Carlos Cortez

Charcuterie Boards

I’ve been a mountain resident for 18 years. I started making live edge/resin charcuterie boards about a year ago, after seeing one on display. You Tube was my instructor! I chose the name of Joker 90 Custom Creations for my handle. 

I served as a helicopter gunship pilot for 2 tours in Vietnam with the 48th Assault Helicopter Company in the Central Highlands or II Corps. My call sign was Joker 90 and the moniker seemed to be a good luck sign so it’s stuck with me in all the years that followed in my time serving in the National Guard after my active duty time.

 I am currently working on larger projects such as tables.

I grew up South Jersey, reaching high school in theturbulent times of the early stages of the Vietnam War in the early 60’s. As Iprogressed through high school, the Vietnam War progressed with more and more Americantroops being committed every year. My best friend at the time and I decided tojoin the Marine Corps on the buddy program after high school. At the time theprogram would “almost” guarantee that you and the buddy you enlist with wouldspend your time in the Corps at the same duty stations. He decided not to waitand enlisted prior to finishing high school. With the buddy program no longerbeing an option, I visited the Army recruiter seeking enlistment options. Atthe time, the Army had a program that allowed a high school graduate to attendflight school as a Warrant Officer candidate pending the passing of the FASTtest, successful passing of a Class 1 flight physical, was 18 and completedBasic Training.  Wow, I thought, I hadnever been in an airplane before but it sure sounded better fly over the junglethan humping through it.  Aftergraduating high school in 1967, I was off to flight school.

Unfortunately, as fate would have it, while in flightschool in 1968, I received word that my best friend, now in Vietnam with theMarine Corps, had been killed in action along with 12 others in his platoon.Chances were better than even that I would have been in his platoon during thisaction if we had entered together on the buddy program.  The “what if” thought has been with me all ofmy life. 

Upon completion of flight school, I was assigned tothe 254th Medical Evacuation Detachment (Dust Off) after completionof flight school in 1968.  I was thentransferred to the 48th Assault Helicopter Company where I served 2tours flying Slicks and gunships. I returned to Ft. Meade, MD where I completedmy active duty obligation and onto the Pennsylvania National Guard at Ft.Indiantown Gap where I served in a variety positions as a line pilot, AircraftMaintenance Officer and test pilot, instructor pilot in a variety of aircraftand a Chinook Instrument Examiner. 

During my “free time”, I have always been involved insome type of woodworking projects, from remodeling to building furniture.Several years ago my wife and I were at an arts fair in Fredericksburg,Texas.  A particular vendor caught myeye. He had a display of several pieces that incorporated turquoise granulesset in resin into veins in a mesquite lazy Susan. The pieces really intriguedme and I began researching the “how do you do this” part of the project. Withthe assistance of the internet, I found the information I needed on the resinprocess and the “how to” information.  Ibegan experimenting with making charcuterie boards with natural edged woodpieces and various colored resins. I attempt to utilize wood pieces sourcedlocally from the San Bernardino mountains and have also used pieces ofwalnut/black walnut and olive wood sourced from the central valley. 

The process from obtaining/selecting the wood pieceto the finished product can take several weeks. Once the wood is selected, itis placed in a mold and the resin is colored and poured. It typically takes 3-4days for the resin to cure before it can be taken from the mold. The piece isthen trimmed on the edges on a table saw and then the thickness dimensionedusing a planer. After sanding with increasingly finer grits of sandpaper, the pieceis then coated in a cutting board oil several times and left for a few days toabsorb the oil. After the installation of the handles and board feet, the pieceis ready.

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