Butcher Block - 200 lbs, solid walnut, heirloom build

[@Johnny-uy4iu]

One last thing I would love to see is, customer willing, a couple glamour shots of the board in it's new (and probably forever) home. Great job though, this was fantastic!

[@StCreed]

If it was in my kitchen, I'd need a new top or table to let it sit on.

[@familymanof6169]

@@StCreed If that were in my kitchen it would be the table! lol

[@MichaelMassimino]

I want to see the same, the kitchen must be enormous

[@grandduke2145]

Me too.

[@EddieGilliland-m3v]

Me also.

[@jeffs7573]

As a finishing carpenter, I have learned over the years that if I need a special tool just once, it is better to buy it to use than not too. Makes the job so much easier.

[@eanders7992]

As the saying goes, better to have it and not need it then need it and not have it... :)

[@DustyLumberVideos-km5ep]

I agree. I include the price of the tool in the finished project.

[@themanlihood]

I like that the client got two boards. That was very nice of you!

[@ryanhawkins]

It was the least I could do😊

[@rickbrock20]

@@ryanhawkins Good people get blessed, don't change, we need more like you.

[@familymanof6169]

@@ryanhawkins Love your attitude & skill. I'm 66 and new to woodworking. It's fun and people like you Ryan are so nice to have helped me design and build my bathroom closet, vanity, mirror and a few other things from cedar picket fence panels. Simply beautiful & money saving! It takes on a totally new beauty when you design and build it. Such a sense of pride, accomplishment & bragging rights. lol Thank you, young Sir!

[@jerryhubbard4461]

As a wood worker myself, when I retired from my bridge construction job for over 34 years, I constructed a wood working shop in my back yard as a hobby shop. One of the first things I made was a cutting board. I did the end grain board using walnut, cherry and maple. It turned out to be a beautiful board and it sits in my kitchen on its side along with a cheap cutting board. My wife will not allow me to use it. Go figure. She says it is too pretty. I told her if it was used and had scratches on it, I could take it in the shop and re-finish it. NOT. I can relate to the work it takes to make something like this. The cost of wood alone is terrible. My cutting board is just for the kitchen. I measures 14x16. When people ask how much to make one for them and I tell them $200, that conversation is over. lol. The one you did here is a massive project. When I first started watching the video, my first thought was, the time and money this is going to take. Now the most I do in my wood working shop lately is roast coffee. Yep. I picked up that hobby about six months ago and man is there a lot to learn. It is a great hobby and I am loving it. Chef Jerry wood worker, coffee roaster. JH Coffee Roasters Irmo South Carolina USA

[@zulmaortiz1353]

Remember what you do is an art. Enjoy it and take it one day at a time. I love my board, thank you for what you do. I would wait months to get one of your boards. Do not rush or let it stress you out. Blessings to you and your family.

[@ryanhawkins]

I appreciate that :)

[@KeithOlson]

@@ryanhawkins (I left you a comment with some thoughts that I hope you find helpful. Cheers!)

[@ChadPhillips-f4m]

Great work, a couple quick things I learned from the countless butcher blocks I have built. For juice grooves, get a palm router with a small fence on one side and you can freehand the juice groove. It takes two seconds to learn and you can ditch your massive jig. Super easy and super clean product. Also way faster. For cutting through 4” plus stock like this, drop your circular saw or track saw to max depth on one side and cut it, then break off the off-cut, flip the board, and clean up the other side with a long, spiral cut bottom bearing flush trim bit. The bit will run against the saw cut and be super clean. This worked like a dream for me when I built my roubo bench with a 4” thick top. Lastly, I hit my beeswax lightly with a torch to melt it into the wood a bit, has worked well for me. Keep making sawdust!

[@stevejacobs5388]

How do you go around a 90 degree corner with a router and fence and have the groove at the corner come out perfect? How do you know when to rotate the fence through 90 degrees?

[@pyro3rg]

I'm missing something. With a palm router, how are you freehanding a juice groove? You mentioned a fence, but also said you don't need a jig, which in my eyes is really the same thing.

[@a0flj0]

Using a hot air blower instead of a torch makes melting the beeswax less risky.

