Wood Countertop...What wood you use?

[MikeH]

I'm remodeling a kitchen and the island needs a countertop. What wood you use? I'm leaning towards Black Walnut or Maple.

Thought???

 

[CDPeters]

Mike -

Personally, I'd go maple, finished blonde - or if it is to be used to cut on directly - finish with mineral oil. But that's just me.

The walnut would look really nice too depending on the rest of the finish. I think I would choose dark on light cabinets or light on dark cabinets. Either walnut or maple should give you a nice durable surface though.

C.

 

[Joe Scharle]

+1 on maple

 

[MikeH]

Mike -

Personally, I'd go maple, finished blonde - or if it is to be used to cut on directly - finish with mineral oil. But that's just me.

The walnut would look really nice too depending on the rest of the finish. I think I would choose dark on light cabinets or light on dark cabinets. Either walnut or maple should give you a nice durable surface though.

C.

Hey Chris!
The cabinets are actually light in color and the other countertops are dark. I'm really leaning towards Walnut.

Thanks for your input.

 

[stave]

Recently finished this countertop...32" x 80" made from ambrosia maple with mahogany inlay. The inlay was about 1/4" thick.
Walnut works well and can be accented with maple for a really nice look. The thin inlay was 1/8" and the wide was 3/4", both were done with a router. Used mineral oil to finished followed by a product called "BoardButter" which is a type of wax/mineral oil mix. It seals the wood better and helps the finish last longer.

View image in gallery​

View image in gallery​

Good luck on yours!

 

[mquan01]

I did mine in mahogany. The red and gold tones would contrast really nicely with light colored base cabinets.

 

[Gofor]

How about maple/black walnut butcher block?

Go

 

[JimmyC]

I built one in my old house using maple. I didn't laminate the top, instead I used 2 1/4" maple flooring on top of plywood because it was cheaper. If you have to make an L-shaped top it worked well using a herringbone pattern. Then I used red oak for the bullnose to match my cabinets.

Not real expensive, work and looked well for 12 years that I lived there, and fairly easy to work with. I just thought that I'd throw the idea out. Good luck with whichever wood and route that you take.