Wood – What are these light marks on the new (unfinished) oak counter tops

Cutting the countertop to length:

Try making a custom circular saw jig to cut your countertop to size. 3/4" plywood placed together at right angles with a cleat for guiding your saw should give you a straight cut. Assemble the jig with extra material, then cut it to size with your saw for a perfect fit.

Use a saw blade with a high tooth count and cut the counter upside down. That way, the blade teeth are traveling down (but really up) into the counter surface, minimizing chances for chipping out. Start by cutting the backsplash first, with the rest of the counter pointing towards the floor. Then stop and rotate the countertop so it's upside down and finish the cut. Be sure to support the cutoff material so it doesn't break off a chunk of the laminate near the end of the cut.

As @auujay points out, masking tape can also help reduce the likelihood of chipping.

Source: woodworkingtips.com

Cutting the sink hole:

I crawled several forums looking for advice on this one. Some suggested techniques (in the order that I would try them) were:

• Use a jigsaw with a down-stroke blade to cut out the sink hole. By cutting on the top surface, you have a more accurate picture where your sink hole will be, and the downstroke blade will eliminate chip-out. Start each rounded corner with a 1/2" spade bit.
• Use a jigsaw with a metal cutting upstroke blade. The finer teeth will make for slower work, but have less of a chance of chipping.
• Use a circular saw to cut straight sides from underneath the countertop. Flip over and finish the rounded corners with a downstroke jigsaw blade.

Once again, use masking tape for both cut line visibility and to reduce the chance of chipping the laminate. Also remember to support the cutout section to avoid tearing the laminate near the end of the cut.

As DA01 mentioned, there are epoxy-based methods for refinishing laminate counter tops in the $100-200 range. They seem to have fairly positive reviews:

Rust-Oleum Countertop Transformation Refinishing System

• $194.21
• Covers 50 sq ft
• (cheesy how-to video showing how 'ridiculously easy' it is)

Counter-Coat

• $179.95
• Covers 35 sq ft
• (application instructions)

Giani Granite

• $79.40
• Covers 35 sq ft
• (equally cheesy how-to video showing how 'ridiculously easy' it is)

Note: I have not personally used any of these products, and I am in no way affiliated with them.