[@JakJam-fw4zo]

Jesus bro , you got a channel?😂

[@Messenger67]

Don't worry about an "upload schedule" that's where good channels go to die. Keep making quality content, don't worry about quantity. That's the main reason I stopped watching John Malecki, he went full ham on clickbait content and digressed from what made his content great. There's only so many "I bought a pallet of Amazon returns" a guy can watch.

[@ryanhawkins]

I appreciate hearing that! I enjoy doing these large, custom, one of a kind projects.

[@AngieWilliamsDesigns]

Wow. That’s one massive board. Maybe you answered this somewhere… but what the heck were they going to use that board for???? 😮 It sure was beautiful. Just found your channel. Looking forward to checking out more.

[@pollyrobinson3877]

Re: logo burning. I *HIGHLY* recommend the LaserPecker (I know, but I didn’t name it). Can burn anywhere, fen has a battery for remote sites. I’m not affiliated in any way.

[@FloatingCroc]

I concur. I’ll take quality over quantity any day

[@lucaslutzerler5429]

Messenger67 are you a soundman?

[@donjuan7428]

Thank you for taking care of yourself and returning for our benefit.

[@MarilynHilsabeck-dv4zq]

I love that you never sacrifice quality and craftsmanship. And your candour- always that.

[@ryanhawkins]

Thanks 😉

[@cardboard8206]

I just finished a 4'x5' island counter from self-milled lumber using all Texas natives - osage orange, walnut, pecan, and red oak. I think it turned out wonderfully, though not close to as flawless as yours! I bought all the wood for $100 total from a local sawmill, dried it in my garage, and milled into lumber just using a mitersaw, tablesaw, and a whole lot of hand planing and ROS sanding. Finished it off with a vinegar/steel wool stain, tung oil, and beeswax. I made a thousand mistakes and the process took forever, but I don't regret a moment of it. I won't lie though: I envy you using the proper tools ;)

[@GrainneDhub-ll6vw]

Gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous! "I have enough clamps" said no woodworker anywhere, ever.

[@TheRange7]

LOL, so true

[@jimboisgr8]

Ryan, it takes courage to admit when you need help. And one of the best ways is to talk about it. I have a motto “It’s not Week to Speak” You’ve taken the first steps, things can quickly overwhelm you, and talking about it can sometimes be the release you need, we tend to hold on to our problems until it’s spirals out of control. Now I’m am an armature and what you do is truly amazing. My wife wants me to build her a custom wardrobe, but your video’s have given me the courage to build them. Thank you.

[@arthritic.adventures]

Good for you taking a break and seeking help! I was wondering as I hadn't seen a video for about 4 months in my feed, even went to the channel to confirm. Glad to see you with a smile on your face in a current video!!!

[@charlieg9559]

I made end grain cutting boards for a living for a few years from 2015 - 2018, so I understand the struggle. My biggest piece was an end grain Island counter top about 3ft x 7ft x 2.5”. This vid brought back several memories. Nice work.

[@roym.1141]

Let's see 294K subscribers, SOMEBODY SEND THIS MAN A TRACK SAW!

[@jimthomas1989]

Or a Therapist 😂

[@roym.1141]

@@jimthomas1989 pretty sure thats what better help is for hehe

[@6519980407]

I watch a lot of KZbin carpentry channels and I really like how you time lapsed your work throughout the video without making us feel disconnected from the process. Awesome vid!

[@BrandingIronsUnlimited]

We are beyond proud to have you use our branding irons again! Beautiful work as always Ryan!

[@ryanallthewiser]

Incredible build. Love the humbleness you display. As a pastor your advice for burnout is spot on and bold. Thanks for the video, I learned some new ideas

[@markchaplain1152]

Finally!!!! Somebody that actually knows a butcher block is end grain and not just boards glued together !!! Excellent bro!! 🤜🤛

[@matthewbarry7026]

I think it's just used by people more as a pattern, like you can have a "Brick" pattern with things other than Brick. Certainly the end grain is what you want for a cutting block, and is where the name comes from probably. example Ikea sells butcher block counters, but they aren't end grain.

