Well, actually it is a stretch to call the tool shed a workshop, but that is what I have to work with. I power the “workshop” with an extension cord from the house. You have to make sure to only use one tool at a time, or you have to go back to the house and reset the breaker. I’ll have to post a picture someday of the cramped space I refer to as the workshop.
We decided to make some cutting boards for the mothers in our lives for Christmas. I had some red maple on hand and bought some purpleheart to add color and character to the project. The maple had some curl in it, so there was real potential to make something that actually looked nice and could be used in the kitchen.
I have worked with maple for a number of years, so I know my tool’s limitations when it comes to this hard hardwood. Purpleheart was a new species for me. It is naturally purple to burgundy in color, and the pieces I bought had a lot of curly grain. Forget running a planer across this species. I used a bench sander to remove excess trim and smooth up the finished piece. The curly figure readily splintered and I had to be careful cutting and gluing the small pieces. The wood is beautiful though, and it’s worth the trouble to incorporate such color into a wood project.
Here is how they turned out…
I made the circle cutting boards on my table saw using a trick demonstrated in this video:
The first one I cut out has a small hole in it, but the next two I figured out you barely need a nail holding it and the hole is barely visible as a dimple in the wood. Since these are intended for use with food, I applied mineral oil to them to protect the wood. It darkened the purpleheart, but they turned out really nice.
I tend to play it safe with oak and maple most of the time, but another woodworker told me last year that if I was going to take the time to do something, I might as well do it with wood that is beautiful or exotic in some way. Sound advice.
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