End Grain Cutting Board

[BobbyB]

Sharing a photo of an end grain cutting board I made for my daughter. Made from hard maple & walnut. Finished size is 1-3/16 T x 9 x 13. There is a lot of discussions around the use of cutting boards and end grain seems to have a lot of benefits over others including non wood cutting surfaces. I was tempted to buy a new 40T combo blade for my table saw and a 2" planing bit for the router but decided to try my Piranha 32 tooth blade that I had never used and was amazed at how well it cut with almost no saw marks. Also used a 3/4" dia. x 2 flute carbide tipped router bit for surfacing after glue up and it cut very well just taking a light pass on the end grain surface after glue up that required minimal sanding. I am always looking for a reason to buy that next tool but held back this time I also added the juice groove on both sides. Its the first time I made one and was pleased with the results. I wiped it down with a wet paper towel so you may see some lint specs in the photo.

 

[J_Graham]

Looks good! Thick hard maple is a magnet for burns so I'd say the blade performed well.

 

[bobby g]

Nice work Bob! What finish was used?

 

[BobbyB]

Nice work Bob! What finish was used?

I am leaving it unfinished. There was a recent article/podcast in Fine Woodworking explaining how the open pores in unfinished cutting boards do not allow bacteria to grow and is safer than applying a finish. This is opposite of what most of us believe. In my photo I did wet the surface with water to highlight the grain.

 

[SliceofLife]

Most of the studies I've seen have been using extracts of wood/etc... so I wouldn't put too much stock in the magical antibacterial properties of wood. In fact Boos blocks supported a study that actually tested their boards specifically WITH a finishing treatment on them with much the same results. Basically a maintained wood board is going to be better than a gouged up plastic board. The wood itself... outside of a few varieties with VERY minor antimicrobial properties (mostly wood you wouldn't put in a cutting board), isn't doing anything magical.

I would caution that an end grain board with no treatment is VERY prone to warping if you let it get even moderately wet. Without any kind of oil in the fibers, they will soak up water like a sponge and swell. I had a 33x24x2" end grain counter-top butcher block (Maple) that I had only lightly oiled... and after a few uses I had washed it fairly typically and wiped it then let it air dry and it got a cm or more bowing from the wood swelling. Fortunately it held together and once it dried again most of the warp went away and I was able to resurface it flat and then saturate it in mineral oil and it hasn't had any problem since.

 

[Berta]

I would be concerned about juices from food being cut on this board soaking in and smelling as it rots. End grain absorbs. The normal way is mineral oil. The Wood Whisperer has a video about different finishes for cutting boards.

 

[BobbyB]

From what I understand as long as the board is wiped clean and allowed to air dry between use the open pores will not harbor bacteria. I can also see the concerns around warpage if there is not a finish. Good conversation.