[@tompugh388]

It is meant to be end grain sycamore (acer pseudoplatanus) as it closes after cuts and is naturally sterile. There's a reason for the use and selection, not just a pretty pattern. I doubt a butcher gave two hoots about a pattern he was going to cut meat on lol😅

[@markchaplain1152]

@@tompugh388 we don't have sycamore here, most butchers blocks I've seen are made from jarrah!

[@matthewbarry7026]

@@tompugh388 quick google search and you'd see it is a pattern. the word derives from yes an actual Butchers cutting table, which no doubt would have been end grain wood. But its just a pattern, those who make an edge grain "butcher block" table would be using the term correctly.

[@rich8037]

Why is it end grain? I'm not about to make a butcher's block and have never used one, I'm here purely from interest, but I can't work out why that's the case, though I'm sure there's a good and straightforward reason.

[@larryrobinson08]

Nice project turned out beautifully. The grease pit put it over the top. I like using 120 to rub a little softness into the edges too. You are absolutely correct about the time it takes sanding a project.

[@danielkantor3248]

Factor in all your other costs (oils, sandpaper, bee’s wax, branding iron), and you’re at about $2,200 gross profit for 120 hours of work, or $18/hr. And you still have overhead, wear and tear on equipment, maintenance, taxes. Someone at your level of craft should be at $50/hr gross MINIMUM, not including wood or other expenses. That means this cutting board would be priced at around $8,200, and it would be worth it. I live in a metro area that would easily pay $10K for this. So RAISE YOUR PRICES! I was shocked by how little you charged for this, and you still threw in another board as a freebie. You deserve more than you are asking, and your therapist would agree! Just ask them. This is how you prevent burnout. Do less work for more money, because you are not a slave.

[@FearsomeWarrior]

Filming adding to that labor time too. Revenue making up a little of cost but not nearly enough until it’s gained views over years.

[@jamesbarber5410]

The guy does good honest work and should value himself and his product at least 160% of what he does. He’s probably worth 200-300% more than $18hr easily. Unfortunately charging hourly for something like this just feels wrong as a craftsman.

[@pauljoseph8338]

Yes, but unfortunately, there’s probably not much of a market for $10k cutting boards.

[@smallcrafts3154]

That's not how money works tho... you gotta make the thing that the people wanna buy for the right price I can work for 10 hours sifting and sorting dirt and filtering the finest water to make the best mud pancake but it won't sell for a price that represents the effort I put in and tools and consumables. Tbh I'm just a Lil upset I put 25 hours into a red wood slab table with a black steel base and i can't sell it for $1200

[@reverendowl.]

@@FearsomeWarrior It does, but you can't really charge the customer for that.

[@robertpatterson3406]

Top notch work sir I don’t see how it could get any better than how it turned out and your customer should be thrilled.

[@BSbull]

That is a gorgeous hunk of walnut. I LOVE working with walnut. I've never done anything close to this size but bravo, sir! That is beautiful

[@usd25674]

Agree, do a fair amount of wood work , and walnut always machines well and behaves, LOL. Then when you finish it always amazes.

[@chadjmoore]

Thank you for sharing your MH story. As men we are conditioned to respond to MH issues they way you started. I am happy to hear you have found counciling that will help. More men need to open up and see that 1 we all need help some times and it is not a weakness, and 2 it is ok to ask for help. Thank you!

[@tonymarrazzo354]

Get yourself a few pipe unions at the big box store and just hook 2 pipes together when clamping - will make your life much easier!

[@creatednordestroyed5339]

Awesome idea

[@BearVibes]

Goodness gracious, what a beast. For fun I calculated the weight of the block with the dimensions you had. Walnut is around 38 lbs/ft3 when between 8-12% humidity. Weight came out at about 160 lbs for the wood; I didn't add the glue, wax and legs and didn't subtract the hand cutout. That's huge.

[@tac-3382]

Welcome Back Ryan. Hope you are feeling better mate. All the best from Australia. We missed you !! 👍

[@jdbigsur5503]

I had a similar problem squaring the end of a large slab with limited tools. Although, mine was a workbench top made of pine, not $2000 worth of walnut. I clamped 2 boards on the end, 1 on the face of the bench and 1 on the bottom, protruding about 1/4" from the end of the bench, taking extra care to make sure they were perfectly square an parallel. From there I stood the bench up, put an oversized base on my router and used those boards as a mini flattening sled. It was cumbersome to set up perfectly but made a clean, square end and worked very well. The board you made is absolutely beautiful, nicely done.

