I'm also considering Craft Art edge grain black walnut. In making your decision, ask your contractor's wood guy what kind of finish he uses. Do you want a true "furniture finish" for your island top (achieved by Craft Art with about 4 layers of tung oil)? Or do you want an oiled finish? Knowing how he will finish the material may help you decide.

No photos, but how about some samples or jobs he's done IRL that you can see? It's a big leap of trust going sight unseen.

I just looked at the Craft Art site again. They use full length boards vs. shorter boards butted together. How about GC's guy?

Just be aware that a wood countertop has a greater potential to be a health hazard than a granite, quartz, or laminate countertop. No matter how solid the wood may seem, bacteria can and will penetrate and propogate. That being said, if you are diligent and thorough about cleaning the wood after each use, you will probably be okay.

One way to find out if the GC trusts 'his' wood guy, is to tell him, if you go with his guy, then the GC has to guarantee in writing that you will be 100% satisfied or the GC will stand the entire cost of replacement. Maybe even have him put up a bond. That way you are covered.

I went with Craft Art a number of times as we've moved because they are a national brand with a strong reputation. My concern about a local wood shops has always been the fact that they seem to go out of business a lot, leaving me without anyone to stand behind their product or contact with specific questions.
Powertoolpatriot: Untrue statement. I researched this thoroughly before buying our first one and there is research evidence to support that wood does not harbor bacteria any worse than other surfaces and in many cases it is better than some granites due to the porosity differences. Additionally, if you buy a high quality product, there aren't many seams. :)

Beastbaby: I've not seen the Craft Art DIY products personally, but they look exactly like my top would have before it was finished. I'm a big fan of Craft Art and am sure you would be happy with them. Good luck either way and let us see some pictures!!

Beastbaby,
if someone is really good at wood tops, they would have examples of their work available to show you, at least pictures, preferably home visits to satisfied customers.

Without some sort of past work to display, or a satisfied customer who is willing to let you view, it's highly unlikely that the "wood guy" has ever done this before. Not to say that an island top is beyond the skill of most woodworkers. It isn't. I could (and have) done it myself. But, if your GC wants you to take this guy's work on faith, then he is a poor GC. The guy should at least be willing to create samples of his work (maybe smaller cutting boards) so that you can judge his joinery and finishing skills. If he's unwilling to make samples, then move on to a known quality supplier. $100 is a very small difference in your kitchen in the long run, but poor quality sticks with you and makes you angry forever.

Can you get contact info for the woodworker and talk to him directly? If he's done this before, he surely has photos and samples of his work---it may just be that the contractor doesn't have any of that info. You can probably tell pretty quickly from talking with him whether he's built butcher block before. (We priced ours with our cabinetmaker, and he could give us a detailed breakdown of different prices and finished results for edge v. end v. side grain, various types of woods, etc. and could describe the pros and cons of each construction style.) If Wood Guy can't talk wood species or grain with you, he definitely should not be doing the work---but I would absolutely believe a scenario where Wood Guy might be great if you talk to him directly, but the contractor might have no clue how to talk wood talk.

We just finished finishing a butcher block slab, and I will say that if you use a good quality finish, you will spend more than $100 between the product and your time to do the finishing on an island-sized counter. It's not hard, but it's time consuming. So if you are really comparing apples to apples (same wood, same board style, etc.) then it may be worth it to have the local guy do it, especially since there's a good chance that if he's an experienced carpenter/butcher block guy, he'll come install it too. (Also not hard to do, but I always feel more comfortable letting people who built things drill into them!) The Craft Art stuff is beautiful if you have any concerns about the local guy, though, so it's a good option to have. Good luck!

My cab guy for my build could do a plywood top like he does for the tops of the built i cab/bookcase flanking my fireplace. That was not what craftart does so I have decided for me, to go with a craftart and finish it myself and install as well.

You might want to educate yourself just a bit on the various choices so that you go into the decision with eyes open:

- what kind of wood do you want? Will it be plain or stained/colored?
- how do you want the grain to run?
- what amount of seams are acceptable to you? (full vs. pieced boards)
- what kind of finish do you desire? Shiny / matte / satin?
The finish is rather key. If you go with a film-building varnish (polyurethane in any flavor, resin, Waterlox, etc), you won't be able to cut on it or repair any scratches without a rather big smelly procedure. If you go with an oil (food-safe mineral oil, tung oil, 'butcher block oil'), it's less 'showy', ie glossy, but you will be able to re-oil regularly with little fuss.

Doing the finish yourself will cost up to $100, so I'd say it's more about the quality/type/design of the wood fabrication here than about any $ consideration (which is what you said to begin with). Hold out for actual contact with the "wood guy" and good luck!

Doh! I just re-read your original post and realize you said you wanted black walnut edge grain, in your link. Sorry, didn't mean to lecture! :-)

Walnut is quite expensive and it might just be that craft-art can get higher quality wood in bulk than your wood guy can -- but man, you really can't know until you see an actual walnut counter sample from him.

Courage!