Mouse Trap Cheese Serving Board

I was recently brainstorming some creative spins on cutting boards and serving trays. I looked over at a mouse trap sitting on my workbench and BOOM — I had an idea. Mouse — trap — cheese. What if I used mouse traps to make a cheese serving board? And the mouse trap cheese serving board leaped onto my drawing board.

For some of you, please don’t get grossed out. The traps I used were straight from the packages, brand new! NO — I did not recycle used mouse traps for this project — LOL. And I didn’t see anything on the packages or the manufacturer’s website that indicated anything toxic on these traps.

Materials Used:

6 — Spring mouse traps (from Home Depot) $1.97 each

Oak board – 1/2 inch thick, 5.5 inches wide and 36 inches long.

Titebond wood glue

Sandpaper – 120 grit, 220 grit and 400 grit

Food-safe mineral oil (better to use a lacquer or urethane finish)

Tools I Used:

Power saws

Belt sanders and drum sander

Clamps

Overview:

To summarize, I simply cut 6 mouse traps in half and glued them to the top of an oak board (for strength). I did some cutting, shaping, and sanding. Shaped a handle on one end and added a paracord lanyard (yellow and black colors). Then I finished the cheese board with mineral oil. This was a fun and easy woodworking project that I completed one weekend.

The finished dimensions for this wood cheese board, serving tray, cheese platter — whatever you want to call it:

20 inches long by 3.5 inches wide by 1 inch thick. Nothing magical about these dimensions. It’s just what the final product shaped up to be.

I made this mouse trap cheese serving board for personal use only, not to sell. My wife and daughter really loved it, and it will probably see a lot of use at parties and family gatherings.

See how I made it:

 

Some Lessons Learned:

These mouse traps must be either pine or poplar. No doubt — it’s a soft wood. I had to be extra careful not to put dents in it when taking the metal parts off or when clamping. Removing the metal parts was the most challenging part of this project.

Removing the metal parts leaves some holes and some dents. I could have put some putty in the holes, but I decided to leave them. However, it’s probably a better idea to fill all deep voids so food doesn’t get trapped somewhere.

I had no special reason for cutting the traps in half. I just liked the design on the lower half of the trap best. When I researched cheese boards many were designed long and narrow. I also liked how the alternating positions of the traps looked.

I used 120 grit and 220 grit for most of my sanding. And 400 grit for some light sanding on the surface. I decided to lightly sand off some of the red paint. Not sure what kind of paint is on the trap, but nothing on the packaging or website indicated toxcisity.

I elected to use mineral oil for the finish and applied it 3 times. Since I’ve done a little more research, I recommend using a lacquer or urethane finish instead of an oil finish. I plan to use the cheese boards strictly as a serving tray, not a cutting board. For my cutting boards I always use a mineral oil finish — NOT lacquer or urethane.

I added the paracord lanyard for decoration. I followed some tutorials for making key chain fobs and used the Cobra Weave for the pattern. Would have been easier if I just tied on a loop of leather thong or shoe laces.

Below are a few more pics if you’d like to pin them or share through your social media outlets.

Okay, I hope you enjoyed following along and seeing how I made this mouse trap cheese serving board. It was a fun and easy woodworking project, easily completed in a weekend. If you would like to get updates on my future projects, please subscribe to this site. I’m always on the look out for collaborators and guest bloggers. Drop me a line if you have something you’d like to show off.