Help me choose a rasp

[Matt Lau]

Dear Creekers,

I've been holding off on buying stuff for the whole year, as most (if not all) of my money into my dental practice, patients, and staff.

Now, I want to splurge on a few hand-cut rasps.
I'll be mainly making guitar necks, and the occasional tool/knife handles.
If I grow a pair of Aussie-sized balls, I might try to follow in Derek Cohen's footsteps and make beautiful furniture too.

What do you recommend?

I'm considering Pechar rasps from Germany, Liogier sapphire rasps from France, or Auriou.
Price isn't the main consideration, as I'd like to have just a few high quality tools (I'm paring down my stuff).
The Pechar in particular seem to be held in highest regards by violin makers.

-Matt

[Kent A Bathurst]

I can only comment on the Auriou: They are remarkable. I knew, from reading, that they would be very good. Even so, I was very impressed.

I don't make instruments. John C. does, and IIRC, he has posted a vid here on Auriou.........

[Matt Lau]

I saw John C's videos, and I've been PMing him.

I don't think he had Auriou there--Iwasaki files and Stewmac Dragon Rasps.

-Matt

[lowell holmes]

Only one as far as I'm concerned, Auriou!

[Patrick McCarthy]

You need to connect with Julie Moriarty. She has posted in the spokeshave vs rasp thread currently going on about her choices. She has done a LOT of posts in her threads re building guitar necks (I forget if strats or teles). Very willing to share information. Shawn Pixley is a good source too, as is John Coloccio (sp) who I believe is a professional luthier.

[David Ragan]

I have Auriou and am thoroughly pleased with them.

[Archie England]

I have Auriou and am thoroughly pleased with them.

Ditto!

But, I like the Iwasaki rasps, plus some old ones that I've picked up along the way.

[Matt Lau]

I took a look at Julie's thread, and PMed her.

On a side note, googling Julie Moriarty yielded some pictures of very pretty ladies.
I have no idea if she's one of those, but a (wannabe) luthier can hope. :P

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Auriou are the best. You might also consider Grammercy Tools. I have been very pleased with their rasps.

[Julie Moriarty]

On a side note, googling Julie Moriarty yielded some pictures of very pretty ladies.
I have no idea if she's one of those, but a (wannabe) luthier can hope. :P

I just Googled my name and clicked on images. But no one playing guitar. Look for the girl sipping on a drink. That's how I stay young. :rolleyes:

[Jim Koepke]

My fine rasps are Auriou a 13 & 15 grain. These are great for fine work but a bit slow to remove material. The Nicholson #50 is my coarse rasp. The action of my USA made Nicholson shear file is also pleasing for fairing end grain and other areas.

it really depends on how much material you wish to remove. There is a video in the rasp/spokeshave thread showing someone using a 9 grain Logier rasp that will give an idea of how well it removes wood.

jtk

[Matt Lau]

I guess that this is a luxurious conundrum.

Auriou: great, and I know it. I tried the grain 9, 250 mm cabinet rasp in the Alameda japan Woodworker about 14 years ago, but was too broke (I was a dental student).

Liogier: supposedly as great as the Auriou. Sapphire coating makes it almost abuse-proof. Likely, this is a special ceramic coating that is sintered onto the surface of the hardened steel. I've seen how hard ceramics get with dentistry, and can anticipate huge gains in hardness. The regular version is just like the Liogier, but much cheaper (house brand at The Best Things, or via Liogier directly--40% less than Auriou).

Pechar: extremely highly regarded by the violin makers at maestro net. They mainly work with flamed maple and spruce. These violin makers are very picky about their stuff.
They're supposedly faster than the Auriou, but leave a finer finish. Surprisingly, this is the cheapest option that I'm considering.

I've been talking with Udo Pechar via email, and I'll likely be ordering from him.
I'm impressed that he's a former dental lab tech.
My experience is that German dental lab techs are the best in the world. I've been favorably impressed with the german dentistry that I've seen so far (albeit only 3 cases).
It's harder to be a master lab tech in Germany than a dentist!

-Matt

[Maurice Ungaro]

Matt, I assume all pricing is supplied after you make an inquiry. Let us know what you think about these when you have a chance to test drive them.

[lowell holmes]

I guess that this is a luxurious conundrum.


-Matt
No it's not. I have two rasps. One is a domestic made popular brand flat rasp. I never used it because it is too coarse and does a terrible job. IIRC, it cost $55.

I have an Ariou that I use freqently. It does a nice job. IIRC, it cost me close to $100.

The arithmetic works out to $150 to come up with a rasp I will use. I ask you, which is the luxurious purchase.

The old saying made popular in the old " recreational woodworking news group" (r.i.p.) "Buy an expensive tool and cry when you buy it - buy a cheap tool and cry every time you use it"

"That's my story and I'm sticking to it." :)

[Jim Koepke]

I never used it because it is too coarse and does a terrible job.

