Starter Rasp(s)?

They are good

Jim in Burlington On

>Plastic handles suck but put a little hockey tape on them. A small round and half round will do. Pick up a few used metal files and your all set. Keep your eye out for small files they are the one's I use and treasure the most.

Re: Starter Rasp(s)?

Frank D. in Montreal

>Hi Dominic,

I have a few of those rasps, and for the money I think they are a pretty good deal. They are quite coarse though, they leave streaks (scratches) here and there that take some work to get out with subsequent grits. Before I got some other medium-grit raps, I used wood (various shapes) with 100-grit sandpaper glued to it (or just the sandpaper by hand) before moving to the wood files. I've used those rasps a heck of a lot...they bring back good memories (like making kitchen utensils for Christmas). I'd start with them if I had to start over again.

Also look at the Gramercy rasps

Chuck Nickerson

>at Tools for Working Wood. The only problem is, once you start visiting their website, it's all over.

Re: Starter Rasp(s)?

Denis Ch�nard, Orl�ans, Ont.

>Hi Dom,

You might want to try these:

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=56529&cat=1,42524

They cut quite well, and leave a smoother finish than rasps.

Even better yet, get your hands on a Nicholson Supershear, you'll be amazed. They only come in flat form, unfortunately, and are a bit more expensive.

HTH,

DC

Re: Starter Rasp(s)?

Bruce Branson

>Nicholson makes a halfround version of the SuperShear.Lee Valley sells it for 31.50.

Not the same thing

Denis Ch�nard, Orl�ans, Ont.

>I own both, and the Supershear is "toothed" differently. It works faster, better (when both are used in "flat" mode).

Mind you, the LV is good too, it's just not the same animal.

DC

Spend real money

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>I as some of you know don't spend a lot of money for tools, I have never paid over $2.00 for a handsaw (that is about to change I am going to order a saw from MikeW). I am as some of my woodworking friends have noted 'cheap'. Until it comes to rasps, I spend the money. I got a 49 and 50 Nicholson and they are marvalous. I also recently bought a rat tail rasp from Joel, $74.00 (ouch) and it is well worth the money. I am going to save up and get another that is coarser than the one I got.

Spend some money and get good ones or buy the cheap ones, complain, then buy the good ones. You will be rewarded.

Stephen

at the risk of sounding like a heretic....

Michael Stadulis, in Gloucester County, NJ

>I love the fact that these new tools are becoming re-dicovered and re-available.....by the likes of Auriou and now Grammercy, and I eventually will try their small rasps, but I started out buying inexpensive old rasps wherever I could find them. I found a few perfect and sharp ones at Fazzios believe it or not. I have a good rasp selection that will grind off wood like hamburger down to ones that are handmade and give me a "pre-scraping" or pre-sandpaper" finish. Just yesterday, after looking at them for years, I pulled the trigger on a Shinto Japanese rasp. I got it at a steal price on ebay. I read that Glenn Huey likes and uses a Shinto. See this article: http://www.woodworking-magazine.com/blog/The+Venerable+And+Inscrutable+Shinto+Rasp.aspx

Also notice that there are two styles from which to choose. I got the funky handled one at 1/2 price because there were no other bidders. I may try one that is conventional western style and less $$ Who knows, if I made this post yesterday, you may have outbid me... ;o) BTW..... I think Japanese Woodworker carries all styles. I'll report back about how my $15 Shinto handles cherry and tiger maple. I know that it isn't as versitile as a small pointy conventional rasp, but for a few bucks, it was worth a try.

-Mike

Re: Not the same thing

Bruce Branson

>I looked at a close up and see that the teeth are not angled like my SuperShears, they run straight across.

Another (rust-hunting) heretic....

Bill Houghton, Sebastopol, CA

>Until very recently, I couldn't afford to buy new (and can barely do so now - Auriou rasps are far down on the list), but some of the old, fine-tooth Nicholson rasps are right fine tools. I watch for them at garage sales, and have found enough, some in fresh-out-of-the-box condition, at about $1 each, max, that the drawer dedicated to rasps is now overfull and I just gave two to my son.

I may buy a patternmaker's rasp some time in the next couple of months, as I spend the "toy" money from my temporary gig at my old employer's - if I do, I'll be watching to see how much smoother it is than the finest of my rusty rasps.

well, ya gotta be careful about used rasps

Tom Sontag - St. Louis

>Plenty of flea market files and rasps are near useless dull, so anyone looking to start should recognize sharpness first. DAMHIKT. Still, at a buck or two per, it was a cheap lesson.

Re: Starter Rasp(s)?

Tony - Memphis

>Can't speak for the Lee Valley rasp other than to say I assume anything they sell is of good quality and/or value. I bought a 49 when I first started making cabriole legs. It has worked very well. You almost have to try three or four one right after another to get a feel for how they work. The 49 works for me, but I haven't compared it to anything. I saw the Ariou or whatever in a class and those were pretty nice (they had one that was pointed and a bit finer than the 49), but I can't see that they are a good value. Anyway, enjoy - rasping is fun. I used to be intimidated by cabriole legs, now they are one of my favorite things to make. Now, if I could only get that same relationship with dovetails....someday maybe.

Tony

Yah, sure

Bill Houghton, Sebastopol, CA

>But this is true for any rust-hunting endeavor.

I recall picking up a bucket of rasps somewhere, some of which had apparently been used to smooth concrete, or perhaps remove barnacles from submarine hulls. The teeth were as round as marbles. I should have mailed them to Dave Mount to make into adzes or something, but instead I recycled them at the metal bins at the dump.

It's not hard to identify a sharp rasp, though - run your fingertips over it in the direction of use. If they (the fingertips) hurt when you're done, buy it.

Hey Dom, It's the 10th...

Don Orr

>HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!

Thanks Don!..

Dominic Greco in Richboro PA

>

Dang! Missed it!

Denis Ch�nard, Orl�ans, Ont.

>Happy birthday Dom!

I'd say something else, but it would not appropriate for this board :-)

Check your e-mail...

DC