George


That's actually not decoration... It's a 'butchor block' wife refuses to use it correctly though... 

I think people are often confused with terminology on cutting boards Vs Butchor blocks. 

Butcher Block
"The term Butcher Block has two meanings. The original meaning comes from the blocks Michigan Maple Block and Bally Block manufactured in the late 1800s. These blocks were End Grain construction and were the cutting surface of choice of the commercial meat cutting industry. Every butcher on every corner had a butcher block.
Today the term has also come to mean Edge Grain Construction. Over the years butchers wanted smaller and more portable versions of the solid Maple butcher block End Grain blocks they had used for years. Edge grain cutting boards were developed. These have become very common. With the increase in popularity of these boards the definition of butcher block expanded to include edge grain construction[...]"
-Michigan Maple Block Co.

~tom


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

"That's actually not decoration... It's a 'butchor block' wife refuses to use it correctly though... "

Then it is a decoration.

George


----------



## wooddude (Jun 14, 2011)

been making kitchen cabs long time and have always used 3/4 maple end grain glue ups with a 2" solid piece tounge and grooved no glue,two screws to hold in place that are plugged no finish just use veggtable oil to seal surface never had a problem or complaint 

nate out


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

GeorgeC said:


> "That's actually not decoration... It's a 'butchor block' wife refuses to use it correctly though... "
> 
> Then it is a decoration.
> 
> George


So are you arguing that a Butcher block is only for decoration or are you being funny?

~tom


----------



## nblasa (Nov 29, 2011)

firemedic said:


> So are you arguing that a Butcher block is only for decoration or are you being funny?
> 
> ~tom


Sniff Sniff...smells like sarchasm to me :laughing:


----------



## bob sacamano (Jan 24, 2012)

mattblaue said:


> i cant find anyone to give me a straight answer.


matt - here it is in a nutshell. you can make 1 piece. lets say you make it 2 feet x 1 foot .

another cutting board is also 2 feet x 1 foot but it is made from 1 inch strips glued together along the grain. 

the glued board will not warp twist cup nearly as much as the solid cutting board. the glue helps that and thinner pieces wont move as much as wider pieces.


----------



## Scubadaveojr (Apr 25, 2011)

I made my board using walnut but i cut it into 1" wide rips and then glued it back together using natural glue... also male sure you keep the grain tight. I would suggest not cutting meat on it unless you treat the board first. I use lynn seed oil. Worked good.


----------



## rrbrown (Feb 15, 2009)

GeorgeC said:


> Well, now that you mention it I have probably have seen them sold as a decoration like the one in your picture.
> 
> George


Most of the boards you see even in the stores are still not one solid piece. They are laminated just not with different species. It may be one piece cut up the laminated back but with the pieces alternated.

There are allot of Bamboo boards out there now.


----------



## Fsucraigk (Nov 4, 2011)

Kenbo put together a stellar tutorial for end grain cutting boards last year. I find a well crafted end grain board holds up to use and abuse better than any edge-grain board and is better on your knife edges.


----------



## TomC (Oct 27, 2008)

tymann09 said:


> those end grain boards are dangerous! i witnessed a fairly new woodworker put one through the planer. it got about a quarter of the way through and shot it back out at probably 60mph. left a huge dent in the wall, thankfully he wasn't injured. did about 500 dollars worth of damage to the planer though :thumbdown:


I don't think this make end grain cutting boards dangerous. Someone who puts one through a planer is dangerous!
Tom


----------



## Rwelch (Mar 11, 2012)

TomC said:


> I don't think this make end grain cutting boards dangerous. Someone who puts one through a planer is dangerous!
> Tom


Absolutely agree! I like to use a LA smoother (butcher block plane as they were once referred to as) for this task but, I have used my drum sander with great success. A planer though? Not really a great idea. As far as a cutting board, end grain technique takes longer but, is by far the most durable and stable. Also, it allows you to make the cutting board much thicker. I like to make them in excess of 1 1/2 inch thick. They are beautiful and are easy to add a decorative twist by alternating the strips during glue up. Make it end grain and I assure you that you will be happier with the results.


----------



## vinnypatternmaker (Mar 27, 2011)

*kickback cutting board*



tymann09 said:


> those end grain boards are dangerous! i witnessed a fairly new woodworker put one through the planer. it got about a quarter of the way through and shot it back out at probably 60mph. left a huge dent in the wall, thankfully he wasn't injured. did about 500 dollars worth of damage to the planer though :thumbdown:


A surface sander would be a much better tool for end grain wood :blink:!


----------



## mooney8302 (Feb 16, 2012)

Wood working is my hobby but also i happen to be a trained chef. End grain cutting boards are much easier on your knives, and if you have a lot invested in knives like I do it is the only way to go. A one piece board or edge grain board is the fastest way to dull your knifes. Also when doing knife work, end grain boards are much more responsive and allow for greater precision when rocking your knifes up and down.


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

GeorgeC said:


> Well, now that you mention it I have probably have seen them sold as a decoration like the one in your picture.
> George


silly people! They're only for decoration!...

:laughing:

...build n burn - live n learn...


----------

