need ideas for cleaning files

[Flightmap]

I gummed up a file from filing marine epoxy. The file cleaner doesn't get it out so I used a propane torch and it sort of melted out.

do you ever get a file gummed up and if so, how do you clean it out with the file card thing doesn't work?

Also, I have one file that's just worn down from usage, does anyone know what old files can be used for? I tend to hold on to things and find usages for them down the road. LOL

Thanks

Contact Boggs Tool Inc. Harry can help you out.
Phone 562 634 1081 or visit his web site. I think he is 4th generation owner.

 

[uncle harry]

I use an old fashioned wire or brush type file card, in fact I used it earlier today. It has a needle pick on the back for cleaning out stubborn bits like aluminum.

I don't find chalk really helps for loading too much, just fills up the tooth's gullet and doesn't let the chip form properly. Imagine loading the teeth of an endmill with clay and expecting it to cut like normal. Because there is no where for the chip to go or form, it gets caught between the chalk and surface of the part being filed, scratching it. Plus, chalk is abrasive so it dulls the teeth every time you apply it.

For a cabinetmakers rasp, bastard file, it's okay. Not for single, double, or long angle "finishing" files.

Old files are of the highest quality and are a pleasure to use. Keep them sharp and in good condition, they are not made like they are used to any more. Some say new Nicholson files can be filed by old Nicholson files, that's the quality difference.

Keep them even if they are dull, they can be sharpened by a chemical process and sharpening them is cheaper than buying a new one. Here is a link to the company that sharpens them: http://www.boggstool.com/

Wow,

I looked up the Boggs web site & noticed their liquid honing
method. Decades ago I knew the people @ Milwaukee File Co. who re-located from Milwaukee to a local Village nearby & made files. They had a blasting system that sharpened vixen files using a water-based abrasive air propelled medium.

Thanks for the reminder of a cool time in my youth when small businesses could exist using neat methods.

 

[SE18]

thanks for all the ideas, I didn't know any of this stuff, especially what George said about heat. I figured with a low temp propane torch it couldn't really do anything to steel

 

[visenfile]

In a blacksmith book I read that a bath of battery acid works. Seems bizarre but this guy was quite accomplished, having apprenticed in the Dutch merchant marine. Never tried it. Seems like is would round or reduce cutting profiles. Go figure

 

[John Hasler]

thanks for all the ideas, I didn't know any of this stuff, especially what George said about heat. I figured with a low temp propane torch it couldn't really do anything to steel

Apply your propane torch to some steel wool. Now think about the fact that the edge on a tooth on a sharp file is thinner than a strand of that wool.

 

[Ulma Doctor]

an old timer demonstrated a use for vinegar to sharpen files, simply immerse the file in undiluted vinegar overnight.
it cleans and sharpens the file at the same time.

it's not better than a new file but it can bring back new life to grandpa's old files



a use for an old file would be a Knife blade
or you could grind the end like a hand scraper blade and use it for scraping

 

[kd4gij]

Acidtone works great for cleaning gumed up file. And won't hert the file.

 

[MADJACK]

I flatten the end of a cartridge casing and use that. the vinegar works too.

 

[savarin]

I've sharpened old files with sulphuric acid, it works fast.
I've ground the ends to use as scrapers and wood turning tools, flat, round and triangular.
I also fill the file with wd40 when filing aluminium and found that to help (not totally prevent) pinning.

 

[2bob]

Hay bollie 7 nice to know some else from newcastle 2bob