Popular Woodworking 2008-11 № 172, страница 16

The Wood Whisperer

BY MARC SPAGNUOLO

Varnish on a Butcher Block? Yep!

There's nothing wrong with tradition - but tradition is time consuming.

Cut to the finish. Using thinned varnish instead of the traditional mineral oil and wax takes a big slice out of the time it usually takes to finish a butcher-block cutting board.

Afier finishing my first five or six boards in the traditional way, 1 found myself echoingthc questions ofthe cutting board creators before me: "What finishing options do I have?"

1 was just tired of the old oil and wax routine. Those finishes are time-consuming, tedious and messy. And the maintenance schedule for oiling the board is just another chore that I really don't want on my to-do list. And despite all the effort, the wood may st i 11 absorb liquids, causi ng i he cut i i ng board to expand and possibly result in cracks and weakened glue joints.

I wanted an effective and convenient solution,and 1 found one in plain old varnish. Feel free to spend the extra money on a "salad bowl finish," but I am going to make a bold speculation here and say that most of those "salad bowl finishes" are probably just repackaged

product from that company's regular line of varnish. And until someone invents magical mineral spirits or non-toxic naptha, I'm pretty sure it's all the same solvents as well. 1 wouldn't be overly concerned about food safe-ness here either. Once the finish curesand the solvent evaporates, the surface is safe for food contact. (For more information on food-safe fi n ishes, see "The Fol ly of Food-safe Fi n i shes" by Bob Flexnerai popularwoodworking.com/ finishing.)

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To watch a video of Marc's application of a varnish finish to his maple and purpleheart cutting board, go to:

popularvvoodworking.com/nov08

O K, raise your hand if you've made a butcherblock in the last two years. I am willing to bet my best Fujihiro chisel that more than halfofyou have your hands up right now. Butcher blocks, more specifically end-grain butcher blocks, have become incredibly popular amongst woodworkers. And why not? They are fun to build, they help us hone our milling skills and they make great gifts. But despite the abundance of these beautiful boards, there is one lingeringquestion that popsupat least once a month in the woodworking forums: "What's the best finish?" This is a very sensible question, considering this is not your typical woodworking project.

Genera11 y speak i ng, m i neral oi I is k i ng! 11's odorless, tasteless, easy to obtain and safe. You can even drink ii right from the bottle if you were so inclined. Just be sure to have a stack of your favorite woodworking magazines at the ready because you'll need them (mineral oil is generally marketed as a laxative). For more protection, melted paraffin wax and beeswax can be added to the oil.

Tradition. Mineral oil, paraffin wax and beeswax are traditionally used to finish cutting boards. It s a time-tested - but time-consuming - finishing option.

30 a I'opular Woodworking November2008

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