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I want to buy a cutting board made of acacia by Zassenhaus. I like the dark looks very much. Do you think it will be OK for my knives?
 
No, it is too hard. It’s like 2200ish janka whereas maple is 1450 or so.
 
I've been using an acacia board for ~3 years. As a home cook, I don't notice it being particularly hard on edges compared to my old edge grain maple. It's definitely harder on edges than my new cherry board, but I think acacia is probably fine for most home users.
 
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I have no idea what species of acacia can it be. I like the looks of it so much better than my old beech board that I decided to buy it anyway.... I am quite good at sharpening so that should be no big issue. As far as the cutting feel is concerned, I will see. In case I don't like it I can sell it later.
 
Beerzebub said:
I think I've heard Beech is a good economical option in Europe? Cooking is funner if you don't have to worry about what you're doing to your knife's edge.
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Yep... beech may be a bit boring, but they work really well, are right in the sweetspot for hardness, and are cheap as hell to boot.

As others have pointed out (and as a result I only recently learned) there's a whole bunch of different varieties of acacia wood, so it's hard to make blanket statements. I wasn't thrilled about the ones I used (from Ikea) because they were too hard, but that might not be a universal problem.

That being said if youóre on a budget and you want something that just works I'd personally go for beechwood since you can get really good thick end-grain boards for surprisingly little money.
 
buendia said:
View attachment 217932I have no idea what species of acacia can it be. I like the looks of it so much better than my old beech board that I decided to buy it anyway.... I am quite good at sharpening so that should be no big issue. As far as the cutting feel is concerned, I will see. In case I don't like it I can sell it later.
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Looks identical to a couple of "Ironwood Gourmet" brand acacia boards I bought off Amazon. The wood is pretty hard, but as a home cook I don't find it has any particularly bad effects on my knives compared to, say, HDPE cutting boards.
 
JASinIL2006 said:
Looks identical to a couple of "Ironwood Gourmet" brand acacia boards I bought off Amazon. The wood is pretty hard, but as a home cook I don't find it has any particularly bad effects on my knives compared to, say, HDPE cutting boards.
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Yes, the wood looks identical. They are manufactured in Thailand. Supposedly from local acacia...
 

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I couldn’t find any acacia numbers in the lower ranges, so I wasn’t sure it mattered. sorry, just min/maxing as usual.
 
Crate and Barrel has this little monster on its web site 21”x14”x3” thick, I’ve thought about getting it like ten times but just can’t pull the trigger. Probably get a Jones or Boos board but you can’t beat the price for that size.
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Dan- said:
I couldn’t find any acacia numbers in the lower ranges, so I wasn’t sure it mattered. sorry, just min/maxing as usual.
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For reference, koa and tasmanian blackwood are both acacias around 1k janka. Thought about making my own tasmanian blackwood board.

So far have stuck to the tried and true, maple, mahogany, cherry, and some purpleheart(yes I know a bit hard)

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jedy617 said:
Just in case he ships international, this guy is local from me and by day does a lot of big commercial jobs with wood. I've used the board for years and it's held up perfectly. Honestly feels like a steal at the price. Black Walnut Butcher Block Cutting Board New End Grain 14 X 18 Sap Pattern | eBay
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By the way thanks for the tip, I got a walnut board from him as a gift for my parents in law in the States and they love it. Now I just have to try to get them to put mineral oil on it and everything😁
 
AT5760 said:
I've been using an acacia board for ~3 years. As a home cook, I don't notice it being particularly hard on edges compared to my old edge grain maple. It's definitely harder on edges than my new cherry board, but I think acacia is probably fine for most home users.
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I got a gorgeous maple and walnut end grain Boardsmith a couple years ago which my wife promptly declared too beautiful for me to scratch up. So she claimed it for herself as basically a glorified placemat for her morning bagel prep area and bought me a cheap acacia end-grain from Etsy instead 🤣

So I’ve been using the Acacia for a couple years now and my knives are just fine. I only cook a couple times a week for 2 people, and rotate through about 6-8 knives so they get light use. At most I’ve lightly honed a few on a strop or 4000 grit stone but most are holding up very well in terms of edge retention. I’m pretty gentle in general when it comes to cutting and board contact though especially as most of my knives are thin and light geometry, not workhorses. So it might be different from someone who cuts with more aggressive board contact.
 
Vaughan said:
Hi all,

I’m looking to buy an end grain board.

My main concern, especially after viewing Amazon reviews for Jon Boos boards, is the number of reports of warping, cracking of individual blocks and cracks in glue lines.

It will be a significant upgrade from my ikea poly cutting boards. I’m trying to avoid the frustration of forking out for something that is supposedly “better” only to have the thing break down in a short amount of time.

