I'm in the market for a new cutting board. The ones that I've tried lately appear to be what they call "flat grain" and are highly susceptible to warping, cracking and splitting even when oiled and dried after washing. From what I've been able to find out online, the thicker the board (1 1/2 - 2"+) the less they tend to warp or split, but I haven't been able to find much about which type is the most resistant.

Any insight as to whether end or edge grain is superior in resisting warping/cracking would be appreciated.

I have a flat bamboo cutting board that I really like. Size is about 12 X 16, I've been using it for years and there is no noticeable warping. I've never oiled it and it seems to be holding up very well to lots of abuse.

Of course for anything that can carry food-born pathogens I use a nylon or HDPE cutting board.

Bamboo is hard on knife edges, there are YouTube video of blade edges rolling and chipping just from cutting disposable bamboo chopsticks.  I would avoid bamboo as well as glass cutting boards.

Edge or long grain cutting boards are susceptible to gouges, just as two parallel cuts with an axe against the grain will remove a chunk of a log, the same thing on a smaller scale can happen on cutting boards.  I don't like them, but they are OK.

End grain is easier on knife edges and is my choice.  Thicker is better, but weight and storage can become factors, especially if you have younger kids that doing some of the cooking.

Plastic cutting boards have been shown to be worse than wooden cutting boards at harboring bacteria.  This is counterintuitive, but a google search will yield the science of it all.

End Grain.

Here is the answer you seek:

http://theboardsmith.com/

Easy solution to that problem, Don't cut all the way through the cutting board and you'll be fine.

Seriously, I could make a youtube video that shows a knife edge rolling and chipping while trying to cut through wood sticks, does that mean that a wood cutting board is hard on knifes? No, it has absolutely zero bearing on the knife edge. Abusing a knife to "demonstrate" bamboo (or wood) is hard on a knife edge is just that, knife abuse.

These things are great--

http://www.amazon.com/Prepworks-Progressive-International-PCC-606-Color-Coded/dp/B0000CFRBD

I haven't tried that specific brand, but you can get the same thing at walmart. Wood cutting board has been unused since I found the flexible mats. They take up less storage space, you can have multiples out at once for meat and vegetables (or to have more cutting surface), and you can just throw them in the dishwasher when done, instead of dealing with washing the wood cutting board in the sink.

You should make a YouTube video where you cut through an onion 500 times on a bamboo cutting board and repeat the test with an end grain cutting board board, then post microscopic images of the edges to see if the cutting board surface made a significant difference in edge retention.  That would actually be useful, as opposed to what you said.

Bamboo is hard and dense, bamboo cutting boards also have a great deal of adhesive because the individual pieces are so small.  Both factors contribute to dulling.  I can run a piece of plywood over my jointer on edge and actually see on the next piece of solid wood little grooves where the glue lines abraded the planer knives.  This is noticeable enough that I will only joint plywood on a spiral cutterhead carbide insert type jointer (6") instead of my 16" jointer with old-fashioned knives.  Hard wood (think Jatoba, Ipe, etc.) dulls jointer knives way faster than softer wood (maple, ash, walnut).

End grain maple, walnut, cherry are softer than bamboo with less adhesive...it stands to reason they would be a better choice for a cutting surface.  This is why I choose not to cut on bamboo, or glass cutting boards, or the granite counter, or steel.

No thank you, I'm not the one that popped in this thread and claimed that cutting through bamboo sticks was evidence that bamboo cutting boards are hard on knives.


You're entitled to your opinion, but putting bamboo cutting boards in the same group as glass, granite, or steel is purely asinine...

Carry-on...

Ya, Sig is right. I would look for better evidence that bamboo is tough on knives than that. Not very scientific in my opinion. Kinda funny, though, that people would actually view that as proof.

I have never had any issues with my knives and bamboo.

How would you know?  Have you conducted any experiments?

Is your hypothesis that cutting on a harder surface is less dulling than cutting on a softer surface?

The nice thing about jointer knives is that they rotate quickly and you can see the result of jointing or planing hard woods in how often you need to sharpen.  Hard stuff dulls knives quicker, but I am open to your scientific evidence that proves otherwise.  

If your hypothesis is that the difference in practical use between bamboo and end grain cutting boards with regard to dulling is negligible, you may be closer to the mark.  

Bet you could find a bunch of people to say that they use a glass cutting board, and they've never had any issue, either.  Just brimming with science, that.

Look at a board made of Hinoki wood.

Now you're getting there... negligible difference...

BTW, your use of jointer knives as an example is apples & oranges to this topic. Yes, glue may be harder on knives & blades, but the fact of the matter is that on a cutting board you're only making contact and/or cutting through a very, very small amount of the board material on the very surface. A jointer is cutting through literally thousands of inches of material for every single pass you make. Making brief contact or cutting through a tiny, tiny fraction of an inch of material is on an entirely different level from cutting THROUGH thousands of inches of material.

Why not got a thick plastic board?  Thick boards shouldn't warp and are easy to clean/sanitize and can be refinished/sanded when needed.

I have decided on a 2" thick, end grain wood board. It should be here in a day or two. Thanks for the advice.

With the price they charge for end grain cutting boards...I could buy the tools(saw, clamps, glue) and the material, and still be cheaper.

It takes labor, which is why they're so expensive.


Honestly, most handy men probably have most of the tools already.  Watch some YouTube video's on how to, it's really not that difficult.


They make great cheap christmas gifts too.