DIY Wooden Cutting Board with basic tools

How about we make our own wooden cutting board? I love to using wooden cutting boards, so much that I have always wanted to make one myself. Turns out its really easy without a need of a table saw, router or wood planar. Let me show you how to DIY with minimum tools.

Supplies:

1×2 Mahogany
1×4 Maple
Wood glue
Cutting board Oil
80, 120, 240 grit sanding paper

Tools used:

Circular Saw & cross cut guide
Jigsaw
Bar clamps
Spade bit + Power drill
Orbital Sander

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DIY Wooden Cutting board

Step : 1 – Cut the wood

Cut the boards into 13inch length. I am using maple and Mahogany. Cut it more than the desired length of the chopping board. Later we can cut it evenly after gluing them together.

Step : 2 – Glue it together

Arrange the wood pieces into any order you like. Then, evenly apply wood glue on the sides and clamp them together as tight as possible. Remember to use scrap wood on the sides to avoid clamp marks on the board. Wipe the glue with damp cloth before it dries.

Step : 3 – Sanding

This step took a lot of time for me. If you have a wood planar, this step could be done in few minutes. Since I do not own one yet, I used a 80 grit to sand down the wood to make it level and then used 120 & 240 grit to get smooth finish. Remember to sand all the edges too. Rounded edges will give a nice finished form to the board.

Step : 4 – Handle

To make a handle hole you can use a hole saw or spade bit and drill in desired location. I didn’t want to do the usual circular hole. So, I tried a triangle opening in one corner of the board. To make this, I marked the shape on the board and then drilled two holes to mark two corners of the triangle. With these holes I was able to run my jigsaw and cut the triangle. Jigsaw will only make uneven cuts. So, extensive sanding is required to make the surface even. This was little challenging and time consuming. But, it was worth it at the end. If you have a router this step would be an easy breeze.

Step : 5

Use a food grade mineral oil to season the chopping board. Do not skip this step, this is the life of your cutting board. The oil will penetrate into the wood and helps to avoid splitting or cracking. Best part is how it brings out the beautiful wood grain color. Apply generous amount of oil on the board and wipe off excess with clean cloth. Let the board soak in oil for atleast 1hr before next coat. Repeat process for 3 to 4 times before you start using it. I left the board to soak for a day.