[@ronmcdonald754]

Ryan, that’s one incredible build and work of art! Absolutely love the Walnut Big Board and your enthusiasm in creating this beautiful one of a kind “Big Boy Block!👌🏽🤩👏🏽

[@ryanhawkins]

Thanks Ron!

[@barrycuth3536]

Great product and presentation Ryan. I congratulate you on your honesty with your mental health struggles, your decisions regarding construction methods and your time estimates. This post needs to "go straight to the "poolroom" (Oz term). Well done.

[@pastorlarrypotts8289]

I am very impressed by your openness and what will help others. I have been through that dark night of the soul. Other professionals make a difference!

[@brazenhead262]

Walnut really is just the best wood. I'd have all the tables, cabinets, guitars, etc. in my house made of walnut if I could

[@dansullivan2954]

Agree, and I do. No guitar but a guitar stand and a kitchen table and a buffet shelf and two fire place mantels and master bath vanity and roman tub facia and mirror frame and light sconce plate and coat rack, etc.

[@JohnHays-t7u]

I could not have been more impressed with the precise nature of the board and the machinery. I have build a board for myself (red oak) and am a huge fan of black walnut that I cut myself from trees, so, all of which is to say, kudos and may you have many more projects with the blessings of our Lord, Jhay

[@bradouellette6558]

We’ve all been through the issues in pricing and time management, it’s a lesson learned as long as you don’t compromise your quality attempting to make it up. The biggest shocker was the shipping 😮 , didn’t see that coming 🤷‍♂️

[@hustledancing-americasfuns3830]

Must have been overseas freight. You can ship cars in the US for less than what he paid.

[@coppulor6500]

yeah that was insane.

[@w.davidmcguinn8674]

My dad ran a machine shop. His biggest problem was under pricing his excellent work. Our lack of confidence makes our worth a hard lesson to learn. Lean a little toward the higher side. If you loose the job it just was not the path the Lord intended for you. I am not much for cutting boards, but this was heroic. Go watch a Nick Sawyer video, you have that potential. But get a Joiner. Cordially, David McGuinn.

[@darrylbuckett5380]

He could have wanted it in a chaotic pattern, using half a dozen different timbers, by which time you would have booked into the funny farm. Great work, Cheers

[@ryanhawkins]

That would have broke something 😂

[@peberly400]

God damn! That is one of the nicest, thickest, sturdiest cutting board I’ve ever seen. Man I am jealous as hell

[@Zacharythorsen]

Jesus Christ died for all of our sins. He died the death we all deserved. He was the perfect one who never sinned once, but he loved us so much he decided to die for us so our sins would be paid for and we can enter the Kingdom of Heaven before God the Father blamelessly. He is the living son of God who wants to know us and have a personal relationship with us. No matter what you have done no matter how far gone you think you are Jesus can and will save you. All you have to do is confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior. Believe that he died on the cross for your sins and had a bodily resurrection 3 days later. We cannot be saved by our works but by faith in Christ alone. Repent and turn to Christ. You will have joy, happiness, love, and peace beyond understanding.

[@enriquecancino7519]

Ryan, don't beat yourself too much because the end product is absolutely magnificent! I admire your guts to even accept a job of that magnitude and complexity! Cheers and good luck for your future business.

[@J-Justice666]

I make 12"-18" diameter end grain cutting boards out of mesquite cookies. I remove the bark and sand down the edge leaving the natural shape... A hair dryer works wonders for getting the oil and beeswax to soak in, especially on melting the beeswax into the wood. Putting the cutting boards in a warm (not hot) oven also helps the wood soak up more of these preservatives. When I need to stain the wood, I use freshly brewed coffee (and the grounds) and a little red food coloring. Depending on the ratio, it can create a very beautiful reddish brown color. The result is a cutting cutting board that looks like a huge steak. This is disclosed to the customer in case of any coffee allergies. Could you imagine being allergic to coffee? What a nightmare.

