Wood tops - Craft-Art, Brooks Custom, J. Boos... Recommendations?

vermonter_2009

14 years ago

Anyone use any of the following fabricators for their wood countertops?

- Craft-Art (which has a 20% off deal for Crown Point cabinetry customers, which we are eligible for).

- Brooks Custom of NY

- John Boos

We are looking at American Cherry tops. We've also researched cherry tops from Lumber Liquidators and Ikea as budget options.

The three manufacturers above all gave us fairly similar quotes.

Any feedback or advice from GWers?

Thanks in advance!

Vermonter

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Comments (3)

User
14 years ago
vermonter 2009-

In our last house we used Boos maple counters, they were well made and Boos was great to work with, good customer service, product arrived on time and in the correct configuration. Their work is good, but quite utilitarin (no fancy style edges, no exotic woods, etc.).

I have heard that Brooks makes nice stuff, and is more of a custom shop, but while I have seen their stuff in a showroom, I have no direct experience with their products. We have an American cherry butcher block that is over 25 years old, and well used (we cut on it daily), the color is still vibrant and the unit looks great (it's a Pompanoosic Mills product). Nice choice.

Good luck-

sandyponder (ex Vermonter)
vermonter_2009
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for the feedback on Boos, Sandy.

Right now Brooks is offering us 50% off (supposedly) and I'm inclined to take their offer.

Our island top is 76" x 44" and will have a rounded edge at the seating area. Delivered with a waterproof finish, quotes for cherry came in around $1500 at all three. Brooks seems to have the widest planks (4-8") and all three finish their tops differently. Brooks is a marine oil, Craft-Art is Waterlox, and Boos is an oil more common of butcher block.

Craft-Art guarantees their work for a year (seams for the life of the product) and Brooks guarantees them for life (but I'm not sure yet what that includes)...

Vermonter
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User
14 years ago
vermonter 2009-

We currently have wood counters that were bowling alleys in a former life, southern yellow pine with a black walnut strip on the edge (for looks and to cover the *serious* nails visible when you pull the slabs apart). We used Epifanes, a marine finish, and it is absolutely bullet proof. We have an undermount sink in the wood, and one of our main prep areas is wood and tho we don't cut directly on it (we have the butcherblock for that), we do everything else on it, and we are hard on things, and not clean freaks. I highly recommend the marine finish, I think it's superior to Boos pre-finished counters we had in our last house.

Good luck-

sandyponder

Wood tops - Craft-Art, Brooks Custom, J. Boos... Recommendations?

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