Building a 78 lb White Oak Butcher Block
A client came to us with a large metal base already built and one missing piece: the top. He needed an end grain butcher block about three times thicker than what we normally make. On paper it sounded like a bigger version of something we already do. In the shop, it was not.
Everything starts with rough cut white oak from a local supplier. We milled every board down to size, and at this scale the milling had to be exact. Each piece needs to be shaped just right or it won’t sit flush against its neighbors. With a block this big, clamps can’t pull a bad joint closed, so a single off board tends to show up at glue-up, when the only fix is starting over.
Glue-up was where we had to slow down. The assembled block was around 85 lbs before we trimmed it to final size, and more than once a piece slipped while we were handling it. We got a couple of smashed fingers out of the deal. Lesson learned.
Every glue-up got at least 24 hours to cure. A block this size has a lot of wood that can move, and we didn’t want to rush any of it.
Once the glue was fully set, we trimmed the top flat on a router sled and sanded it down.
For the finish, we used our own board butter, a blend of mineral oil and beeswax. It’s safe for anything that touches food, and it leaves the wood feeling like wood instead of a layer of something on top of it.
Finished, the block weighed 78 lbs. From sourcing the lumber to shipping it out took about three weeks, and most of that was milling and waiting on glue.
If you have a project that’s bigger than anything on our shelves, reach out. We’re always glad to talk through it.
