Needle Files?

[birdsfan]

These are the ones that I use, but my store sell individual rasps, like those in the set for $8.99 each

Corradi - Needle Rasp Set w/Handle

Small, quick cutting rasps are highly valued by woodworkers, sculptors and miniature builders for adding fine detail and intricate shaping to their work.

www.woodcraft.com

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

These are the ones that I use, but my store sell individual rasps, like those in the set for $8.99 each

Corradi - Needle Rasp Set w/Handle

Small, quick cutting rasps are highly valued by woodworkers, sculptors and miniature builders for adding fine detail and intricate shaping to their work.

www.woodcraft.com

Cool thank you. Like I said, I will definitely be going back when I have some more time! Just saw those larger ones and that's a gap I decided to fill. Most of my larger files are decades old and have seen a lot of metal so they aren't so crisp any more.

 

[northside]

I know the topic is on files but I’ve not seen anyone mention long shank drill bits so I’ll throw it out that and perhaps it may help someone.

I rarely use stock much thinner than 4mm these days so a long shank drill bit makes very fast work of tang holes. It’s also incredibly cheap to buy jigsaw blades and make a cheap and cheerful handle - that is all those rather expensive Dragons Fangdangle broach tools are. (Not the same design as Troopah’s broach tool)

I hog everything out with the LS drill. Then depending on the materials use a combination of light burning (never leave the tang in for longer than a second or two), files and broach tools. I always bed my tang too.

 

[martchap]

This is my basic handle design - hidden split dowel. Once the shaping is complete, I start filing the ferrule with a dremel. After it’s roughed out, I finish with cheap Chinese files.

Thanks for your 'process' photos — very interesting/informative! Looks like some beautiful wood, and unique.

 

[jwthaparc]

Ive been using one of the coarse replacement blades for my coping saw. It works ok, the main complaint is it's more flexible than I'd personally like. I just snapped off one of the ends end use that. I should make one from an old file eventually.

There is a cheap broach set I've been eyeing on Amazon, it doesn't have a good picture I can see details in, and it says in the description it's "5 sided" which I have no idea what that means when it comes to broaches, I would have thought there was just a single or double sided option for a broach, unless they are completely different than the normal broaches I see being used.

 

[JoBone]

Corradi has a Black Friday sale going on.

https://www.corradishop.com/application/woodworking
The 8.5” are 10x2.5mm, great for tang slots. I use the smaller ones to make way for the larger ones, clear out debris and refining the corners. Cut 2 removes more material, cut 0 for final look.

These are the ones that I am pickup up

Handy Rasps with Square Handle - Hand - 8.5″ - cut 2

Needle Rasps 6.3″ - cut 2 set of 6

Handy Rasps with Square Handle - Hand - 8.5″ - cut 0

 

[Dan-]

Hey guys, do you just not use the higher end stuff like Liogier hand-stitched rasps because of the unit economics (not a lot of margin in knife handles) and that you’re using them where the user can’t see? For stuff like saw handles and especially furniture they’re the gold standard.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Hey guys, do you just not use the higher end stuff like Liogier hand-stitched rasps because of the unit economics (not a lot of margin in knife handles) and that you’re using them where the user can’t see? For stuff like saw handles and especially furniture they’re the gold standard.

Do they make needle files?

As to price, I'm making zero dollars as this is just my own exploration.

 

[Dan-]

Well you say needle file, but for wood we use rasps not files (mostly). What I’d understand you are talking about is a thin triangular or round rasp.

 

[tostadas]

Well you say needle file, but for wood we use rasps not files (mostly). What I’d understand you are talking about is a thin triangular or round rasp.

For handles, the rasp is mainly for shaping the tang hole. So it needs to be thin enough such that you don't end up with a ginormous hole.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Well you say needle file, but for wood we use rasps not files (mostly). What I’d understand you are talking about is a thin triangular or round rasp.

I get the difference and do have some rasps but as @tostadas points out, what I'm looking for is small and thin. Something that slips into say a 10mmx3mm slot and just cleans things up without hogging off too much material.

