Aaaaaaand an old, crapped-out file can be round smooth and turned into a scraper tool as well, or made into something else by them blacksmithing types. No, I really don't need another hobby.

I seriously need to do handles for the rest of mine. They are all stacked more or less in the same toolbox drawer... I recently used a file card to remove much contamination from a bunch of my estate

Not to mention the enjoyment of not stabbing yourself in the palm or wrist while trying to use the thing! He writes, as he nods and notes that 2/3 of his files do not have handles, even after

Westward is an import from India. "nuff said. Besides, I want to lay hands on it before I buy. ;) Bill in OKC William R. Meyers, MSgt, USAF(Ret.) Aphorisms to live by: SEMPER GUMBY! Improvise,

here is one:

If you have a card file, and keep your files clean, it's not so much a problem, if you have only a few files. If you have a bunch of files, it's a great idea to have different files for different

I suppose you all know that you should keep separate files for steel and brass / bronze? Once a file has been used on steel, it tends to just skid over brassy stuff without cutting. Still works on

And you can use copper pipe to make a ferrule to keep the wooden handle from splitting. Golf balls make a good file handles, too. You could even (gasp!) buy handles. My local toolohaulic enabler,

And if a file does not come with a handle, put a handle on it. One handle for each file, not a changeable handle made to be swapped among files. That is a nuisance and a waste of time. A cheap

Simonds, Groge, Pferd, All foreign made, but good. The high exchange shipping and so on make these expensive. Nicholson has been value Engineered, not great, but maybe good enough for the money, easy

Good info, too! And an advantage to getting good files. Though if you buy cheap files you can grind safe edges on them for special purposes, or just because you want to. So another advantage to cheap

One advantage to Nicholson files (not the only advantage!) is that they are relatively cheap. I bought a 12" Mill Bastard file for my lathes from Home Depot for about $10 or so last year. And another

IMHO As important as the maker is the type of file. Single cut, double cut, bastard, Swiss pattern, are a few. For many years now, I have been using Swiss pattern with clean edges. I find that the

Nicholson might not be the best around but for my money it is Nicholson!!! Cheep files are not worth there weight, steer away from the cheep ones.  Or buy from stores with a good return policy, buy

Unfortunately, Nicholson isn’t what it used to be. Really, most files are pretty good these days. You skill in using them is just as important as the files themselves. Mel

You know that you can get files sharpened https://boggstool.com/file-%26-rasp-services . I have bought a few new Simonds that seem to be well made . animal On

I’d probably add Stubbs from England to the list. Especially, the needle files. I do have Aurlue (sp??) Rasp from France. Possibly another make from France. For wood working they are suppose to be

Might not be your best choice, since THE best files are Grobet, and they're foreign-made. Swiss, IIRC. In the USA, Nicholson is good. Found this:

good luck with that. the best files are foreign - Grobet and Pferd, but there are other brands that do well. Nicholson were made in USA and used to be great. Now a bunch of their product is made in

Anything made in USA or Switzerland. I think there are some good ones from France too. Nicholson is common and sold at big box stores. I buy all of the files I see at estate sales, unless it's an