I'm assuming it comes pretty much ready to install, as far as being smooth and sanded. I'm quite confident you can handle applying a Waterlox finish, and any sanding in between coats. (I've been doing it for months on all of our interior woodwork...It's not brain surgery.) Did you ask your GC for a recommendation of who else might be willing? His tools should be adequate to cut and probably route the edges however you need them.

Rhome - Thanks for your response. Good to hear it's doable for you.

My understanding from a phone call to them was that it is a bit rough and does need smoothing and sanding before you get to the Waterlox, etc. I haven't seen it in person yet, I have to admit. Haven't been in the mood for packing up the kids to take the trip.

I've mentioned it a few times to my GC, but I don't think it's at the top of his list. Not a problem; I'm very happy with what he's doing and his focus.

Oh, duh. This is easier than the links:

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

Sorry, I read "Lumber Liquidators," but thought "IKEA", whose BB, I think, comes smooth. Love the Cambria and both combinations you show. I can see where the wood looks warmer and maybe richer, especially if you have gray stone floors.

Maybe if you have it and the GC could see it, and it's in the right timeline (maybe just isn't something he's ready to think about yet), you'll get a better response.

In terms of DIY you could definitely handle the sanding and finishing yourself, just following instructions here and other places online. The tricky part is the sink cutout. If you're doing a drop-in where the edge doesn't have to be perfect you should be able to find someone to do it. If you want an undercounter sink that needs to be a lot more precise.

sanding is easy (just don't overdo it), and finishing w/ Waterlox or tung oil is easy-peasy.

Cutouts and edges are harder if you're a beginner, but any carpenter should be willing to do it.

I had butcherblock for years, and we didn't seal it or take care of it at ALL. It looked really crummy by the sink in the prep area (looked nice elsewhere), but I think if we'd been better about taking care of it, it would have looked nicer for longer. And it certainly would have been cheap enough that replacing it after 5 years or so wouldn't have hurt us much, money-wise. (well cared for, it should look good longer than 5 years!)

But like I said, we didn't care for it or protect it in any way.

I believe you need to use an orbital sander, to avoid creating low spots.

If it's level but needs smoothing then a simple $50 finishing sander is perfect. Start with rougher sandpaper and then finish with fine. It is easy to make it look gorgeous.

We have the maple version from LL. It's pretty smooth, but we sanded it with a pretty fine grit sandpaper to make it feel like butter. We used a random orbital sander and it was really easy. From there, you just need a tack cloth (to pick up the dust) and whatever finish you want to use (we used Waterlox). The sanding and finishing is really easy. The sink cutout - not so much. We did it ourselves with a jig saw but it took A TON of sanding since we were doing an undermount sink. If you've got a drop in, it should be much easier.

Also, are you going around a corner? If you are, I highly recommend just butting two pieces up against each other instead of trying to fight a miter joint. The edges of the counter are very square (I think called a pencil edge?), so they but up with very little seam.

Kristen

You should definately ask your GC to cut out your sink. He's got the equipment and experience - it will take him a few minutes and it will be so much harder for you. The sanding and finishing is cake! Start with something like 200 grit then step down 2 levels for the next finer sanding. Finish with emery. YOu can do it by hand with a sanding block if you want. It's even relaxing.

There were couple pictures of someone who used this recently. It's very beautiful!! We are either going to do this counter too - or soapstone. I remember a list of finishing instructions from somewhere but I can't find it now. I'll find it and add it here when I do!

Good luck!

Thank you all for your responses. I feel empowered. It sounds like I could definitely do the butcherblock, with some minimal help from my GC and with the bonus of purchasing another tool (thank you for the tip, seedsilly and mondragon). Hrooom hrooom! (happy tool noise)

Rhome, the floors are red oak, which is why we've been leaning towards the Basalt Slate for the past couple of days. Right now, my heart wants butcherblock; but my eye prefers the laminate. Np about seeing "IKEA." They're certainly another good lower-priced go-to.

Talley_sue, I think we'd be fairly lax on the upkeep, too. Good to hear it can be fixed and/or tolerated.

Kristen, it's great to hear from someone who did it. No, we don't need to go around any corners.

Beth, thank you for the encouragement. Let me know what you decide. It sounds like you may be working with a similar color palette.

Here are pictures of the floors with all the counter surfaces. We were thinking the butcherblock would add some furniture feel to the open room, but things seems to get a bit washed out with the red oak and ginger maple cabinets. And boy, has it been hard to figure out how to carry the flagstone across! The dark tiles are all much more blue and green than gray. There's even a bit of purple.

{{!gwi}}

Cate

I think the other thing that might be throwing us off in seeing the samples is the size compared to the real size and impact they'll have in the room. The flooring and cabinets will be a much bigger presence than they appear here...any way to make the samples more representative of how much of each will be in the room?

This is the best I can do. You can't see most of the island, and the cabinet colors are odd. I extracted them from a picture on KitchenCraft's website. Believe it or not, it's the same finish as I had in the color board earlier in the post. Looks a bit dull here, actually. Blegh. :?

Thanks! Cate

Wow...All I meant was to size the pieces of samples more equitably, but you went to a lot of effort! :-)

In these, I think I do like the Basalt Slate, because it seems to stand out better on the cabinets...But it may just be the problem with the cabinet color.