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Thread: Good examples of file storage?

  1. #1
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    Good examples of file storage?

    I've read that the worst way to store metal files is laying on top of each other in a drawer. Guilty, by the way. I'm wondering what are some of the best methods of home shop storage keeping space restraints in mind? I'm talking DIY by the way.

  2. #2
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    I inherited a drawer full of files and rasps that my grandfather had kept in a drawer touching each other. Not a sharp tooth in the lot when they got to me.

    I cut small slits in the ends of the plastic packaging on mine for now so they can lay in a drawer not touching each other.

    Look forward to a more elegant solution.

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Winners View Post
    I inherited a drawer full of files and rasps that my grandfather had kept in a drawer touching each other. Not a sharp tooth in the lot when they got to me.

    I cut small slits in the ends of the plastic packaging on mine for now so they can lay in a drawer not touching each other.

    Look forward to a more elegant solution.
    How about a piece of 2x8 with 1/4 inch dado kerfs spaced 1/2 inch apart. Make the length of the board the same as the depth of the drawer so it does not rattle around. Or you can angle the kerf and hang it on the wall with the files horizontal. May not be elegant.

  4. #4
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    I have a cabinet in which my rasps and files-for-wood hang. These are the ones I want close at hand. This is an oldish photo - it is a little fuller these days ...



    The drawer has a couple of rolls for all the files-for-metal. This enables them to be stored in a way which protects the teeth.

    I have had some of the files for a few decades, and have sharpened them with citric acid. I only clean the teeth with a bristle scrubbing brush and never metal teeth.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Derek Cohen View Post
    I have a cabinet in which my rasps and files-for-wood hang. These are the ones I want close at hand. This is an oldish photo - it is a little fuller these days ...

    ...

    Regards from Perth

    Derek
    Derek, you would have the elegant solution. Very nice. It looks like the rasps are suspended by the handle. Do the handles ever come off the rasps?

  6. #6
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    My solution for one batch of files & rasps was to hang a drawer at the top of a shelf that had a bit of head room:

    j Drawer Front.jpg

    Vertical dividers were mounted on a base to keep the files & rasps separate:

    h Filed Away.jpg

    This is the post of making the divider:

    https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?274913

    This drawer holds my best files & rasps. A few more drawers with dividers need to be made for the rest of my files & rasps.

    jtk
    Last edited by Jim Koepke; 09-17-2019 at 2:14 PM. Reason: spelling
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Thomas Wilson View Post
    Derek ... Do the handles ever come off the rasps?
    Thomas, not so far It's only been about a dozen years for this lot, however. I'll wait a little longer before being categorical about this.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  8. #8
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    An idea Mike:
    1. On the TS, run a dado (to the width and depth that will accommodate the file main thickness) down the length of a piece of 1x or 2x? scrap. Note: File to stored on edge.
    2. Move the TS fence over to the amount of the gap between the stored files desired. Run another dado. Continue till you run out of scrap.
    3. Depending on how many files you have to store, may have to dado multiple lengths of scrap.
    4. After all dados are completed, crosscut the scrap lengths into shorter (1"?) pieces.
    5. Position and fix the shorter pieces to a backer (or drawer bottom) board such that each file will have a minimum of a short piece at each end of the file.
    6. May have to put some finish on the short pieces because wood holds moisture and finish may prevent rust/corrosion to the files.
    Last edited by David Eisenhauer; 09-17-2019 at 9:40 AM.
    David

  9. #9
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    David,
    I think that's a great solution!

    Thanks!
    Mike

  10. #10
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    For a minute there, I thought this was a computer question!

  11. #11
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    Mine are kept in a tool roll with individual pockets for each file.
    "Anything seems possible when you don't know what you're doing."

  12. #12
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    This is probably viewed as sacrilegious by some. As a machinist, files were never treated with kid gloves. They were pulled out of a toolbox drawer, used, and tossed back in. Good quality files are very durable.
    Attached Images Attached Images
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  13. #13
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    Bruce, Bruce, Bruce. You know we are not going to let it be that simple at all.
    Last edited by Bruce Page; 09-17-2019 at 9:09 PM.
    David

  14. #14
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    I inherited a large number of them. It is difficult to carry the container.

    I sorted them by type and then I rolled them with heavy duty paper so that I might have six files of the same shape and type (different sizes) but they are separated by heavy paper and will not rub against each other.

    I then have a rubber band around them.

    I am able to pull one out, use it, and then put it back without unrolling the paper. I also have a file roll specifically for saw sharpening files, but that only has one of each so the spares / extras are sorted elsewhere.

  15. #15
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    I wrap mine in aluminum foil and store them in a plastic shoe box. The foil prevents rust.

    https://www.uline.com/Product/Detail...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

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