[@m.d.d.3051]

A lesson I learned early on was, buy the tool on the job you need it for, and price it into the project - or at least, as much of it as you can. That way, the work pays for the tool, and then you have it on hand and can sell future projects that will make use of it. Great work.

[@Micaelrthomas]

I appreciate your real life honesty. It seems all my projects pack "surprise" struggles, and it's so nice to see the same in those much more experienced than me!

[@bradyjames2786]

Thank you for being honest with yourself and with everyone watching. I have had the same feelings myself while running my own business. Thank you for saying out loud, what everyone experiences to some degree at some point in their lives. Best of luck in business and in health!

[@alwayssearching1882]

I enjoyed this Ryan. Your details to quality craftsmanship and your transparent communication reveals a channel worth following. The way you packaged the boards for shipment says a ton about your character. Keep up the great work.

[@Bilal_El-Hassan]

Second time I've watched this video from start to finish, I have never, ever re watched a video . .. hats off to you amazing work

[@gamemeister27]

Hey thanks for the tip about the handheld belt sander. I was still getting some gouges even when going as straight as I could, but I figured out that my belt sander prefers a little pressure on the front grip and to move about half a belt width between passes. Your feedback really gave me the gumption to figure it out

[@MrMuncieman]

Walnut is my favorite wood and I have been using it for over 60 years. I am now deep into my second copy of a Les Paul electric guitar made from the crotch of a walnut tree. The piece of walnut that I got for this guitar was air dried in a barn for 60 years. So with this being said I really loved your walnut project. I learned to project time for a project and triple it. Thats just the way it is with big projects. I would love to get you a picture of this guitar as it is my second one I have built. I wish you the best

[@martycrouch1323]

I've been doing custom woodworking for over forty years and one of the first things I learned was to ALWAYS cut the painted ends off rough lumber. The paint is highly abrasive to jointer and planer knives, also there could be dirt or other debris under the paint. I did cringe when you tried to joint the edge across what was face grain, but we learn by doing and I'm sure that was a valuable lesson. I commend your willingness to show the whole process, including the struggles. You definitely achieved an amazing final product, just keep at it and I'm sure there will be many more to come.

[@mwall2994]

I agree with you about the fact that there was too much time between your videos, but that is only because they are so good. I really appreciate the details you share as I frequently tackle projects which are quite similar, and so I find the comments useful. It may not have been profitable, but that is a truly gorgeous board!

[@slash1956]

We lived on Vancouver Island for around 12 years. I am also a carpenter (cabinetmaker) and wish I had a shop such as yours. I know walnut does not grown in Western Canada (or Canada at all I believe) so getting slabs of walnut that thick is costly. Nice work Ryan.

[@stevejacobs5388]

Thanks for this video! I was looking to see what others have experienced, as I have an order for a 30"x30" butcher block, 3 inches thick. I see you have solutions for a lot of the problems I was anticipating, so this is good as I don't think I found another video on all of youtube that is for something this large. Also, few videos actually understand the term butcher block actually means end grain, but you definitely get it! I see that your long strips when joined for final glue up already had tight joints, whereas my previous attempt at this the joints had gaps and I had lots of trouble pulling them tight even with the entire surface covered in heavy duty clamps. It had thought the curved strips were just a result of stress release when cutting the wood and then gluing up the strip. Maybe walnut is more forgiving than maple in this respect, but it could also be from your slab flattening work. I'll have to review your video in more detail to see! Also, the pricing is always a problem for a one-off. If you instead wanted to get say $50/hr for your time, the labour would have been $6,000, and you would have had to quote $8,000. At $8,000 (plus shipping) even your understanding client would likely have said "I'll think about it", even though there's not much margin in the $8,000. So for my butcher block order, I will quote a lot more than I originally planned on, as I doubt I will be able to do it in one week if you took 3 months for this. And if the client walks, they walk.

[@KrisDeVo]

Loved this man and felt the crash and burn as well! All in all, excellent work my friend.

[@AdvancedUSA]

I remember trips to our butcher when I was a young boy. He was in his early 60’s and had been using the same butcher block table for 40+ years. It had so much use it had a crater in the middle that was at least 2” deep. It was really cool.

[@svenc3338]

The world is now a better place. Thanks for the time to share all your work and experiences.

