Files

[eeler1]

Aaron, if you buy bulk files you might be able to unload some to your fellow club members. I’ve got enough files that I’m not motivated to shop for or buy more, but would be interested in adding to the collection if they are good quality and not too expensive.

 

[MSBriggs]

Be careful re Grobet files. For many years they were synonymous with Swiss-made files, but a few years ago Grobet USA switched to various other suppliers. I've seen Grobet files made in India. Otto Frei sells Swiss files labeled by the actual manufacturer, Glardon-Vallorbe. Also Grobet USA files made in Italy, probably made by Corradi.

 

[Janderso]

It seems like most of the time honored names are all seeking secondary sources to save costs. A quality product can be made any where in the world.
The Nicholson files from Mexico have worked for me so far. I also have a pile of used donated files that I pick through and use regularly.
Aaron, I'm with Jonathan. I am always looking for ways to spend money for quality tools.

 

[ThinWoodsman]

It's true, the Grobets I've been getting have been from Italy, not Switzerland. I wasn't overly bothered by it, and the quality is still excellent. Have not seen any Grobets made in India or Mexico or anything like that. Perhaps the Swiss-pattern ones are made in Italy and the American-pattern ones are made in India?

 

[Masterjuggler]

I've always wanted to try some hand-cut files. I've heard they cut smoother than the machine made files due to having a random tooth pattern which reduces harmonics. I especially find this to be a problem in softer materials like aluminum and wood and end up resorting to sandpaper.

 

[Bi11Hudson]

In my line of work(Electronics, Electrician), we are more concerned with stock removal than fine finish. My comments will be biased in that direction. I had a supplier of "junque", recovered from the aircraft repair industry where I bought large quantities of "re-sharpened" files. Some were Nicholson, some were unmarked. They all cut well. The place is no longer, I had bought a "lifetime" supply when they were open. There are also smaller, 8" flat and 3 square and many "needle" files for modeling work. But those are for that one application on brass and "nickle-silver", a copper-nickle alloy. They very seldom see ferrous metals.

I do keep a "set" for soft metals, brass and aluminium. And another for ferrous metals. My favored file is a "half round", bastard, double cut, 10". I find the edge useful for working into corners. I find a marketed "set" to be a waste of time. My sets consist of 1-10" half round, 1-8 or 10" 3 square(triangle), and 1-8 or 10" rat-tail. The others are useful only for specialty applications. All of them are double cut.

There is one I presume to be specific to aircraft use, a 10" single cut, rasp, flat file. I use them on aluminium, plastic, and wood only. And one 10" half round that has been "cut down" to 6" length for my electrician's pouch. For "utility" use, it gets used on whatever needs doing in field work. And replaced when cutting is sorely slowed.

All of them are "carded"(cleaned). Usually when I think about it, not necessarily on a regular basis. All of them have handles, some store-boughten, some home made. Except for a couple, the rest are kept on a rack over my workbench. The "new" files are kept in a toolbox, wrapped in brown paper. None are oiled.

I realize the original question was regarding currently available files. My response was to indicate that rather than depend on "new" stock, I depend on old, resharpened files. My source has dried up, there are others of the same ilk. if you are finding the current crop to be unsatisfactory, might I suggest "recycled" industrial parts.

.

 

[Aaron_W]

Thank you the responses. I also have some Nicholson files as well as some no name small needle files which have been fine for my use to this point.
I bought a "kit" Pietta Colt 1851 Navy, which is basically just an unfinished assembled black powder revolver. As I look into it most of the work is finishing with files, and misc hand applied abrasives (sand paper, polishing compounds) so a couple of good quality files should make life easier.

Jeff and Jon, if I find a source for a bulk deal I will definitely think about that option, there are enough of us in the same general area where that could work.

I've always wanted to try some hand-cut files. I've heard they cut smoother than the machine made files due to having a random tooth pattern which reduces harmonics. I especially find this to be a problem in softer materials like aluminum and wood and end up resorting to sandpaper.

There is a youtube video from Clickspring on making your own files. Pretty interesting, and might even be fun to do but requires heat treating equipment I don't have.

 

[Janderso]

There is a youtube video from Clickspring on making your own files. Pretty interesting, and might even be fun to do but requires heat treating equipment I don't have.

I saw that one.
Everything he does is impressive!!

 

[ThinWoodsman]

I've heard they cut smoother than the machine made files due to having a random tooth pattern which reduces harmonics. I especially find this to be a problem in softer materials like aluminum and wood and end up resorting to sandpaper.

I have heard that said about hand-cut rasps - not the harmonic part, of course, but that they cut faster and cleaner on wood than machine-cut rasps. The idea being, if I recall correctly, that the staggered teeth were more likely to cut the wood fibers than tear them, and that the depth of the teeth could be varied by the rasp maker to optimize the stroke.

I'm not sure this really applies with metals. There is the chatter issue, as you mentioned, but I am not convinced that is very problematic in filing. Certainly orders of magnitude less problematic than pinning, and largely dependent on file size and TPI (shorter/coarser file = fewer cuts = less resonance). Which leads me to think that random-tooth-placement would only apply to finishing (smooth, dead smooth, #6) files, where the random spacing would likely improve the finish (less regular scratch lines) on its own right regardless of file length. And then, of course, the sad conclusion that the finer a file cuts, the more difficult it is to make by hand.

Be interesting to see if there are any 'lectron-microscope photos of file work out there. Perhaps I'll flip through that old ASM Metals Handbook with all the pictures again.

 

[Aaron_W]

I saw that one.
Everything he does is impressive!!

I already feel like "Thog break rock with bigger rock" most days, so those Click spring videos are really good when I want to keep my ego in check.