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I decided to try my hand at cutting boards. Im always hunting (IE dumpster diving) for scrap wood for boxes. I take whatever I find, thinking, Ill use it for something someday. Any piece that was too small for box use, got put in a pile. This past Christmas, my father was kind enough to give me a gorgeous cutting board, with all kinds of exotic woods. As im sitting there staring at it, taking in the beauty, I start naming off the woods. Maple, walnut, lacewood, purple heart…then it occurs to me….how do I knwo these woods? Because I have piecs of them in my shop…...light bulb goes off in my head and I decide its time to make cutting boards. As with many things, to me half the fun is making the jig. I dont have a ton of clamps, so I thought a jig might save a few.

The idea behind this is the fences are 90 degrees square, so right off the bat lining up your pieces, there going to line up square. The clamping area is 12"x16". I knew I wanted some type of caul, and hoped this would save me a few clamps. I ended up milling maple strips as cauls, 3/4"x1 1/4" and I dont know the correct term for this, but I lined up the grain while milling so that if the natural way the wood would want to flex would be sideways, not up and down. They came from a large thick piece of wood, not 3/4 stock from HD. If anyone smarter then I am knows what thats called, help a brother out! I left spaces in the fence so that the cauls could be used in either direction, so that if I need to clamp the 16" end for end grain butcher blocks I will have that option. The cauls are clamped down using t-bolts and knobs. I can put a decent amount of pressure on them, and it keep the board flat while the bar clamps put the real work in. The whole thing has a few coats of danish oil to resist glue, and the underside of the cauls have a layer of tuck tape for the same purpose. I line the bottom with a sheet of wax paper. All in all this makes it faster, easier and I save 6 precious clamps. I could also make a few of these and stack them.

The boards are my first attempt, made from jatoba and birch glued up with tightbond III and finished with 6 coats of walnut oil.

Thanks for viewing, any and all feedback is welcome!

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Comments

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141 Posts
Great idea.
Thanks for sharing.
 

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13 Posts
Hey now thats a great jig . I wanted to make a few boards before next christmas, and now I'll have a jig. Awesone. Thanks
 

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477 Posts
Thank you naked! Please post yours when you do, and if you come up with any improvements please let me know!
 

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47 Posts
genius! I love this jig
gonna have to make it a favorite
nice boards too
 

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485 Posts
I made something very similar last year, but without the cauls. I am going to use your idea before I make my next cutting board. Thanks for sharing! I think the term you were looking for was edge of board vs face of board. You used the edge for less flexing.
 

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1,088 Posts
Nothing like a good jig. Please let me know where you dumpster dive for walnut and purpleheart. I'd do a double twist backflip if it meant I could dive in that dumpster.
 

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19,753 Posts
well done
 

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39 Posts
I like this idea..will have to buy clamps.
I agree, half the fun is making the jig.
Great job.
 

· In Loving Memory
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8,391 Posts
Great jig!
 

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1,833 Posts
Great job, these help with glue up and save so much time trying to flaten a board out. Enjoy!
 

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1,696 Posts
Great idea!
 

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Going in my favorites for my next jig….I love it
 

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2,169 Posts
Nice jig and boards, Thanks for sharing
 

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Nice jig! Are your cauls tapered out at the ends? Thicker in the middle to counteract the natural tendency to bow when tightened down at the ends?
 

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2,790 Posts
That's the way to do it. I've been using a rig similar to yours, but I use clamps instead of those neat hold downs. I'd like to get some steel bar in place of the wood, something that wont flex.
 

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477 Posts
the steel cauls or the way drbyte suggested would be best. I merely milled mine up in the direction of least flex or to the edge of the board (thank you Randy). This seems to work well enough for cutting boards. It still flexes slightly but the boards do come out flat and are run through a planer anyway. If I do another and cant get steel Ill round out the middle of the cauls like dr byte suggested.

Thanks all so much for the comments, and Im honored to once again have the top project of the day. I do consider myself on the lower end of the skill tree around here, so I do feel humbled. Thanks for the views!
 

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497 Posts
Brilliant! Thanks so much for sharing with the "Wood Tribe"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

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The Cadillac of jigs! I've never seen so many "Favorited" before, so that tells you something. Great job.
 

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409 Posts
cool jig, and you are telling us you found jatoba in a dumpster. I should move to the Dartmouth!
Nice boards
 
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