Saw files

[David Ragan]

Have some expected to be excellent Disston saws from Pete Taran and Mike Allen.

Both guys above have been great--now I need time.

Have some BORG saws to practice saw sharpening

What brand of files do you all get?

Does it make a difference?

I know file need to be >2x height of the tooth, and then something about the arris and gullet

(Have plans to make a vise)

Thanks guys

[Brandon Speaks]

I have not tried many brands but have the Bhaco files ordered in a kit from LV that I have been very happy with. I got the full set so I would have a variety around but will likely reorder individual sizes based on what is getting used the most. I also ordered one of the veritas saw file holders, although I have not tried it yet it seems like it would be helpful for rake and fleam.

I have heard bad things about current production nicholson files in comparison to bhaco but dont have first hand experience.

Those borg saws likely will not be ok to practice on. They generally have impulse hardened teeth that will wither break off or ruin your file. If you want a saw for practice you can get a bent disston or WS for a couple bucks. Honestly though I just learned by diving in on good saws. Its really hard to mess one up. If you dont get it quite right just resharpen. What I have seen though a pretty poorly sharpened saw still cuts much better than a dull one. If you go slow and pay attention to tooth shape its pretty easy though. Some dycam or other layout fluid on the teeth helps to see what you are doing.

[Phil Mueller]

David,
Go back through Pete’s site and read through his tutorial on saw filing in the Library section. Also take a look at his saw maintenance section. I follow Pete’s file size chart in that section. Pete is currently recommending Nicholson, which I have been using for some time now, and to my semi-novice opinion, they work very well.

For more reading, you can go to Blackburn Tools. He sells mostly Bahco. If you ever get to retoothing a saw, he also has full scale templates.

I’ve used both the Bahco and Nicholson. Both do the job.

And as Brandon said, do not practice on BORG saws. They are not meant to be resharpened and will ruin your files. For practice, I hit every garage sale I could find and picked up a number of vintage junkers for $2-3 each. Or you can find “lot sales” of junkers on eBay. Doesn’t matter the condition of the handle, etc. All you really want is a decent vintage saw plate that doesn’t have a lot of rust pits at the tooth line.

Good luck!

[Stewie Simpson]

2-3year ago I purchased 3 full boxes of mexican made nicholson taper files on the recommendation of others.

I still have 2 files short of those 3 boxes today in my workshop.

2 words would reflect my experience with those of mex.files .Utter Crap.

[Phil Mueller]

Stewie, what brand do you recommend?

[Stewie Simpson]

Stewie, what brand do you recommend?

Phil;

NOS WILKSHIRE Taper Files (made in Australia).

NOS NICHOLSON Taper Files (made in USA)

[Brian Hale]

2 words would reflect my experience with those of mex.files .Utter Crap.

I couldn't agree more!

I got so frustrated with junk files that wore out before i finished sharpening 1 saw...... What makes them so bad is the teeth on the tip of the triangle break off/wear out fast so they're no longer cutting in the gullet of the saw teeth, then the file rocks throwing off the angle you're trying to maintain. That's bad enough if you have some experience sharpening a saw but if you're just starting out you'll keep trying to figure out what you're doing wrong.

For the last several years i've been searching for NOS file from several manufacturers, the older the better.

I also agree, don't try to work on those new saws with the hardened teeth, you'll trash a file in just a few strokes.

Brian

[Rollie Kelly]

You might email Ron Bontz and ask him what he uses.

[Stewie Simpson]

The Bahco taper files (made in Portugal) share similar early corner edge failure as the mex.nichs.

Unable to provide the forum Link due to SMC forum rules.

followed Paul Sellers’ approach to sharpening. I jointed the saw aggressively because the teeth were pretty uneven in height, then proceeded down the blade using a brand-new Bahco Portugal Slim Taper file (#1 in the image). By the time I was done, it was screeching badly, even though I’d changed up sides of the file halfway down. The saw was sharper, but didn’t seem as sharp as it should be (still had some flats on the teeth), so I took another pass down the saw with another brand new file, this one a Bahco Portugal X-Slim Taper file (#2 in the image). I had to switch to a new edge on the file at 1/3 and 2/3 of the way down the saw, and it barely finished the job. Considering the saw was nearly sharp to begin with, I’m not happy about that. Take a look at the missing teeth on the two file corners. I asked Paul Sellers about this in the comments on one of his recent posts and he graciously answered, suggesting that I might have a saw with unevenly tempered teeth. Is this unusual? I don’t think I’m going to buy any more Bahco files in the future if I can barely get one sharpening out of them. It doesn’t seem much better than what I’ve read about Nicholson Mexico-made files.

[Mike Brady]

Availability of saw files it at almost crisis stage. I noted that LN is selling off some China-sourced files and indicating they will not be available in the future; which I interpret as a thumbs down. They formerly carried Grobet, which must have soured.

I ran into Slav, The File Monger, at a MWTCA meet over the weekend. He says he almost never sees saw files anymore, and he scours the new/old stock market. People who currently do a lot of saw filing are not revealing their file sources.

Can anyone comment on Lee Valley's offerings in files? How about from other sources?

[Stewie Simpson]

Mike; you may want to check with Daryl Weir. Fair chance he is still an active member of SMC. https://sawmillcreek.org/member.php?13383-Daryl-Weir

[David Myers]

Second the caution about those Borg saws:

They may be impulse hardened and not amenable to sharpening.

[Phil Mueller]

I’ll just say this, then leave it be. When you don’t want to take the time to obtain NOS, Bahco and Nicholson will get the job done. I just filed two crosscut saws using two edges on one file. They are sharp, cut well, and run straight.

[Bill McNiel]

I have been using Tome Feteira files made in Portugal with satisfaction.

[steven c newman]

Last saw file I bought, I got four saws sharpened with it....I bought a Stanley Saw File..
DSCF0009.JPG
This will be used on the next saw.
saw file holder.JPG
I needed a handle to hold the files, too...
saw vise.JPG
And a $10 saw vise....Wentworth No. 1.
As I can only see teeth to about the 7-8ppi range, file is about the right size.
YMMV