 

[Bensbites]

I have been refining what works for a couple years. I tend to build handles with a hidden slotted dowel. I open up the tang hole on the ferrule with a milling machine (now). Not many years I would create the slot on my drill press with a number of holes in a line. Then I would angle the handle and keep drilling. Wiggle the handle back and forth until the tang slot was opened up. Once I can get files in the hole, Amazon a number of cheap mini wooden files sets that will last 99% of people years. As far as a broch tool, I use a jigsaw blade in a small vice grip. I am tempted to grab a longer sawsall blade and grind the back down to fit my needs.

Occasionally the 6 inch drill bit (as suggested above) comes out.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

I have been refining what works for a couple years. I tend to build handles with a hidden slotted dowel. I open up the tang hole on the ferrule with a milling machine (now). Not many years I would create the slot on my drill press with a number of holes in a line. Then I would angle the handle and keep drilling. Wiggle the handle back and forth until the tang slot was opened up. Once I can get files in the hole, Amazon a number of cheap mini wooden files sets that will last 99% of people years. As far as a broch tool, I use a jigsaw blade in a small vice grip. I am tempted to grab a longer sawsall blade and grind the back down to fit my needs.

Occasionally the 6 inch drill bit (as suggested above) comes out.

Since I don't have a powered saw, I'm using a method the utilizes a shorter dowel (~40mm) with a .25" hole drilled in it. This means I do need to remove more material inside. I'm also using jigsaw blades and narrow drywall saw I've had for ages for the "rough" work. So the trick with this method is opening up the hole below the face slot in a mostly uniform way with the slot. If that makes sense...

 

[jwthaparc]

Since I don't have a powered saw, I'm using a method the utilizes a shorter dowel (~40mm) with a .25" hole drilled in it. This means I do need to remove more material inside. I'm also using jigsaw blades and narrow drywall saw I've had for ages for the "rough" work. So the trick with this method is opening up the hole below the face slot in a mostly uniform way with the slot. If that makes sense...

You could probably use something like a dovetail saw to put the slit in the dowel by hand. Or even a coping saw if your good enough at keeping it straight.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

You could probably use something like a dovetail saw to put the slit in the dowel by hand. Or even a coping saw if your good enough at keeping it straight.

Yeah, I'm not.

 

[inferno]

Do you folks have a brand of needle files that hold up better or do you generally go for the lower cost and replace approach?

Specifically talking handle making and hard woods, like filing out the tang slot.

i like the swiss files. vallorbe brand.
or swedish öberg/portugeese bahco ones (same ****) they moved the factory to portugal.

to be honest i use mostly rasps for handles. and neither bahco nor vallorbe makes needle rasps.

Files & Rasps

Knife making supplies. Knives and Puukko. Wide selection of materials and tools including knife blades, knife steels, wood, leather, antler and synthetic materials for knife handles.

www.brisa.fi

these are good.

 

[inferno]

 

[inferno]

this one is also good.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

this one is also good.

Why? What does this have to do with the topic at hand? Sorry, but I'm not tripping so I guess I don't get it.

 

[jwthaparc]

this one is also good.

Ive never seen a needle file quite like this one.

 

[inferno]

almost nothing i guess.

you wanna know something trippy?? go to this site with a new browser, with no adblock. yeah thats some trippy **** 4 ya.

mother of ****ing god.

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just get rasps. forget about files. files are for metals. rasps are for wood.

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if i was tripping i would have posted **** like this.

and then again i wouldn't have posted **** here at all then. yeah.

and i'm obviously not.

 

[inferno]

Ive never seen a needle file quite like this one.

these are the best ones.

 

[jwthaparc]

I just want a good broach. I should make one, but it seems like a pain in the ass.

 

[TokushuKnife]

will second the husky brand use them daily!

 

[jwthaparc]

will second the husky brand use them daily!

Yeah. Those are the ones i have. They do just fine.