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Wood Countertop Construction
Building a custom wood countertop offers great flexibility in design
and craftmanship. Some of the choices are dimensions,
thickness, wood type, and construction. One of the most
important design decisions for a butcher block countertop is the
construction style. The three types of styles we offer are:
- Edge Grain
- Face Grain (Plank Style)
- End Grain
Edge Grain |
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Edge Grain is the traditional style for butcher block style countertops. The thin edge runs the length of the countertop. The
most common thickness of the countertop is 1.5" but sizes 4"
thick and more are possible. In most cases strips of the wood
are continuous without butt joints, but in very long runs these
joints will be incorporated but kept to a minimum. The
exception to this rule is countertops made from Mesquite in
which short pieces of wood are common.
We use wide strips of wood to make Edge Grain style countertops. One major advantage this provides is a reduction in the
number of glue joints and makes the countertop a very stable,
strong work surface. |
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Face Grain (Plank Style) |
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| Face Grain, also known as Plank Style, countertops have the
look of fine furniture. In this style we use the face or wide
surface of the wood to make the countertop. Thickness for this
style can run from 1.5" to 2". Thicker than 2" is possible in
some cases. With face grain we try to make the boards run
the entire length of the countertop, but with very long runs this
can be challenging, especially with Mesquite hardwood. |
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End Grain |
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End Grain style countertops are a unique style as the grain of
the wood runs vertically as apposed to Edge Grain and Face
Grain which run horizontally. If you remember the old style
butcher blocks that have been used for centuries by butchers,
this is what they used. Thickness for this style runs normally
from 2” to 12” but thicker is always possible. When cutting on
this style of countertop, the wood tends to be self-healing. By
this we mean when cutting on End Grain the knife blade will
slide between the wood fibers not cutting them. The result is
that cut marks do not show up as much as on Edge Grain
countertops, and knives stay sharper longer.
End Grain tops are more prone to drying out and cracking, so
they should be sealed and oiled on a regular basis. |
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