We recommend using the back of the board for cutting and displaying your food on the front. Never cut on epoxy resin. Fully cured, it is safe for food contact. Perfect for displaying or using as kitchen decor.
Just another tip, you can use Odie's Oil products too. They are food safe and penetrate the wood very well. A bit more on the pricey side but a little goes a long way!
I have used a few cutting board oils over the years including Odie's. I recently came across Bumblechutes. I love that they are all natural. Mineral oils are also natural and safe for cutting boards but they are also a petroleum based product. Bumblechutes works great, they are a small business local to New Hampshire and they have a great story. I highly recommend them.
I am working on more videos on this subject, but the easy version is to mask off the back at the start of your project (you can watch the video on "My First Ocean Pour" to see how to mask the back and remove the drips at the end). Then follow the video but don't do the cutting board finish. Instead, after you sand smooth, clean well with water or isopropyl alcohol. Once dry, pour a layer of clear resin over the entire surface. This fills in all the micro scratches from sanding and you have a beautiful, long lasting, high gloss finish. Let dry for at least 48 hours, then remove the masking tape, sand the back and finish the back with a natural cutting board conditioner.
Understandable. I will say that if you are only making 1, then it is a lot of work. However, if you are in a production mode which could include multiple designs instead of just one, then the profit goes up alot. The key is to plan ahead. As I work on other projects, I let my laser work on engraving sometimes for days, it is just a push of a button. Then, once you have all the engraving done, just do them in stages. If you mix a good amount of epoxy, then just pour all at the same time. The next day, those can be set aside and you can continue to pour. Once everything is poured and set, it is just sanding and adding a finish. I easily sell this size cutting board for $50+. My material costs are about $5.
I was looking around and found this on their website! Thought you might want that, do as you will with that though as it says no BPA or VOCs. "Tabletop is more suitable for limited contact with food. Note: we don’t recommend using epoxy for a cutting board, though." Nice Idea! Liked the video.
This is really beautiful! I love the image you used and your end product is gorgeous! We are learning different techniques with our laser (100 watt CO2 laser my husband built from the Rezo 1390 plans). I’m hoping we get to resin next; there is so much to explore!
@@1elephantmemories I do have one question; do you have a particular source you like for designs like the zebra? I do art quilts and do a lot of animals and birds and know where to go for good foundation paper piecing patterns but being so new to this modality I’d love a referral for great, detailed animal patterns if you have one (or more) to share. I know that not every SVG makes for an ideal laser cut or engraving. We have also seen the differences between lumber that is fabricated for laser cutting and engraving and the lumber you can buy at big box stores. We’ve had to order 1/8” cherry, birch, and walnut because the big box stores close by don’t carry it.
@@CutItOutWithUs I make my own designs. I have been a zoo keeper for the past 18 years and a captain/ naturalist for whale watching 16 years prior to that. I base most of my designs on photographs. I am self taught so generally do things the hard way. I usually start the design in photoshop by drawing on top of my photo, then bringing into illustrator and turning it into a vector for engraving and cutting. I am sure I make it a lot more complicated than it needs to be, but it works for me. Honestly, a good place to start for designs is looking at stencils. If it works as a stencil, it will work for a vector. You can actually purchase stencils, draw them, make any changes you might want, then bring them into a program that can turn them into a vector. As for wood for the laser. We never get it at a big hardware store. You want to look around for lumber mills or a specialty plywood shop. We have a lot of places in New England. Good luck!
@@1elephantmemories Oh my gosh! What a fascinating life you are living! And you make your own designs; incredible!!!! Well, that zebra is a show stopper! I thank you for your candor and your tip about stencils; that’s a really good thought. As for making a design from a photo, that’s way beyond what I know how to do. You obviously have a great deal of computer/software savvy. I do some machine embroidery and know there is a market for your art there as well as in the laser space should you ever venture into it. Really beautiful work and thank you for your generosity with your guidance. Wishing you continued success…I’m going to go to sleep tonight imagining the wonders you’ve seen. I’ve gone whale watching off the coast of Gloucester, MA and had an incredible experience. The west coast whale watching trips weren’t as bountiful but we still managed a few glimpses. Ah, it’s lovely to have “met” you! Dana
@@CutItOutWithUs I started by just taping my photos to a window, putting printing paper over it and drawing over the photo. Baby steps. I worked at the New England Aquarium when I was whale watching so we worked with the guys from Glouchester all the time! Gray whales are on my bucket list!
You could likely use half of the amount of resin and still be able to get it in all the engravings and have half as much sanding to do. Sure love that zebra.
True, but there is a lot of detail and we didn't seal the wood since it was going to be for a cutting board. I also like to make sure that it is somewhat overflowing because as the resin cures, it cools and shrinks. We want to make sure that the resin is flush with the surface when done. This particular design only used about 20 grams of resin. Some people are more precise and will use a syringe. I am not very fond of that method though.
Very nice looking project, thank you. One thing, I wouldn't use denatured alcohol for anything but lamps or a small stove, it's a fuel. I'd use IPA, 91% or higher. Thanks for the project.
