How reliable is America's test kitchen recommendation?

[Michi]

But here's the rub... when gluing up strips of said wood, the oiliness can interfere with the glue adhesion.

That makes sense. Thanks for the explanation!

 

[Chef Doom]

It depends on .......

Edit: Doom, Doom, Doom. This is not a nightclub or comedy show. But I'll have one of whatever you're having.

 

[Chef Doom]

It was a valid comparison. My rights to free speech have been trampled. I DEMAND DIGNITY!

 

[ian]

I think you mean respect, not dignity.

Mods, would you mind changing his post?



Edit: I apologize. I actually support Doom’s quest for dignity in this instance.

 

[Chef Doom]

No, I meant a safe place and a time out. And a sign.

 

[Chef Doom]

[emoji23]

 

[Chef Doom]

The sign will read "Free breast exams. Guaranteed soft oily hands"

 

[Dxtreme]

But here's the rub... when gluing up strips of said wood, the oiliness can interfere with the glue adhesion. So the right way to glue up teak is to give all glue surfaces a quick wipe with denatured alcohol 60 seconds before applying the glue. The surface oil is removed, the alcohol flashes off, and you have a strip of wood ready to receive glue. But if you are a large factory in a third world nation, it's at least possible that those best practices aren't being followed. So the glue joints appear to be solid when they leave the factory, but the oil has weakened them and they fail after a number of washes/rinses. I'm not saying that is THE explanation for the splitting complaints; user abuse could be a part, etc. But it's definitely a potential 'gotcha' when working with teak.

John,

Say we have 2 end grain boards, one with bigger pieces of wood (1 3/4" x 2 1/4") and another with smaller pieces of wood (1" x 1 3/4"), which would be able to withstand shrinking and expanding more robustly over time ? the bigger piece assembly or the smaller piece assembly ? My logic is, for use on cutting vegetables,fruits and cooked wood, the board would not need to be washed as often vs the board that is used to cut meat,fish and poultry.

Would you use the board that is assembled with bigger pieces of end grain wood for meat and the smaller assembled end grain board for vegetables or the other way round ?

 

[John Loftis]

John,

Say we have 2 end grain boards, one with bigger pieces of wood (1 3/4" x 2 1/4") and another with smaller pieces of wood (1" x 1 3/4"), which would be able to withstand shrinking and expanding more robustly over time ? the bigger piece assembly or the smaller piece assembly ? My logic is, for use on cutting vegetables,fruits and cooked wood, the board would not need to be washed as often vs the board that is used to cut meat,fish and poultry.

Would you use the board that is assembled with bigger pieces of end grain wood for meat and the smaller assembled end grain board for vegetables or the other way round ?

That's an interesting question. In general, there's a trade-off with wood block sizes in end grain butcher block. The bigger a block of wood, the more it will want to expand/contract with changes in temperature, moisture, and humidity. Wood movement is a potential source of problems (eg warping and cracking). This wood movement can be mitigated to some extent by the way the maker lines up the wood grain of the various blocks to offset wood tension. But... if wood movement were all we cared about, we should just use the smallest blocks of wood possible. It would save a ton of money in material, because big blocks of wood are expensive. So, to answer your question, smaller blocks = less movement.

But... the other factor is the number of glue joints. If a board is made perfectly, the glue joints should be stronger than the wood around it. But practically speaking, glue joints are a place where butcher blocks can fail. So lessening the number of glue joints is also a good idea.

For us, we've found the 'sweet spot' to be blocks that are roughly 4" long X 1 3/4" wide. It's a very expensive way to make a butcher block, because there are a lot of off-cuts in our lumber that aren't 4" wide... The average width of a 2" thick piece of maple lumber is probably around 7" wide. So we have to order special widths or come up with creative uses for all the extra off cuts (ie mosaic boards). I'm sitting on a growing mound of off-cut lumber right now, so a batch of mosaic boards are in the works.

