Is a board, a board or........

Frank Fusco

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Mountain Home, Arkansas
.........am I 'cheating'? ;)

My daughter asked me to make her a small cutting board in the shape of an Arkansas Razorback 'boar'. :rolleyes: (You may groan now.)
OK, sounded like an easy and fun project. I found a pic of the Razorback symbol traced onto some old hardboard. Cut that out on the bandsaw with a 1/8" blade and have a template. I also drilled the eye.
Was considering laminating some mahogany and maple but spotted these bamboo cutting boards at Wally World, very inexpensive. And, they come from a far away exotic country. :( Oh, well.
So, wadda y'all think? Am I 'cheating' by not cutting, milling, re-milling and planing up my own board? Or is this a 'board'? I think a board is a board regardless.
BTW, each finished cutting board will cost about $2.50 in materials. My free but hauled 100 miles walnut and maple or mahogany would have cost more than that.
Pic of finished 'boar' board later.
 

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It's a board, it counts! Where do you find free mahogany? Man I wouldn't mind some of that.

A friend moved and cleaned out his stash of wood. He gave me quite a bit of small strips he used for segmented turnings. Has come in very handy. A member here, who has been quiet lately gave me a couple long 2"X2" pieces that I cut into occasionally for different projects.
Works both ways. I give away a lot of wood also. Part of the fun.
 
yes, youre cheating.


I think I agree with don, make it alot bigger and cut the board that shape.

YOure not making the board, youre just giving it a different shape.
 
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I've made a lot of cutting boards, but the wooden ones I use at my house are $5 or $10 bamboo boards from somewhere like Ikea. It's a great cutting board material.

For a specially-shaped cutting board, I see no reason not to start with a manufactured one. Whether you mill it or buy it milled, either way you're cutting a special shape out of a rectangle of wood. It'll still forever be "the cutting board my dad made for me".

I've not worked with manufactured bamboo lumber. I'm assuming curves can be cut cleanly in it without a bunch of splintering, but you might want to try a couple test cuts on an unused edge to see how well certain details like the ears will hold up.
 
Can't see how it would be any different than starting with any other piece of wood. It's what you do with it that counts.:thumb:
 
Im always the outcast. STill feel its cheatin.

If you tell me your going to purchase 100 bamboo boards and cut them all down into razorbacks and sell them to razorback fans for profit, Id say now youre not cheating, because you are looking strictly at profit vs time and material.
 
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Im always the outcast. STill feel its cheatin.

If you tell me your going to purchase 100 bamboo boards and cut them all down into razorbacks and sell them to razorback fans for profit, Id say now youre not cheating, because you are looking strictly at profit vs time and material.

Hi Allen

If he didn't say anything would you have known the difference? Really the only difference is the rounded edges & hand hole, its still a board. I have purchased UMHW cutting boards from Ace because I could buy the locally & the price was right & then cut them into throat plates for my table saw works fine will last a long time.:D:thumb:
 
Waddidi start?
My feeble attempts at humor are sometimes (often/usually?) misunderstood as serious. This was supposed to be a fun thread.
Personally, I think a board is a board is a board. Have to admit, though, I did feel a bit guilty about the 'Made in China' and bought at Wal-Mart parts. OTOH, it cost about $4.50 and I got (yes, two are almost finished) two out of it. Or, look at it this way: I bought four 8"X11"X1" pieces of basswood from Wisconsin for a project and they cost me about $11.00 each. :eek: Now, what is more traitorous? :rolleyes:
 
That is productive approach Frank, why do you think you should not use it? Unless you wanted a different board color, I wouldn't hesitate and go for it.

I also second the idea of making the boar head as big as the board allows you.
 
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