Tropical Leaf Cutting Board with Matching Edge Contour

If you are starting from scratch, you will need to put together a small panel that is about 9x10 inches. This will be a large enough panel to engrave this design on.  If you want to work with a larger panel, you can resize the design to match your project piece.  

Once the panel is glued up and dry, run the panel through a thickness planer.  This will create a smooth surface to engrave on.

After you get the surface flat and to the right thickness, it is good to sand down the surface with 120 and then 180 grit sandpaper.  I started with a belt sander and then changed to a palm sander.

If you don't have access to a planer or sander, a good alternative is to purchase a blank cutting board online, or at a local store.  

Using the included design file, load your cutting board blank into the laser.  I am using an S1, but this can be done with any model.  

Use the depth probe to get the correct focal point for your laser and move the laser so that your cutting board blank is in the working area in software.  I like to use the framing tool to make sure I have the design lined up. 

I am using a 20w laser, which isn't quite powerful enough to cut through 15mm of Beech, so I ran the cutting path with 5 pass twice for a total of 10 passes.  It still didn't cut through, so I am using the score line as a guide to cut out on the bandsaw.  If you have a 40w laser or are working on a P series machine, you could probably cut through this board. 

Be sure to adjust the settings to fit your machine. 

Next, using a bandsaw or jigsaw, follow the line to cut out the board.  Tip: cut about 1/8 or 3mm on the outside of your line.  For the best results you will want to sand down to the line.

Use a benchtop sander to sand down the edges to get a smooth even edge.  I started with a flat belt sander and then changed it out for smaller spindles to get the fine details.

You will need to use a chisel to clean out any tight corners.