Endgrain

[Sean Walker]

How high do I need to sand the end grain on my cherry boards to make them sort of match the rest of the wood when I put Arm-r-Seal satin on it? Right now, it's whiter than the rest.

Thanks

[glenn bradley]

If I sand the surfaces to 220, I go 400 on the end grain BUT, this varies with the material and even with teh boards within a material family. For a look into what the contrast may be, do your surface prep and then wipe a section of face grain and a piece of end grain with mineral spirits. If the end grain is too dark, move up another grit. 400 will pretty much burnish the end grain if you are consistent, 600 definitely will. This burnishing retards the finish "soak" and results in a better match. If you end grain is currently lighter in color, you probably have "fuzzy end grain fibers. Work them carefully at your current grit till you get a smooth result, then move up from there as required. JMHO.

[Prashun Patel]

I'm not sure what you mean by "the rest of the wood". Is it an 'end-grain-up / butcher block' cutting board?

I suspect the end grain is whiter than the surrounding face/edge grain because a lot of dust is sanding dust is captured in the pores. When you oil it, it will turn dark brown/red; darker than any of the surrounding edge/face grain.

You can mitigate this somewhat by sanding the endgrain to a higher grit than the rest. However, cherry will darken over time anyway, and any differences will be minimized over time. Further, get some other opinions about whether the initial difference is an aesthetic issue. I for one, think the contrast looks great; especially in an angular form like a cutting board.

[Howard Acheson]

The rule of thumb is to sand to one grit higher than the flat surface of the board. It takes lots of sanding.

Test it on some scrap.

[Henry Ambrose]

Wipe it with some mineral spirits to see what you've got.
The "wet look" will let you see what it will look like with finish.