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Party Grazing Board Set[8/4 Wide · 4ft · 5-Pack]
One pack. One build. All 5 boards used. • Makes 2 grazing boards + 5 mini cheese boards
Shop Black Walnut 8/4 Wide · 4ft Pack Shop All Speciesselect 4' Lengths / 6-8"
How it goes together
*Exotic — not available for shipment to US customers. Food-safe species shown.
A big hardwood grazing board for parties and holidays — room for cheese, meat, fruit, crackers and dips all at once. Three wide 8/4 boards edge-glue into a 36" × 16½" board, two more make a 36" × 11" companion, and the five 10" ends become mini cheese boards for gifts or place settings. Every board in the pack gets used.
Quick Build — for experienced woodworkers
| Part | Qty | From | S2S size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Large board pieces | 3 | Boards 1–3 | 36" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| Medium board pieces | 2 | Boards 4–5 | 36" × 5½" × 1¾" |
| Mini cheese boards | 5 | Rest of boards 1–5 | 10" × 5½" × 1¾" |
Large board: three 5½" × 36" pieces edge-glued → 36" × 16½".
Medium board: two 36" pieces → 36" × 11".
Minis: five 10" × 5½" single pieces, no glue.
All joints long grain to long grain. Flatten to about 1½", round the corners and edges, optional finger recesses under the large board's ends, board oil and wax.
Finished size: Large board 36" × 16½" · medium board 36" × 11" · five minis 10" × 5½" · all about 1½" thick.
Before You Start
Shopping List
- 1 lumber pack — 8/4 Wide · 4ft (6–8" wide, S2S)
- Wood glue (Titebond III — water resistant)
- Sandpaper 80 / 120 / 180 / 220
- Food-safe finish: mineral oil or board oil
- Board wax (beeswax and mineral oil)
Tools
- Saw for crosscuts (mitre saw or circular saw with a speed square)
- Jointer, straight-line rip jig or hand plane
- 6–8 bar clamps, 18" or longer
- Cauls (straight scrap strips) and packing tape
- Planer (12–13") plus a router sled, hand plane or belt sander for the 16½" board
- Track saw, or circular saw + straightedge
- Router with ¼" roundover bit; ¾" core-box bit for hand-holds (optional)
- Jigsaw or bandsaw for the corners
- Random-orbit sander or sanding block
Why S2S only? The 6–8" wide 8/4 boards come S2S: both faces planed, edges rough. Plan on losing about ¼" per edge when you straighten them.
Our sizing assumptions: ⅛" per saw cut · 6–8" wide 8/4 S2S boards trimmed ½" each end and ¼" off each rough edge (5½" clean at the narrowest), planned at 1¾" thick · sizes drawn for the narrowest board in the pack. Wider boards give you a bigger offcut or a wider part — never a shortage.
Step-by-Step
S2S Lumber Pack (6–8" wide)
Surfaced 2 sides — straighten edges first
- 1 Prep the boards. Trim ½" off each end to remove any end checks. Joint one edge straight, then rip the other edge parallel (¼" off each rough edge is our planning allowance).
- 2 Crosscut every board. Square one end, then cut each board at 36". Square the leftover piece to 10". You get five 36" pieces and five 10" minis.
- 3 Arrange the boards. Lay out three 36" pieces for the large board and two for the medium board. Put the best faces up and flip pieces end for end until the colour flows across the seams. Mark each set with a chalk triangle. The minis stay single pieces.
- 4 Joint the mating edges. Every edge that meets another must be dead straight. Dry-clamp each set: no light should show along any seam.
- 5 Glue up. Edge-glue the large board (36" × 16½") and the medium board (36" × 11") with Titebond III. Every joint is long grain to long grain. Use cauls at the ends to keep the faces level, clamp every 6–8" alternating over and under, and line up the ends. Leave overnight.
- 6 Flatten. Scrape off the glue. The 11" medium board and the minis fit a 12–13" planer. The 16½" large board is too wide for most, so use a router sled, a hand plane or a belt sander. Take everything down to about 1½".
- 7 Square the ends and round the corners. Trim the ends of both big boards with a track saw, or a circular saw against a clamped straightedge. Trace a soup can on each corner, cut to the line and sand smooth. Round over all edges with a ¼" roundover bit.
- 8 Rout hand-holds (optional). On the underside of the large board, rout a finger recess at each end with a ¾" core-box bit and an edge guide: about 5" long, centred on the end, ¾" deep in two or three passes. Clamp stop blocks so every recess is the same length.
- 9 Sand. Sand 80 → 120 → 180 → 220. Wipe with a damp cloth to raise the grain, let it dry, and sand again at 220.
- 10 Oil and wax. Flood every face with mineral oil or board oil, let it soak overnight, wipe off and repeat until it stops soaking in. Finish with board wax and buff.
Why face grain? Wide boards show off the full figure of the wood, and the large board has only two seams. It is the simplest big board to build and the easiest to keep flat.
Why two big boards? One huge board is hard to lift, wash and store. Two 36" boards side by side cover a whole table, and each one fits in a sink or on a shelf on its own.
Does wood movement matter? A 16½" board grows and shrinks about ⅛" across its width through the year. All the grain runs the same way, so it moves as one piece. Never glue cleats or a frame across it.
Make It Yours
- Juice groove: rout a groove ¾" in from the edge on one face of the medium board for carving.
- Contrast stripe: use a contrasting board as the middle piece of the large board.
- Gift set: wrap the five minis with a cheese knife each — ready-made hostess gifts.
Safety and Care
- Wear eye and hearing protection. Use a push stick for every rip under 4" wide.
- The large board weighs about 15–20 lb. Support it on a stand or roller when routing or trimming.
- When ripping the edges straight, use a push stick and keep the board flat on the saw table.
- Wear a dust mask when cutting and sanding, especially exotics (padauk, purpleheart, sapele).
Frequently Asked Questions
The 6–8" wide 8/4 pack comes S2S (faces planed, edges rough). Straighten the edges with a jointer, a table saw and a straight-line jig, a track saw, or a hand plane.
Walnut, maple, cherry, oak, sapele, padauk and purpleheart are all fine for serving and cutting boards. Skip aromatic cedar for anything that touches food. Wear a dust mask when cutting exotics like padauk, purpleheart and sapele — the dust irritates.
Yes. Face grain shows knife marks sooner than end grain, but a quick sand and a fresh coat of oil takes them out. Many people serve on one face and cut on the other.
Wipe with hot soapy water and dry right away — never soak them or put them in the dishwasher. Oil once a month, or when the wood looks dry. Store flat or on edge where air reaches both faces.
Planned offcuts only: about ⅞" off the end of each board. All 5 boards go into the two grazing boards and five minis.
A 2ft wide pack is too short for the 36" boards. It makes our Charcuterie Paddle Boards or Edge-Grain Butcher Block instead.
