Should I make a butcher block top?

[steven taggart]

I am going to build a bar top for some friends out of reclaimed pine and red fir. The material is very rough, so I will plane down to about 1.5" thick. Should I rip it to about three inches thick and butcher block it, or lay it flat. One portion will overhang about ten inches on both sides of the bar, with pieces about three feet long. I don't want it to warp and crack over time. Anyone have any advice?

[Jamie Buxton]

If by "butcher block" you mean the top surface is end-grain, no, I wouldn't do it. With the grain running vertically, that construction may sag when it is unsupported, like on that overhang. Also, endgrain absorbs water more easily than facegrain, so if the top gets wet (a likely occurrence in a bar) that unsupported section may sag.

[steven taggart]

I was thinking about ripping them to about three inches thick, and stack them with the 1.5" face up, which would form the surface, being long grain. So basically 2x4s glued together to form a top that is three feet wide, and three inches thick. So something like this [][][][] instead of the 2x8s laid flat. Sorry I am not able to post pics to illustrate what I am trying to say better.

[Erik Christensen]

Steven - that would work - you want a thicker top and do consider the look of a lot of a lot of 1.5" wide boards to be a negative. One thing you can do to jazz up the look if you go that route is to put in one or more thin accent pieces from a contrasting wood.

[Benjamin Miller]

What you're describing is indeed a butcher block and has been done for many years to yield a flat, stable surface.

[Jim Matthews]

Note that grain orientation is a challenge in making something like this.

You want the "top" surface to be plane-able in one direction.
If you have alternating grain directions, tear out will be everywhere.

It's an important topic, and has been covered here (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?179510-Techniques-for-dimensioning-wood-for-laminated-workbench-top) before.

[steven taggart]

That is some good info. I think I will build a small demo section to try it out. Will let everyone know how it turns out.