Salad Bowl Finishes

[Mark Rios]

I need to finish a couple of cutting boards that I've made and I did a search for Salad Bowl Finish expecting to find the sites that sell Behlen's Finish. I got a number of hits for a number of different makers of Salad Bowl Finishes. Behlens Salad Bowl Finish, Clapham's Beeswax Salad Bowl Finish, GENERAL FINISHES' Salad Bowl Finish among others. Would anyone be so kind as to direct me toward which one to use? I'm not very knowledgable on finishing and could use all the help you can give. Thank you very much.
The cutting boards are made from hard maple and walnut.

[Jim Becker]

Mark, the best finish for a cutting board that is going to be used is mineral oil or a mineral oil/paraffin mixture. (The latter applied hot in a ratio of about 8:1 and scraped smooth after it cools) A simple reapplication of mineral oil periodically will keep it looking nice. Cutting boards should never be cleaned with soap, too. Just warm water.

Film finishes will very quickly look ratty once the board is in service and don't really offer anything other than a nice shiny surface.

[John Miliunas]

Mark, ditto to what Jim said, though I've never tried the mineral oil with the wax treatment. I've found flooding the piece with mineral oil for as many times as it takes before the material readily soaks it up, does a splendid job. Rejuvinating the surface later down the road couldn't be easier. If it gets really, REALLY scarfed up, you can even hit it with your sander before re-applying the mineral oil. :cool:

[Mark Rios]

This is exactly the thing that I need to know, thank you guys very much. These boards are definately going to be used.

So Jim, How do I make this mixture exactly or do I buy it and what is the procedure for application?

I am really grateful for your information and help.