Cutting Board 101: How to Make a Cutting Board

I’ve done dozens upon dozens of different styles of cutting boards the last few years. Along the way I’ve picked up quite a few tips and tricks and wanted to share them out with the community. While this is a comprehensive “101” how to make a cutting board video, there are certainly tips for the experienced board maker as well.

—⏱Timestamps⏱—
00:00 Cutting Board Intro
01:45 Wood Selection
02:06 Surfacing Lumber
02:49 Cutting to Length
03:28 Cutting Strips
04:12 Getting a Great Glue Joint
07:05 Making the Pattern
07:29 Glue-Up
08:46 Flattening Cutting Board
09:56 Juice Groove Jig
10:57 Cutting Board Handles
11:34 Edge Profiles
12:08 Sanding Tips
13:23 Raising the Grain
14:03 Finish Options
15:44 Final Sanding
16:16 Waxing the Board
17:14 Wood Identification
17:50 Final Tips

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Wood species I commonly use with cutting boards: Walnut, Cherry, Maple, Ash, Sapele, Padauk, Mahogany, Jatoba, White Oak, Hickory, Yellowheart, Morado, Curly Maple, and more.

[mach]

Definitely the best from all the rest! Watched a dozen how to’s before this and after yours I’m FINALLY inspired. Great work

[dospalmascb]

I’ve just looked at your website for boards, blown away by the fact you donate to foster care projects. I’ve been a foster parent for 20 years in the UK, thank you.

[notthesnail]

Regarding snipe, stagger your feeds. With boards between 1 and 2 inches wide, you can feed between 6 and 12 at a time through the planer. Just stagger the feeding of each board by a couple inches. You'll only get snipe on the first board in and the last board out, and if you're using a long piece or a sacrificial piece, then you'll effectively have none.

[E-jz]

I appreciate your level of detail! You go much further than a lot of other youtubers in regards to explanation, sanding, finishing, etc. Love it!

[malhamishery]

I really enjoyed your style and delivery, not to mention the wealth of knowledge you share.

[johnlong]

For those who have under powered saws. You can use a Freud thin kerf straight line rip blade. About $90 but it’s well worth it. With a consistent feed rate you can eliminate 95% of the saw marks. The other thing that can help greatly is, when you rip the thin strips, switch to a zero clearance blade insert.

[peteyscott]

I just made my first cutting board and it turned out well thank to opening this video every 30 minutes and following each step. Thanks!

[garysavage]

I never made end grain boards before. I followed your steps exactly and my cutting boards turned out beautifully. Thank you so much! Also, I loved that you showed us your helper.

[derekdodson]

Thanks so much for this, Nick. My wife and I are tooling up and this will be one of the areas we will concentrate on. Thanks for the inspiration!

[denniss]

Thanks so much for making such a detailed video where you explain all the steps. I watch this video numerous times before and during putting together my first cutting board. I made a few mistakes along the way but learned a lot and was very happy with the finished product. Your video made this project a success. Thanks again and keep them coming.

[HoangLe-gqod]

Thanks for your experienced, i usually use mineral oil for the fist step then finish with some of product like wood finish contain polycrylic. Now im gonna change the last step to bee wax, that will save lot of money.

[johnkillen]

been a wood worker for nearly 50 years and My hats off to you!

[jamesarneson]

OMG thanks for the excellent video on here I’ll try and watch all of your videos for sure. No one else’s videos even come close too your quality. I can’t wait to start making my first cutting board. Thank you...

[roystidomsthend]

I found that planing those thin pieces of wood with a router works really well too.
Great video. Thank you.

[heidisoll]

Sweet - the rotating stand in the first 15 seconds was awesome, the boards look great. I love all the extra steps and how they make it better.

[wurly]

I could watch the money shot of the finish being applied to raw wood, all day. It just pops

[mhath]

I am just getting into woodworking and want to teach my kids as i go. This tutorial is great! Thank you for posting this. I am curious where your plans are for the router table and the jigs you made.

[billg]

best video on a step by step way to make and finish cutting boards... excellent job... and I always love seeing the younger generations interested in helping out.... great video...

[squatchyswoodworking]

Your boards came out amazing! I love the color patterns and wood spices you chose.

[presidentelecttaterpuddin]

Nothing more beautiful than multiple different tree carcasses glued into a color scheme