I am currently working on a video for that. I usually will carefully pour one color then let it dry, then add the next color and let it dry. You can be more precise using a syringe. I have a video that shows how to use a syringe. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cpOsoux1O24.html
No. Bamboo is probably one of the best materials for cutting boards. It is a grass, not wood. It is actually more dense than hardwood. It is very durable, easy to sand and is eco friendly. Even plastic cutting boards can get gauges in them which bacteria could potentially hide in.
I haven't had a lot of issues with bamboo. Sealing wood or bamboo is the best way to go but you do have to be careful if it is something that food will be touching. You could try to seal the wood with a food safe wax finish, engrave then pour the resin. You can also put the resin in a syringe, but if your engraving is super detailed, that can be difficult and time consuming. Also, if you do a deep enough engraving, you might just be able to sand out any grain that has resin bleeding.
Short answer is yet. However, if you are using a laser and it isn't deep enough, you have to be careful not to sand or plane all the way through the resin. I am planning another video on this subject with a CNC and planner for an outdoor wooden sign. CNC and even a hand carving can be deeper than a laser so you have more wiggle room when planning or sanding. Hope this helps.
@@1elephantmemoriessharp hand plane can be set to take those see-through thin shavings from wood, so I am not worried about planing the carved trench away, but I have no experience on planing resin. I'm afraid the resin might be too pliable/tough and might just be ripped out of the trench. I'm waiting for your video showing this.
@@jukkahuuskonen We have put boards through a surface planner with no problems. When resin is cured, it is like a thick, solid plastic. I am not sure if it would hurt your blades. I would suggest trying it on scrap wood first to see if you like the result.
Every laser is different. I would look to see what is recommended for wood on your brand then tweek from there. I have an Epilog Mini 50 Watt. I did 2 passes with a DPI of 600, Power of 100 Speed of 30, with Stucki dithering. I also brought the bed up by 1 click between engravings. Hope this helps.
Uebersetzen ! Warum gibt es keine solche metallrelifes mit bilder ? Dann koennte mann die mit zinn ausgiessen und haette ein tolles vorgefertigte fuer buntes glas oder glasmalfarbe und konnte 4 stueck zur laterne basteln oder so ?
I wonder if it would be a little easier to just pass the resin-covered board through a planer to remove the excess. I'm just trying to imagine putting that much time and effort into each piece if you got a bulk order. Time is money, and you can't charge TOO MUCH for a cutting board, ya know?
True, but you can calculate your time into the price. These are pretty unique. As long as you have just a thin layer of resin that is outside the engraved area AND you have a nice deep engrave, you might try a planer. Trouble is, you will still have to sand to get the planer marks out. I find a coarse grit on an orbital sander goes pretty quickly. It is about 5 minutes of sanding per board. Love to hear if you do the planer, how it comes out.
@@1elephantmemories my planer leaves a very clean surface so, sanding off planer marks is very quick. I should also admit that I have been a woodworker for many years, and I absolutely hate sanding, and painting. So, I always look for shortcuts when it comes to those two tasks. Every time I look at a project I think, "what if someone orders 100 of those?"...
Looks great. But what is if I use the cutting plate? I think it sadly lose completely its use, as cutted resin sure is not the healthiest stuff you wanna ear.
Absolutely correct. I mentioned at the end of the video that you want to use the back of the cutting board to cut on and the front with the inlay for display and serving. Always be sure to use a BPA free epoxy resin, like Totalboat or whatever is available in your area. You want to make sure that it is safe for food contact. If you ever have any doubts, contact the epoxy manufacturer directly. Once this is cured (which for tabletop takes a full 7 days), then it is safe for food contact. Hope that helps.
I have a care and maintenance card that goes with all cutting/charcuterie boards which explains that you should never cut on epoxy which is basically plastic. Plastic cutting boards are used, but once it is beat up, bits of plastic could get into your food. Wood and Bamboo cutting boards are better. I make sure people know to use the blank back for all the cutting and the decorative side for food serving. Tabletop epoxy is safe for food contact like at restaurants and bars. Thank you for bringing this up. It is a very important subject that I will make sure to touch upon in my next epoxy cutting board video.
Once you add epoxy it should not be used as a cutting board. It becomes a serving board. A knife will slice the epoxy, and slivers will end up in your food. Nice tutorial though.
@@jonfortner3919 I appreciate the comment. I did talk about using the back, but I am now putting it in the description and more in the beginning. I am also adding that you should never cut on epoxy surfaces. Thank you for the suggestions!
Creating in all forms is good for the soul. I created this original design and hand carved on a block for a print press. Unfortunately, my hands nor eyes work as well as they used to, so I have upgraded with the help of machines. I can still create to my hearts content, just pain free. I do miss painting though. Nothing like it.
Absolutely. I tell people in the video and in my shop to use the back for cutting on and the front for serving or kitchen decor. I will make sure that is in several places in my next video. Thank you for the comment.
I had to speed this up by about 18X to keep the video short. It was about 15 minutes to engrave the first time and I engraved 2 times. Looks much cooler when it is so fast though.
This is my own design. At the moment, I have not started selling them, as I hadn't thought about it yet. I might look into it in the future though. Thank you.
