John Boos CCB Series Square Wooden Maple Cutting Board 18”x18” – 3” Thick, 26-lb Reversible Butcher Block with End-Grain & Finger Grips – Made in the USA

My kitchen is a simple U design with not a lot of counter or food prep space. Because of this I have gone through many cutting boards over the last few years trying to find something that will last a lifetime and that fits well in my limited cooking space and matches my cooking style. I prefer classic French style cooking equipment and use French chef knives a lot. I recently purchased a new set of Damascus steel knives and a 10" Sabatier French Chef's knife so I wanted a good quality cutting board that would protect my blades.This Boos Blocks 14x14x3 inch Cherry end grain block is just about perfect. The wood is a little soft, just enough to not damage my knife edges but definitely hard enough to feel reassured that this will be something to hand down to my heirs. At three inches thick it would be hard to imagine that anyone could ever wear out this beautiful hunk of wood, even over several generations. Just don't take a huge cleaver to it and it should last forever. When the block arrived it was well packed and did not incur any damage during shipping. I had read in other reviews that many had ordered cutting boards from Amazon that arrived chipped or dented. Well, I'm happy to report this was not the case with my order.I highly recommend buying the Boos Mystery Mineral Oil and the Block Board Cream. Before I even used it for the first time I carefully washed the board with warm soapy water being careful not to submerge the board in water. I then immediately dried it with paper towels. Once it was dry I ran over to the local hardware store and bought four non-skid rubber feet with screws. I installed the feet on the four corners and I now had an even better board. Since I got the non-skid type it does not slide on my granite counter tops and the bottom of the board is now elevated about an 1/8th of an inch off the counter to keep the underside from ever sitting in a puddle of water. I know this essentially sacrifices one side of this two-sided board, but because of the massive thickness of this board it did not bother me. I would rather have one solid and sturdy cutting surface that doesn't slip than an additional alternate side.After I added the rubber feet I then went to town with the Board Cream. I squeezed a big dollop of the cream on the board and rubbed it in vigorously into the surface of the board on all sides. When I was done there was a thin film of the beeswax cream on the board. I left it like that over-night. In the morning the next day I wiped off the small amount of excess (the board really absorbed a lot of that cream) and then applied a heavy coating of Mystery Oil. I let that stand for a few hours as well and then wiped away the excess. The board was now pimped out, cured, and ready for action. It is such a beautiful piece that, with the wife's permission of course, it now sits proudly on my counters. This board will never be relegated to some dark corner in our cabinets. It deserves to be displayed. It is my understanding that cherry wood darkens to a rich and deep reddish mahogany color with exposure to the air and light. As beautiful as it is right now I can't wait to see how it will look in a year or two. I took a picture of it just to compare the color a year from now.I have now used the board a few times and I cannot tell you how much of a joy it is to use. The end grain of the wood gently supports my knife blade and provides a soft surface while not feeling spongy or porous. I understand some people think Cherry is a little too soft and prefer a harder wood, but I also have a rock maple end grain board that I also really like but I find it almost like chopping on stone. I definitely prefer the Cherry feel. The three-inch thickness of this board is also a great advantage, well, maybe only for those of us 6 ft. tall and taller. I can see that this might be an issue for a shorter person. But for me it is a God send. No more achy back from a long session of prepping vegetables for a good gumbo or a Chinese stir fry. The elevated surface reduces back strain for sure. The bottom line is this block is a great performer and I do not regret this purchase one iota.There is one very minor quibble which I think is easily remedied. The board surface is a little rough and whiskery. For now I'm going to see if it smooths out on its own through regular use. If it doesn't get better within the next two months or so I'll try some light wet sanding (always sand with a lubricant in this case I'll use the Boos Mystery Oil) with 300 or 600 grit sand paper.UPDATE:Well, I've used the board for a few weeks now and I still think it is a great board. I will definitely be keeping this tool for the rest of my life. If you get one just take good care of it and don't misuse it or neglect it (it is wood after all) and it will provide you years of joy and satisfaction. I recently sanded the cutting surface and the sides of the board with 320 grit wet and dry sanding paper using some of the mineral oil as a lubricant. I was not that happy with the factory finish on the board and this helped tremendously. In my initial review I pointed this out. Well, a few minutes with the 320 grit paper turned it into a very soft, smooth, satin finish. Just make sure you use a sanding block. DO NOT SAND without one. The sanding block will ensure you keep a flat surface all across the board. Sanding with the sandpaper just held in your hand will create hills and valleys on the surface.

Ohh my, this is difficult, and I think that it's probably difficult for them as-well. When you make such a wonderful product, but it's impossible to give a lifetime warrantee for natural products, especially wood. I mean, these are so good and expensive that you can gift them to your children, and their grandchildren. The only problem that I have found is that they failed to send me a perfect board, so now I wonder if I got a second, or is this their acceptable board. I just bought as a gift, and it's entirely off center, many of the boards are turned the wrong direction for long term stability especially with end grain wood.. So what happens when it's not constructed more carefully is that you get cracking a year later, I contacted them, on my first purchase, a $600.00 board when it cracked, and they were zero help. Why not just put it up front that your boards might crack due to the nature of wood, and if it happens, and if it does, here's how to fix it. or even better yet, include a crack repair KIT WITH THE EPOXY, just incase it happens after the warrantee period. I see so many complaints about this and their boards, it seems that a more proactive approach would be good for their business, yes I understand that some people might not take care of their boards and that they don't want to deal with that hassle, but mine cracked after extremely careful use, I found a fix, it wasn't that difficult and in the 4 years Later my board is still perfect, no thanks to Boose Brothers!!!!

We bought this as a present for my son. We bout our board 2 years ago. Again, it is a solid beautiful board. My only complaint is how dry the wood is. It takes about a week of oiling it daily, and heavy before it is even ready to use the cream on. I took 2 days of heavy board cream and now I am finally on day to of cutting board wax application. Hopefully it is soon ready to gift to him.

Two parts to this review:--> The board is beyond awesome. You can immediately tell that it's high-end end-grain maple, with it's construction having no flaws. It came with a layer of oil/cream, but I purchased a bottle of John Boos 5 Ounce Block Board Cream with Beeswax and put down my own layer as well. After using a few times, it still appears to be brand new. I can see myself owning this for years upon years. Not only does it function well, but it looks great on the countertop!--> As for Amazon, the company is great. My first order was shipped all the way to the local UPS and out for delivery to my house, yet was somehow damaged (I don't know the details - only what was shown on the tracking page). My payment was refunded and they insisted that I reorder with 2 day shipping (instead of my original free ground shipping) and they would refund that charge, due to the damage. I was ecstatic to get it so quick, and can't thank Amazon enough for the generosity!!