Cutting Boards Completed (pics inside)

[Matt Wachter]

...26 of them to be exact. I got them done last Thrusday, but didn't get around to taking pictures until this weekend. This was the latest that I have ever started working on Christmas presents, the most I've made, and the earliest I've finished. Go figure.

A little bit about the boards. Maple, Cherry, and purpleheart. I wanted walnut, but all my supplier had was sapwood and that was lighter than the cherry, so I decided against that. Finish was a bar of pariffan wax and a bottle of mineral oil heated together. I found that it went on best if the oil was just hot enough that it wouldn't burn my fingers, but if it was too cool, it the wax would cool to quickly. Buffed out with a paper towel.

I am in the camp of "this is a great way to get a new tool" and I was happy getting a roller glue bottle as that tool, but ended up with a belt sander. My work has a Performax 16/32 sander and I had planned on using that until I went to check it out from work to find out that they had tore it apart and made a denibber for casework and cabinet doors! So I did end up with a belt sander for Christmas.

With one week to go, I still have 10 keepsake boxes to complete, and a wine rack to start and finish. In the words of Norm, "I think we can get it finished." :)

Enough with the talking...here are the pictures.
Merry Christmas!

1st picture is with the flash
2nd is without
3rd is a closeup of one of the boards

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l181/wachtervision/2006%20Christmas/PICT4701.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l181/wachtervision/2006%20Christmas/PICT4702.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l181/wachtervision/2006%20Christmas/PICT4703.jpg

[John D Watson]

Wow, Well done Matt, It looks like one more would have made a new table top. I'm sure everyone will love them.

[Jim Becker]

Hmm....I'm getting dizzy looking at that first picture... :D :D :D Nice work! But I bet you want to get on with a project that has a few less glue-lines...

[Ralph Barhorst]

Did you glue up one big log and then slice it like a loaf of bread??:D

They really look great.

[Dennis Peacock]

Beautiful work and I've made several of those cutting boards. Sanding endgrain for me was a real PAIN!!!!!

Congrats and very nicely done. :cool:

[Art Mulder]

For me, the biggest pain in the neck with end-grain cutting boards is the second clamping session. That is because you now need to keep things aligned in two directions instead of just one. How did you do it? Got any good jigs for ensuring alignment of those slippery pieces.

Looks great, but also tiring!

[John Timberlake]

Great job. Really like the pattern and looks like you got a really nice finish. Recipients will love them.

[Matt Wachter]

It wasn't too bad actually. I did them in 2 glueups, put enough pressure to engage the joints, and then aligned them to flush, and then put the pressure on. I started off by using cauls to bring all of the edges together, but I was very liberal on the glue and didn't like knocking the blocks off the ends due to sqeezeout sticking to them. They didn't work anyway.

[Roy Wall]

Matt -

THose are excellent!! YOu are one busy ELF!!:) Merry Christmas!

[Thomas Walker]

My goodness ... you have too many friends or family members!!


:-)