# Another end grain cutting board post: seeking advice



## cjben (Feb 17, 2018)

Hi folks,

It's another end-grain cutting board post. I searched online for other such posts and found those helpful. I will add a picture once I can get access to the cutting board…

I started with 8/4 hard maple 6.25" wide and 25" long. I ripped into 2 strips of 1-7/8" and 2 strips of 1" width. The plan was to cross-cut and glue the two halves together to get a wider board.

I re-arranged strips to get a zig-zag grain pattern. Then glued up on a melanine board with three clamps, no cauls. The 2 clamps on the ends were oriented so that the bar was in the same plane plane of board. The middle clamp's bar was above the board.

There are 2 gaps in 2 different glue seams, maybe 2 inches in length from the end? I can see light and slide a piece of paper in the gaps. ( At the time of the glue up, it seemed there may be a sliver of a gap, but I thought it was the 'appearance' of the gap because one strips were slightly offset from one another.)

Is there anything I can do before proceeding, or should I wait until the final glue up with the end-grain pieces forming the cutting board surface? 
-I read about sawdust / glue filler
-I hesitate to use epoxy…
-put glue in the gaps (using a shop vac on the other side of the board) and try clamp some more?

From other posts, it seems possible causes may be
-too much pressure on the clamps
-not enough glue
-wood movement
-moisture in the wood
-not using cauls
-anything else?

Thank you!


----------



## Mike54Ohio (Feb 2, 2017)

Without pics-hard to say, BUT if you have daylight wide gaps in your glue line now-best to re-cut the board along the glue seams and re-glue everything again

If not, those areas will allow water into while in use and will cause it to probably split-it is a cutting board after all.

Prior to glue up are you test clamping everything together to insure no gaps in seams and even clamping pressure along the workpiece? If you do this you can avoid issues at or after glue-up.

Not sure of the type of clamps you have but if I read you correctly, you used 3 clamps during glue up? It is not unusual for me to use 6 to 8 clamps (combination of parallel and F clamps) when clamping up a cutting board for glue up-and also using cauls top, bottom and sides to insure fairly level surfaces along the seams.

Maybe more clamps along the board will help the gapping-but normally the gaps are a result of uneven surfaces along the edges being glues. Did you verify the glue surfaces are jointed correctly?

Hope that helps somewhat


----------



## cjben (Feb 17, 2018)

> Without pics-hard to say, BUT if you have daylight wide gaps in your glue line now-best to re-cut the board along the glue seams and re-glue everything again
> 
> Prior to glue up are you test clamping everything together to insure no gaps in seams and even clamping pressure along the workpiece? If you do this you can avoid issues at or after glue-up.
> 
> ...


Thanks so much for the helpful tips. I did not test clamp. I lined up the strips and didn't notice any gaps, but "next time" I will scrutinize it upon test clamping. After ripping, I used the planer for the glue surfaces (not jointer). Perhaps jointer would have been useful for any less-than-perfect glue-up suraces. Also, I probably should have checked the edge provided by the lumber store.

The daylight gaps don't go all the way through the thickness of the panel. I wonder if that makes a difference-possibly could hide a defective gap (depending on length) when I turn the cross-cut strips to orient the end-grain to be visible on the top/bottom of the board for the final glue-up…? I'll work on getting photos soon.

Thanks again!


----------



## cjben (Feb 17, 2018)

Well, it seems there wasn't enough glue… While the gaps closed up-the air has become more humid-such that a piece of paper doesn't fit, they evidenced themselves when the panel was cut up in order to do the final glue up. Some of the blocks have detached themselves. I did some light sanding with 80 grit and re-glued.

Also, I attached a photo of the trailing edge of the panel from the second trip through the table saw. There is tear out on the trailing edge. Any way to prevent this?

Finally, on the bench top planer (long grain cleanup), it seems that when the planer grabbed the panel, that it created a shallow divot. Also, a second divot perhaps on exiting the planer? Any recommendations there? Was only taking 1/64 each pass. The tray wasn't quite flush to the feeder. Perhaps that contributed.

Current plan is to re-glue with end grain up but in two halves, then glue the two halves together.

Thanks again for any insights.


----------



## TimInIndiana (Jan 6, 2018)

Regarding your divots from the planer - this is a very common problem known as snipe. There is much written about how to avoid planer snipe… you can find several methods explained well on Youtube. Mattias Wandel has a nice description of the problem and what he does to manage it on a benchtop planer.

Some people just send longer-than-needed pieces through the planer and cut off the sniped ends.


----------



## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

+1 to researching how to avoid snipe or start with longer stock that can have the sniped ends cut off prior to gluing. I didn't see if you mentioned what kind of glue you were using. I always use Titebond III as it's waterproof & offers a little extra work time which I've found handy especially when dealing with complicated glue ups such as cutting boards, don't be afraid to slather it on as well. Gluing against melamine could result in a surface not easily separated from the project, wax paper or some other easily removed barrier can be helpful. Too much clamping force is extremely unlikely. The moisture content should be consistent within the wood and I've also found when using different species make sure they have similar humidity related movement as this can be a major factor in durability given what some boards can be subjected to.


----------