I understand they require a relatively high level of maintenance, but trust in my ability to meet those needs.

I plan to use it for the majority of my meal prep (except raw proteins).

Pretty keen on walnut and hoping to buy domestically (Aus) to save on the shipping costs associated with such heavy items.

I am seeking some general guidance about purchasing such a board, to hopefully avoid some of the above pitfalls.

Ie is the longevity of the board mainly a matter of maintenance, manufacture, or are results that individual that no real generalisations can be made?

Thanks,

Vaughan
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Hi Vaughan. I’m not sure whether they ship internationally, but if they do, Jones Cutting Boards price/quality/service will probably make up for the shipping cost.

https://www.jonescuttingboards.com
Once you get past the first month of slightly higher maintenance regimen, you’ll only need to rub it with some paste (mineral oil + beeswax) every three or four weeks.
 
Seemore said:
Hi Vaughan. I’m not sure whether they ship internationally, but if they do, Jones Cutting Boards price/quality/service will probably make up for the shipping cost.

https://www.jonescuttingboards.com
Once you get past the first month of slightly higher maintenance regimen, you’ll only need to rub it with some paste (mineral oil + beeswax) every three or four weeks.
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Thanks for the recommendation but I ended up getting something made locally (500mmx320mmx40mm rose gum board from Choppablock, South Australia)
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Very happy with this board but can definitely recommend going as large as you can get away with. I have predominantly been using this 250mm Vic on it and at times it feels a bit cramped. Very well constructed especially for the money.
 
Vaughan said:
Thanks for the recommendation but I ended up getting something made locally (500mmx320mmx40mm rose gum board from Choppablock, South Australia)
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Very happy with this board but can definitely recommend going as large as you can get away with. I have predominantly been using this 250mm Vic on it and at times it feels a bit cramped. Very well constructed especially for the money.
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That's a lovely cutting board! Very nice!
 
jedy617 said:
Man that board is a monster how can you feel cramped on that thing haha
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I figure it’s mainly because of the 250mm blade. When an ingredient is centred on the board (where I instinctively want to place it), when I use the rear 1/3rd of the blade, a reasonable amount of the tip end extends past the edge of the board. I could modify ingredient placement or the portion of the blade I use, but it’s just something I have noticed when doing what comes naturally to me. I’m in the market for a ~210mm gyuto / ~170mm bunka. Either should be more than enough for 90% of my home cooking needs and should make this less of an issue.
 
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My guess is you're standing squared up to the board, and then indeed you almost automatically start cutting in the center due to biomechanics. But (assuming you're right-handed) if you bring your right leg backwards you open yourself up, and it becomes easier to cut more towards the bottom right corner. Also means that any problems with heel height become far less of a concern.
 
Jovidah said:
My guess is you're standing squared up to the board, and then indeed you almost automatically start cutting in the center due to biomechanics. But (assuming you're right-handed) if you bring your right leg backwards you open yourself up, and it becomes easier to cut more towards the bottom right corner. Also means that any problems with heel height become far less of a concern.
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Good chance. I’ll give it a go
 


Jon illustrates it better. Though the video focuses on push cutting it also applies to toher cutting techniques. You can of course go somewhere in between; you don't have to go all the way to the edge (unless you're doing it to fix a knuckle clearance problem).
 
Vaughan said:
I figure it’s mainly because of the 250mm blade. When an ingredient is centred on the board (where I instinctively want to place it), when I use the rear 1/3rd of the blade, a reasonable amount of the tip end extends past the edge of the board. I could modify ingredient placement or the portion of the blade I use, but it’s just something I have noticed when doing what comes naturally to me. I’m in the market for a ~210mm gyuto / ~170mm bunka. Either should be more than enough for 90% of my home cooking needs and should make this less of an issue. Alternatively, if you are regularly using long blades I’d suggest a bigger board if you have the space.
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I cut on small cutting boards all the time. It does not bother me. I do have some large cutting boards also, but I never think which knife I am using because I use a 10-inch chef's knife most of the time regardless of the cutting board size.
I just made split pea soup on a cutting board 9 x 12 inches using a 10-inch chef's knife. The only issue was I cut the onion fist then I cut the celery next and then the carrot. On a large board I can cut all three on the same cutting board and just move them aside with my knife blade. With the smaller board I need to offload each vegetable before starting on the next one.

PS
I might of smashed a garlic before cutting the carrot.
 
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Yeah I honestly never had trouble using a 240 gyuto on smaller boards either... Currently using a 60x40, but was using a 45x35 before that, and occasionally using 35x25 for small stuff; seems to work fine for me. The main advantage on larger boards is similar for me; it means I'm wasting a lot less time on 'board logistics' moving food around since I can just keep going.
 
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