[@Sober2003]

I normally don’t follow woodworking but your honesty about your mental health and what you did to make things better took a lot of courage. The board is beautiful and sure was a lot of work. And was a mammoth board. Good work on all fronts!👏🏻👌🏻

[@SeansWoodBarn]

I gotta admit, $18 an hour has to sting! As you said though, you cannot put a price on experience! The piece was magnificent!! A monumental task, one that I would be terrified to undertake! $2K worth of material? Insane! It turned out amazing! You have massive cohonez just for taking the job!!! Amazing work, and thank you for sharing!!!

[@optimus]

Dude, it took me like 3 months to make two small walnut nightstands, lol. This was impressive as hell. Congrats! True master. I almost always speed up or skip through most videos. Ive *YET* to do that to one of yours.

[@ryanhawkins]

Man, I appreciate that!

[@bobhoffman8717]

Awesome!! What a job!!!!! You sure fid a beautiful job. What a man! Glad you got the therapy and being open about it. A lot of people, 1 would not have gotten the help and 2, would not have admitted they needed help. So glad to see you doing well. Awesome video

[@saundrawilson3950]

❤❤❤ I’m not your station. I just stumbled across you and thought I’d give you a watch and see what was going on with your station. I love table top tables, coffee tables, countertops, all of the above. And that one came out really nice kinda heavy but you did great lifting it by yourself. Be careful though you’re young you think you’re back and everything works just fine but when you get older, it will remind you of those days when you thought that you were young lol have a good weekend. This is a new week. Why didn’t anybody tell me that this was the week when you’re off from work you seem to forget what day it is what time it is the other day I got up And asked my husband what time is it and he says 730 and I looked at him. I said in the evening and he just stared at me and said no Sandra in the morning he said when was the last time you saw the sun 730 in the evening I said well it has happened, but that’s another story anyway have a good weekend bye😊

[@mthomaslauer]

I really enjoyed watching your video. I laughed along a few times in empathy with your life-lessons learned along the way. The process was very enjoyable to see, and the finished product is super impressive. Love walnut - one of the most beautiful woods to work with.

[@vikinguer]

A huge THANK YOU for sharing with us the amazing job, the struggles, the tips, and your views. Great person you are.

[@marksaus]

Mad props to you for getting this done with the tools available. With a big jointer and thicknesser the initial steps would have been a couple of hours, flattening and sanding would have been... 3 hours with a wide belt sander, and for the final cutting down, juice groove and handles, 30 minutes with a CNC 😀 So I'm in awe of your patience and time dedicated!

[@roberttomlin5161]

You are 1 phenomenal cutting board builder!! Im in awe every time i watch one of your videos! We all get bogged down with life sometimes and its good to see you didn't throw in the towel😊....kepp the awesome videos coming

[@kevindickey6020]

I know there were times that you just have been near despair but the end result is absolutely stunning. The video isn’t bad either - the footage of your attempt to joint the entire 200 pound block was hilarious (and something I totally would have tried as well).

[@mouradbelkas598]

Thank you. Great job and worth your effort, patience, and I am sure, a valuable experience. I learned a golden rule in my life: Often we mess up and make stupid mistakes and we are left with 2 options. 1. Can we change the outcome, the answer is often no. 2. Swallow it, accept it, learn from it and move on.

[@philliphoward5113]

Beautifully made board, well done I hope the customer was happy with his purchase, even though it was way over schedule receiving it the way you packaged it was awesome they will appreciate the effort involved in shipping it the way you did, once again outstanding job.

[@ricksmith4011]

WOW!!!! What an incredible job and an incredible video. I love that you show your mistakes and problems. Makes me feel a little better about all of the problems I have with my woodworking. This was very inspirational as well. Thanks!!!

[@ansarogu]

I know absolutely nothing about woodworking but I always enjoy the process that goes into making something out of wood, the final product looks amazing.

[@robertblake7145]

Great video! Your attention to detail is what it should be. Hey…I’m a retired Orthopedic surgeon and I was really watching you around the table saw. In my practice I saw many hand injuries from the table saw as you are pushing toward a fast moving blade. I do not remember an injury from a radial arm saw as you are “hands on” on the saw and moving the saw to the board! You perform meticulous work and could do what I do! Bob

[@robwotherspoon3817]

Ryan, lovely work as always. More importantly, glad you're ok. I needed to hear your story, very much. Appreciate you.

