Gaps In Cutting Board Strips

[Adam Daniel]

I've been making edge grain cutting boards recently.

My process:

1) Face joint the board on a jointer
2) edge Joint one edge on jointer
3) Use planer to joint the other face of the board
4) Rip strips on the table saw using jointed edge against the table saw fence

I've noticed that even with this basic process, after I rip the strips, there are still sometimes small places along the board where I'll get a gap during glue up. With edge grain cutting boards, I'm gluing the face side of the board strips to one another and it suggests that the board face is flat but then once I rip it into strips, it's not?

I wonder if when I rip the boards stress in the wood is release and they sometimes might bow slightly? I've started taking the ripped pieces back to the jointer and running them again to try and completely flatten the face of the strips for the glue up, but I wonder if there's something I'm doing wrong.

Any suggestions welcome and I love this forum!

[Thomas McCurnin]

Check the strips with a straight edge, like a steel ruler.

[Mel Fulks]

You can make the pieces long as possible, ripped square. Then hold them together, flip and repeat. Having a helper , helps.

[Jerry Bruette]

Any chance your planer isn't set with the cutter head level to the table? You could be planing a taper across the width of the board.

[Adam Daniel]

Thanks for the responses. I think the planer is probably okay in terms of the cutter head but i'll check. I guess for now I just have to check each piece and run it on the jointer again. One other thing that might help is letting the wood acclimate in the shop for a week before doing the first round of jointing. Maybe it needs that time to adjust.

Any chance your planer isn't set with the cutter head level to the table? You could be planing a taper across the width of the board.

[Christian Hawkshaw]

Are you trying to glue the sawed faces together? I seldom get glue-ready surfaces from my saw and will run the sawed surfaces through the planer. Then you will get excellent glue surfaces.

[Brian Tymchak]

After I have face and edge joint a board and plane the opposing face flat, I like to flip the board and run the jointed face thru just to make absolutely sure my opposing faces are parallel to one another. I also get a better surface off the planer to glue if I run at the finishing speed. (Dewalt 735). Flipping the board maybe even a couple times will also help balance the moisture level side to side of the freshly exposed surface, which might help reduce cupping as the board acclimates. If you are going to glue up immediately after planing, this will not be an issue.

I assume your boards are 4/4, 5/4, or 6/4 so there is some flex in the strips after ripping. If you are gluing and clamping properly you should not have gaps after glue up. First, don't starve the glue joint either by using too little glue or by using too much clamp pressure which forces the glue out of the joint. But also use enough clamps to get clamping force across the entire glue joint. Clamps radiate force thru the joint at 45° angles. If you use too few, you may leave a gap where there was no clamping force. Lastly, I like to clamp laminations from the middle out to the ends, just to not trap a bow in the middle.

HTH.

[Warren Lake]

if you want straight material rip it over size then machine it again.

[Adam Daniel]

Thanks Bryan, great tip to plane the jointed face to make sure they're co-planar. I do get a better surface off the planer than the jointer for sure.

Interesting with regards to clamping. I typically clamp a couple inchs from ends, then one in the middle on a cutting board. I may try starting with the middle. ANd definitely am realizing that too much clamping pressure can create bows and other issues. THanks!

[Rick Potter]

What Warren said, plus, I wait a day for the final trim to let it acclimate.

[Warren Lake]

yes on the wait leave it a few days on edge with air space between. some percent will have moved. Didnt suggest it as its a cutting board so small sizes and short lengths. Door styles on larger armoire and up ill tension twice.

[Richard Coers]

One issue I see with the cutting board crowd is that they often use the Quick-Grip style clamps. Those clamps don't provide enough clamping pressure for a quality panel. If that is your case, buy some real clamps.

[Bradley Gray]

Running the pieces through a thickness sander S4S will yield perfect glue lines.