 

[Dxtreme]

That's an interesting question. In general, there's a trade-off with wood block sizes in end grain butcher block. The bigger a block of wood, the more it will want to expand/contract with changes in temperature, moisture, and humidity. Wood movement is a potential source of problems (eg warping and cracking). This wood movement can be mitigated to some extent by the way the maker lines up the wood grain of the various blocks to offset wood tension. But... if wood movement were all we cared about, we should just use the smallest blocks of wood possible. It would save a ton of money in material, because big blocks of wood are expensive. So, to answer your question, smaller blocks = less movement.

But... the other factor is the number of glue joints. If a board is made perfectly, the glue joints should be stronger than the wood around it. But practically speaking, glue joints are a place where butcher blocks can fail. So lessening the number of glue joints is also a good idea.

For us, we've found the 'sweet spot' to be blocks that are roughly 4" long X 1 3/4" wide. It's a very expensive way to make a butcher block, because there are a lot of off-cuts in our lumber that aren't 4" wide... The average width of a 2" thick piece of maple lumber is probably around 7" wide. So we have to order special widths or come up with creative uses for all the extra off cuts (ie mosaic boards). I'm sitting on a growing mound of off-cut lumber right now, so a batch of mosaic boards are in the works.

This is all gold knowledge here. Thank you so much @John Loftis

 

[playero]

I buy boards at Marshall’s. I also prefer the ones that will hold some liquid or juice from the cutting

 

[Chips]

I've been a happy customer of Boardsmith for almost 7 years. I cried once and went for the biggest walnut board that was offered. No regrets, but on my hardest thinnest knives, it sometimes feels like I'm cutting on a ceramic plate. I worry about the thin edge chipping, though it hasn't yet. I can't say it feels nice when chopping fast or a rocking cut, but I know the board will outlive me.

I should probably sand the top of the board though, I mistakenly placed a washed mild steel die from my meat grinder on it, and even though I dried it, it apparently wasn't enough because the next morning I had a perfectly shaped black outline/shadow of the damn thing rusted into the wood.

 

[Noodle]

I've been a happy customer of Boardsmith for almost 7 years. I cried once and went for the biggest walnut board that was offered. No regrets, but on my hardest thinnest knives, it sometimes feels like I'm cutting on a ceramic plate. I worry about the thin edge chipping, though it hasn't yet. I can't say it feels nice when chopping fast or a rocking cut, but I know the board will outlive me.

I should probably sand the top of the board though, I mistakenly placed a washed mild steel die from my meat grinder on it, and even though I dried it, it apparently wasn't enough because the next morning I had a perfectly shaped black outline/shadow of the damn thing rusted into the wood.

You might want to try mixing up a slurry of Barkeepers Friend and water and dabbing or “painting” it on the stain and leaving it over night. We had butcher block counters at our old house and had many such stains left by cans of food, etc. It may not completely remove it, but it worked pretty darn well for us. What is left can just be called patina...

 

[playero]

Marshall’s

 

[wilburh]

Noodle's suggestion worked pretty good for my board...Thanks!

 

[HRC_64]

Marshall’s

somebody zoom in on that pricetag....ENHANCE

 

[Noodle]

Noodle's suggestion worked pretty good for my board...Thanks!

Happy to help.

 

[playero]

somebody zoom in on that pricetag....ENHANCE

$1,499 USD

 

[rick alen]

As far as knives go, in at least one episode they rated the Bic equal to the carbon Zwillings Kramer in every way - knife-credibility rating established.

 

[HRC_64]

As far as knives go, in at least one episode they rated the Bic equal to the carbon Zwillings Kramer in every way - knife-credibility rating established.

Honestly, if you make $15/hour...or a culinary student, etc...its probably better to own $400 in victorinox vs $400 in a single kramer.

 

[rick alen]

Honestly, if you make $15/hour...or a culinary student, etc...its probably better to own $400 in victorinox vs $400 in a single kramer.

Yes, Vic of course. No argument there, but that is not at all what they were implying. They actually stated no difference in edge quality or retention!

 

[Jlc88]

Overall I enjoy their recommendations. When it comes to knives I don’t think we are the target demographic lol

 

[Chef Doom]

Yes, Vic of course. No argument there, but that is not at all what they were implying. They actually stated no difference in edge quality or retention!

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