[@elaine5953]

have found that waiting a week or so before the final sanding -- after gluing -- is best. The blue works way out over a few days after that last glue up. Beautiful work!!!

[@williampope3531]

I am an architect and have done a lot of time estimation for the completion of design projects large and small. What I have found is this: Until you have an experience history / data base of a dozen or more of the same project type from which you can derive real-world hard numbers there IS a method that will help you be more realistic. A) Break the project down into it's basic component parts. For this giant butcher block, I see: 1) stock preparation - including cutting to dimension, squaring, jointing, flattening. 2) glue-up - to include spreading the glue, stock alignment, clamping, drying, cleanup 3) finishing - including sanding, branding initials (don't forget the set-up time!), application of oil finish, drying, beeswax application, buffing, feet installation 4) shipping - crate construction, packing, loading 5) your administrative time - buying materials, organizing the work load and schedule, billing and communications. B) Make an estimate of the time you honestly, truly expect it to need to accomplish each task. Don't forget to allow for set-up times! C) Total up your honest time estimate and multiply it x2. Your number will probably be pretty close, but most times you will find you are a little on the light side Anyway, this method has served me well over the last 35 years. I hope this helps. Oh! BTW, nice work on this perfectly square piece!! It's a gorgeous butcher block!! JMHO, of course. 😉

[@mgpadi]

Beautiful board! Don’t worry about the money. Exactly what you said, the knowledge you learned through that hiccup is priceless. Love your work and thank you for your time.

[@DENISCHOQUETTE-n2e]

Fantastic job and excellent learning. I used to be a rheumatologist and now work making Small Wood objects for pleasure. Thanks. Denis

[@DoctorProperty]

Beautiful work. You can't be a creative human being and an accountant at the same time. You are an artist. What a fabulous piece of work.

[@dlk4318]

Ryan, not good enough to say I was impressed with all art and workout you had to combine to get such fabulous result. You're THE man!

[@Charo-ig5sh]

Insane project, the best lesson in all of it to me is, you got it done. If the customer is happy then you WON!

[@birdbandit9]

I can't believe I came across this video today. My last holiday was exactly like yours and I'm sitting on my deck still unable to get into the shop. Lost my last parent/step-parent in the fall and I think that's stalling me a bit. Gonna click the link here and see what Better Help is all about. Appreciate the link

[@BattleOfNewOleans]

My Dad introduced me to the cabinet scraper once when I was belt sanding a large panel. A hand tool faster and better than a power tool, what a concept!

[@johngassmann9581]

That thing is remarkable. And it's really cool that you made a smaller one for the client with the leftovers.

[@sharkfinnegan]

Also, I love the little song that's created by the machinery in the footage of you running boards through a jointer or planer or whatever it is at the time. I smiled every time haha

[@davidrosenkrantz4854]

I have made a lot of butcher block cutting boards, but nothing of this size. One thing I do have is a big sliding SCMI table saw. I made a 5" X 10" table out of 2.5" Catalpa wood., and the saw was a life saver. I could get a good glue joint with the 10" long wood. The boards were just to heavy to use the jointer when I started to glue them up 2 at a time. Thanks for the video.

[@SpYucaipaSoCal]

Ive been to the under estimate shed myself. Beautiful work. Myself I would have chosen more variations in wood color like your normal boards. But you cant go wrong with Black Walnut. Its just beautiful.

[@michaelandbrendatainsky3290]

Great job on the end grain board. I love mixing maple and walnut into simple patterns of squares and rectangles. Take good care of yourself.

[@My_Life_ua]

Очень кропотливая работа, но и результат очень красивый! 👍🏻 Люблю и уважаю Ваш труд ❤ Во всем KZbin не встречал таких красивых досок как у Вас! Искренне благодарю Вас за видео и уроки, как Вы все это делаете! 🤝🏻

[@SparrowStockwell]

This was the first video of yours that we watched. How enjoyable! The butcher block is beautiful and rich and massive! And we just love it that you included that mini-me (but a big baby) cutting board as a lagniappe. We have subscribed! We’d love to know how the client liked it.