This is why tool choice is so personal. If you have no need for coarse work, then a coarse rasp, no matter how well it is made is still useless or will only produce a "terrible job."

jtk

[Shawn Pixley]

I have an Aurou rasp that I love. I'll likely get an even finer one at some point. I saw a Pechar in Dictum today. It looked nice. Maybe not quite as nice as the Aurou but better than most.

[Allan Hill]

New member here on SMC, but not new to woodworking. I have Auriou and Liogier rasps, as well as Gramercy, Iwasaki, and older US-made Nicholson and Heller. Auriou makes the best, but Liogier rasps are every bit as good and slightly cheaper. The Gramercy's don't cut as fast (not as sharp). I recommend a No. 4 or No. 5 grain for roughing, and a No. 9 for finer shaping, then a No. 12 or No. 13 for smoothing. I uses my rasps for making saw handles, and shaping spoons. A good rasp is a pleasure to use and it will save you time and effort over lesser quality brands.

[James Baker SD]

I have a few Auriou rasps and love them all, but then I might be biased. I met Mr. Auriou at a tool show several years ago (before their reorganization) as he was demonstrating how they cut teeth manually. Talked to him quite a while, he was a very interesting conversation (perfect English with nice French accent). Been an Auriou devotee ever since.

[Matt Lau]

Allan,

Why would you say that Auriou makes the best (if Liogier is every bit as good)?
I'm just curious, as I don't want to buy crap (like I did when I first got started).

-Matt

[Kent A Bathurst]

Allan,

Why would you say that Auriou makes the best (if Liogier is every bit as good)?
I'm just curious, as I don't want to buy crap (like I did when I first got started).

-Matt

Matt - the one thing you can be sure of, with the three you are considering: At that rarified level, what you buy will not be crap. Not anywhere near crap. I mean, not the same county as crap, not the same state. In fact - not the same hemisphere as crap. So - set that concern aside.

The differences between them will probably be minute, and only discernible after many hours of use - and even then, probably not meaningful from a pragmatic standpoint. Give ten of us guys one each of those three, and 4 weeks for a trial run, and you will get back 25+ opinions.

Don't overdrive your headlights here, brudda - pick one, pull the trigger, put it to use, and get back to us on what you think.

[gordy haycock]

I have both the Auriou and the Liogier and I can't tell any difference between them. They both are excellent and will last for years. Just pick either one and you will be happy.

[Maurice Ungaro]

New member here on SMC, but not new to woodworking. I have Auriou and Liogier rasps, as well as Gramercy, Iwasaki, and older US-made Nicholson and Heller. Auriou makes the best, but Liogier rasps are every bit as good and slightly cheaper. The Gramercy's don't cut as fast (not as sharp). I recommend a No. 4 or No. 5 grain for roughing, and a No. 9 for finer shaping, then a No. 12 or No. 13 for smoothing. I uses my rasps for making saw handles, and shaping spoons. A good rasp is a pleasure to use and it will save you time and effort over lesser quality brands.

Allan,
Welcome to the Creek! Your opinion based on practical use is invaluable, to be sure - thanks, as I too am considering purchasing some rasps. Curious, where are you located? You profile does not indicate. We have members all over the world, you may just happen to be in close proximity.

[David Ragan]

Matt - the one thing you can be sure of, with the three you are considering: At that rarified level, what you buy will not be crap. Not anywhere near crap. I mean, not the same county as crap, not the same state. In fact - not the same hemisphere as crap. So - set that concern aside.

The differences between them will probably be minute, and only discernible after many hours of use - and even then, probably not meaningful from a pragmatic standpoint. Give ten of us guys one each of those three, and 4 weeks for a trial run, and you will get back 25+ opinions.

Don't overdrive your headlights here, brudda - pick one, pull the trigger, put it to use, and get back to us on what you think.

Well said.

[Allan Speers]

FWIW,

Once you get to the finer grits, there are some diamond rasps that would really well. (I mean industrial diamond particles, not diamond-shaped teeth.) I only have one Auriou, and it's fairly course, so I can't do a side-by-side comparison, but I LOVE my set of fine diamond rasps for controlled work on all wood species. They cut smoothly, and they cut on both strokes. They're also less expensive than the best steel rasps. I don't know how long they last, compared to a steel rasp, so I supposed that's something to look into. Mine have no name, and I think they're just cheap Chinese-made, but they're wonderful.

FWIW I now also use an Italian set of fine diamond files for precision work on metal & plastic. For that, there's no comparison to steel files. I got those (IIRC) from some stone-sculpter's supply store. Expensive, though.

[Matt Lau]

I have Udo's price list. I don't think he'd mind if I posted it.

It's actually pretty competitive. Haven't ordered yet.
Too much crap at office to take care of.

Lowell, what rasp are you using?

My thoughts are:
shinto saw rasp: coarse/med
Handstitched rasp: med/fine
Doublecut files/iwasaki rasp: ultrafine
Scraper: finish

Note: I HATE sanding. That's why I neander.