Your Go To Files/Rasps?

L

Living The Dream

Joined
Feb 20, 2016
Messages
158
I have some Chinese/harbor freight files that do the job. I am ready to step up in quality to some Pferds. What are your most used files for daily use in knife making? If you could pick 6 to have with nothing else, which ones would you have on your bench?

Discuss!
 
14" nicholson mill bas*ard works great for draw filing
12" bahco mill bast*rd firm used to be owned by Sandvik, now owned by SnapOn. works great for draw filing. sharper and better made than new Nicholson, not as expensive as Pferd
these are the goto. I have about 10 pounds of files that get used as needed
scott
 
Nicholson used to be the best but since they moved to Mexico, they are garbage pretty much. They have also opened a plant in Brazil and I have heard they are better. I have one of the Brazil made but, have yet to try it.

Here is a piece on American made files. http://americanmadefiles.blogspot.com/

So unless you can find some old/new stock somewhere of the Nicholson they aren't much better that some of the HF garbage. If you can find new/old stock in a small obscure hardware store somewhere,................ my advice is too buy all you can lay your hands on!! But be sure to read the package and make sure it says made in USA.

It is too expensive to buy from overseas but they are some to best quality on the market as of now.
http://www.simondsint.com/handfiles/Pages/Default.aspx

http://www.gesswein.com/c-136-swiss-precision-hand-files.aspx


Any file will eventually dull, if you happen to have some old files that were good quality. Here is a place where you can get them resharpened!
http://americanmadefiles.blogspot.com/

Ed Caffery has been buying HD and bringing them back when they quit cutting. So if you can do that maybe there is an answer!

Here is a link to another forum and a post about Ed's success, with HD files!
http://knifedogs.com/showthread.php...-the-warranty-is-working&highlight=good+files
 
I've been using files and sandpaper to make knives for a few years now. The best file I have found for rapid steel removal is the Pferd 14" Chipbreaker. I also use a 14" Simonds "Multi-Kut". The only other 2 files I use are a 10" Simonds "Multi-kut", and a 10" Simonds Fine cut. Those 4, along with a couple of round chain saw files, are all I use.

The New Jersey Steel Baron has a few nice files for sale, Black Diamond files with 1.3% carbon at 72HRC.

Draw filing is a technique that is extremely helpful.

Once a file has gone dull, you can have them sharpened by Boggs Tool.
 
look for Nicholson "NOS"
"new old stock" on ebay, the NOS were made in USA and seem to have a better bite than do the current made in Mexico models

and as Stuart said, Simonds are also very good
 
I am very happy with the DICK Swiss made files - from large to little ones. Not cheap, but very good quality. I have used one 300 mm cut#1 file to grind bevels on several knives and the file is still in a great condition.
 
Any one else use the Simons mill file with rounded edges. Works great for filing in the shoulders on hidden tang knives. Reason I ask is mine is about needing to be replaced and wondered if this is my best option for this or if there is another file out there that would work better. I have a old huge square Nicholson file that had rounded edges that was very nice but it got misplaced during the move.

I have been looking at the Glardon-Vallorbe crochet files in a #0 or #2 cut but damn thy are $40-$50 each. Good looking files though
 
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