How do you clean your files and rasps

[larry merlau]

yup the only way to keep them clean and not mess them up,, early days i used awire brush on the grinder that will dull a good file fast.. the card wont do that.. and it real common to see them in yard sales as most folks dont know what they are and get rid of them..

[Frank Fusco]

Now I know what one looks like..

Yeppers, it's a file card. That is what I use.
Once when shopping for one in a hardware store, I asked for a "file card". He told me to go to a stationary shop.

[Rob Keeble]

I read somewhere but have not tried it yet....that if one puts chalk on a file first it helps prevent the filings from sticking in the file. The same article also said it does make the filing a little more difficult to start with. I dunno has anyone heard or tried this before.

BTW i use small wire brushes from the dollar store. They want way too much for a file card here. I can goe through dozens of packets of dollar store brushes for that.

[Stuart Ablett]

Yep the file card works great, but I've not been able to get one here in Japan, the don't sell them

Rob the chalk thing works really well, especially on stuff like aluminum.

I've heard the you can resharpen rasps by putting them in a mild acid bath, anyone try that?

[Stuart Ablett]

Found some interesting old time info >> here <<

[Jonathan Shively]

I take an angled grinder to 'em. Cleans the filings right out of those there grooves and catch all areas, also gets rid of those pesky teeth that bite you when you grab them wrong. Don't know, they don't seem to work well when I get done cleaning them tho, so, maybe a file card is needed.

[Darren Wright]

Didn't have one before I took my machining classes. We had to clean out the files every few minutes when taking burrs off of our work. I had several files that I've used over the years and had planned to replace them as they were "dull". I think I picked up my file card for $1 or $2 at the orange borg. Amazing what a little thing like cleaning them does...all are brand new again.

[Jim C Bradley]

Before I start I have to say that Frank did make my day more fun with the File Card being sold at stationery stores.

File cards with many teeth do not work as well as cards with open spaces between the teeth. If there are too many teeth, they just ride over the surface of points and don't get down into the grooves.

I do use a file card sometimes and I do use a regular wire brush sometimes. It depends on what is stuck between the "teeth." However, I almost always start with a quick blast of air (canned air if the compressor is not on). The air seems to clean out most of the stuff I work with and it is quick and easy.

I also have a very fine dental pick that I use for stubborn particles...usually aluminum.

Have fun fililng around.

Enjoy,

Jim

[Vaughn McMillan]

I take an angled grinder to 'em. Cleans the filings right out of those there grooves and catch all areas, also gets rid of those pesky teeth that bite you when you grab them wrong. Don't know, they don't seem to work well when I get done cleaning them tho, so, maybe a file card is needed.

If you clean a file REAL good, you've got yourself a nice burnisher.

[Jonathan Shively]

If you clean a file REAL good, you've got yourself a nice burnisher.

Good one!!!!!