Small Christmas gifts

I think the cutting board design is beautiful. A nice gift to give.
The idea of making the hole handle makes it so handy.

-- masrol, kuala lumpur, MY.

Nice job

-- Glenn, New Mexico

The cutting boards finished up nicely, I like the veneer accent sandwiching the stripe on the first cutting board.
I think it is diabolical to give puzzles as gifts.
Love, your Dad

-- Rich in Richmond

Thanks for the comments. The veneer worked out better than I had hoped. It’ll definatly be included on any others that get made. Thanks again for the help with the router template & use of the drum sander.

No worries about the puzzles.. the kids love them. I still can’t find the first one I made. Little buggers took it and didn’t give it back.

Nice cutting board! what are the woods you used, great contrast! Thanks for the post, Craven

-- let the chips fly!

Gonna show how much of a beginner I am now. For the first one I don’t know. The redish wood was a ‘mystery’ board Dad was kind enough to bring over. It has a very open grain, but I’m guessing mahogany or a red oak. The lighter boards are maple, the handel on the second one is cherry. The veneer, I forgot what it was.. it was the darkest veneer sheet I had large enough to fit.

Mental note to self, next time save the little tag you peel off the veneer sample sheet.

I love the little touch of adding the veneer stripe on the cutting board. Amazing what a minor detail like that does to the entire design. Well done! Definately looks like Mahagony, the grain doesn’t match red oak. Too small to guess on the veneer. Who cares it looks great!

-- Check out my blog and podcast "The Renaissance Woodworker" at www.rogersfinewoodworking.com/blog

The only problem using the drum sander is all of the straight lines it leaves on the projects . Sometimes you can’t see them until after you’ve applied the finish . A thorough sanding up through the grits with an RO sander is the only cure that I’ve found so far , especially when you have the grain going in more than one direction . The design and colors of your boards are excellent . What are the sizes and what finish did you use on them ?

-- You know you're getting old when you know the difference between you're (you are) and your (belonging to you) AND how to use them in a sentence .

Thanks for the comment Dusty, Your dead on with the streak lines from the drum sander. All the boards I’ve made get them, and taking the time to work through the grits on the RO sander will remove them. It takes some time, but the drum sander is still the best way I’ve come across to get a very straight & flat surface.

I have tried combinations of a hand power planer, hand planer, cabniet scrapers. That combo looks like it would give you a dead smooth finish, but I lack the skills yet with those tools to get it perfect. I still wind up with small lines and uneven spots. And in the end it takes me longer than working the RO sander through the grits.

The size on the boards is approximatly 9×12, the hight varies from 3/4 to 1” depending on the stock. I don’t have a joiner or planner yet so I have to work with what thickness the stock comes in. (come on Santa!) The finish is a salad bowl finish, then I wax them with a mineral oil and bee’s wax combo.

I’ve worked out a sanding method that I’m really likeing. They get run through the drum sander at 80-100 grit. Then I’ll put the bull nose on the boards, and hand sand the sides until I’m happy with the edge. From there I will start working the RO sander (100, 120, 150, 180). Stop there and wet the whole thing down, let the grain rise. Hit it again with sander (180, 220) stop there and put on the first coat of finish. First one will be a heavy coat, stop sing along with the radio for about 4 minutes then clean it all off. Let it dry. Come back and go (220, 320) Apply the second coat, not as heavy handed now & wipe off the excess. Let it dry. Hit it again (320, 400, 600) put on the final coat, let it dry. One last time with 600, and apply the wax. Damn things come out so silky smooth it makes me wish my cloths felt that nice.

I am curious to see how they hold up to use and abuse, they look pretty solid but they are untested.

And I thought that I was finicky about finishing my boards ! So many of my customers end up using my boards as “countertop art ” and never cut on them at all even though I always put all of the best faces to one face of my boards and the not so pretty faces to the other side and then route the juice groove into that face . As long as I get paid for my work , I don’t care what they do anymore : ) Happy Holidays to you and yours and keep up the good work . Hopefully Santa will be good to you this year !

-- You know you're getting old when you know the difference between you're (you are) and your (belonging to you) AND how to use them in a sentence .