[@kevingaddis7276]

Fantastic job young man, I've been building with black walnut for years and you have done the wood proud.

[@CrimFerret]

The whole thing is just insane, but that's what the client wanted. You did a great job with it. Including the smaller board was total class. I hope the client was happy with his absolutely unique cutting board.

[@bill-nolastnamesupplied-958]

So when the customer opens up the delivered package, he finds a small cutting board and then does a double-take on the size; "Did I mistakenly order my cutting board in centimetres instead of inches and where is the extra weight? Is it ballast below my cutting board? Lignum Vitae? Deleted uranium? Oh, there's a bigger cutting board underneath..."

[@mountainswithmilton4810]

It's good to see your breakdown of costs. I made a bad habit of under-quoting on jobs which sank my startup woodcraft shop. Your video gives me hope to return and be better and see it through next time.

[@haroldchoate7497]

Regarding estimating- In the job I had everything was awarded by bid. Over 40 years of experience I learned to add up everything I could possibly think of (including profit) and multiply it by 10 percent. Once I had this number I doubled it and that was my price. I came to a point where I was disappointed if I got every job because I figured this was a sure sign I was selling our work too cheap. Thank you for your honesty. The project turned out great and I’m sure the owner believes they got a bargain.

[@malletandchisel5154]

Really appreciate you being transparent about your burn out issues. Best of luck.❤

[@ryanhawkins]

Thanks so much, I appreciate the support!

[@patricksmith3135]

Great video. And. I am so glad you got your red line under your control. The process, the beautiful board and all the rest is fascinating and I'm glad you are back. Looking forward to more, if your busy schedule permits. :)

[@Benson32273]

I must say the Butcher block turned out beautifully, despite your challenges. Very well done indeed!!

[@felixvelasquez159]

I will admit i was a little skeptical after the first 10 minutes however i am happy to say that i watched until the end! You did the best that you possibly could with what you have and to not only know but openly admit where you have made “mistakes” along the way; for one is tough and for two just goes to show that you are only human like the rest of us. I think you did an amazing job, i can tell how stressful it was for you but i can also see in your eyes how passionate you are about your work and that in itself is priceless! I am definitely subscribing and binge watching your content! I wish you the best of luck on future projects and i believe that you have what it takes to do great things! Keep it up!! Add also, a quote from a very wholesome and wise man “we don’t make mistakes just happy accidents” - Bob Ross

[@jimmybusch5619]

I am about as green as they come to wood working (starting today on my 1st project). I definitely learned a few things from this so thank you very much for posting it. Loved the board, can only imagine what it is being used for.

[@anthonylane9089]

I admire and appreciate your transparency. It is both inspirational and informative. Thank you. Kudos to a beautiful build.

[@garygreen1787]

Excellent video!!! Ryan, you and I are a lot alike - except I'm 30 years older. For my own mental health, I accept only the jobs that I really want and that will challenge my skills. On my current huge job which, like yours, is physically challenging, I explained my two rules to the client at our first meeting: Don't ask how much it will cost and don't ask when it will be done. Didn't hear anything for weeks until I got an email: OK, but we need a quote and your assurance that you can have it done by mid-July. I put together a very escalated estimate and told them that I would likely not be done even by the end of July. I got the go-ahead and will be done today, July 1st and way under the estimate. So I had no pressure and will have a very happy client. Keep up the good work!

[@thewoodologist8176]

The experiances that cost us the most, teach us the most valuable lessons... great job on the board, i deal with oversized requests often and i felt your struggle.

[@DanielCooper1]

That is a stunning piece. Beautiful board, and a smaller to go with it?! Holy cow. Your wife is a rock star.

[@srf2112]

Very nice work and you gave the customer a great deal. Custom work is artistry and that doesn't come cheap for a good reason.

[@insideout144]

2 tips. 1. use table salt on the end of your boards when gluing up it keeps them from sliding when clamping. 2. Lower your tow motor forks as low as possible when driving in case of an oops the object doesn't have that far to fall. The board turned out amazing

[@stephenbull8962]

What a fantastic piece, professional in the extreme and a great video. It makes a change to see the work of a dedicated and skilled wood worker. 1st class.