One of the worst offenders for clogging files is aluminum. Years a go a machinist I worked with told me to rub chalk over the file before using it on soft metals. I tried it and it did help. Still got some stuck particles but these cleaned easily with a file card, more easily than without the chalk. I have not tried this with needle files but should have the same effect. Diamond needle files are a different story but to date I have only used them on plastics and a soak in lacquer thinner usually dissolves the plastic residue away. Many file cards include a pick in the back part of the frame for removing stubborn chunks that the card won’t remove.
First of Craig, I apologize for what was obviously a serious question that I made fun of. I am a firm believer that no question is a dumb one if the person asking is genuine in wanting the answer. Nor is ignorance a bad word but rather an easily remedied condition. I have asked some very basic questions on here myself in ignorance and people have been patient in educating me and bringing me up to speed.
I realize now that my comment though meant tongue in cheek was callous. So I apologize to you.
Now this may be very basic (I apologize if it is to basic) but steel is not a basic element, it is an alloy or mixture of substances. Its primary ingredient is Iron. We add things like John has mentioned such as Carbon, Magnesium, and a whole host of other things to give it certain desirable properties. Not only is steel made up of certain materials to achieve certain properties but it is physically manipulated to achieve certain effects such as heat to very high temps and then rapidly cooling it in water (tempering) which makes it very hard but brittle.
So in real world application steel is a highly versatile metal, way more so than iron, from which it is derived. If you want to make something very sharp and hold an edge you add certain combinations of elements together and treat it in such a way as to make it very hard like tool steel. If you want it to be strong but flexible you do something different to it so you can make say bridges or buildings. Maybe you don’t want it to rust so you make stainless steel. and so on.
As you have already found there are a ton of different steel alloys. This is true of any alloy metal such as brass. Also many times an alloy is still refered to by its elemental parent but is not true elemental metal but rather an alloy. Aluminum is an elemental metal that is rarely used in its pure form. Lead also is very rarely used in elemental form. They are almost always some sort of alloy. Even Gold is rarely used in elemental form (24K) it is almost always an alloy.
So no not all steel is the same. When it comes to things like files, different alloys are used to save on cost or to increase the quality. One aspect of the metal world and the reason for poor quality in newer products is recycling. While friendly to the environment it makes it expensive to achieve a desired alloy; since the starting product itself is not a pure metal to which you add exactly what you want. You start with a wildly diverse product and try to get what you want out of it. My sister works for an aluminum rolling plant and it is amazing how much testing goes into each ingot that she puts into a batch. She then has to add other stuff to get what she wants.
I hope this long winded explanation served to answer your questions and serve as my apology for not doing it in the first place.
Gary Buchanan said:
One of the worst offenders for clogging files is aluminum. Years a go a machinist I worked with told me to rub chalk over the file before using it on soft metals. I tried it and it did help. Still got some stuck particles but these cleaned easily with a file card, more easily than without the chalk. I have not tried this with needle files but should have the same effect. Diamond needle files are a different story but to date I have only used them on plastics and a soak in lacquer thinner usually dissolves the plastic residue away. Many file cards include a pick in the back part of the frame for removing stubborn chunks that the card won’t remove.
I don’t do much aluminum work but I will file (hehehe) this away for future reference. I have a brother in law that is a machinist and hates aluminum.
No offense taken Devon, and thanks for the explanation. I would assume that based of my new knowledge that Swiss & German files use a higher quality, more pure steel and thus are a better tool? I’m all for buying quality tools once I know about them and understand how to take care of them. I blame my father for my lack if tool knowledge as his philosophy is to own the least number of tools possible… I love the guy, but for a retired civil engineer he has little to no interest in making or building things!
Yes better materials and a better cut. The better files are quick cutters, yet leave a smooth finish. Cheaper ones can gouge or leave an uneven surface.
When finishing surfaces one usually works from coarse to fine grits or aggressiveness. Clean cuts make a big diff in time and material, when discussing Steel, not so much, but I was a jeweler and we paid to have our filing scrap cleaned and remelted. So the less of it the better, that’s why one invests in the quality tool.
MY PERSONAL FEELING; I do not go to Harbor Freight for any tool with an edge, I see their tools as a ‘one time use for a job’ tool. Any extra time is a bonus, not the rule.
I have a set of Sargent Drills, an indexed set from 1976, I resharpen as needed and they cut true. They hold an edge for a long time, so it’s worth it to lean how to care for them. Oh yeah that does make me an old fuddy duddy don’t it?
Like the thread on sharpening an exacto, with a separating disc in my flex shaft I can do a quick job on blade or drill, faster than replacing. Hint side of disc makes a mini flat lap. Sharpen tweezers by grabbing a rotating disc and both faces get ground in parallel. Wear eye protection, discs shatter easily, light pressure.
India is the better source for cheaper files, they will (usually) last longer than knock off chinese brands.
John
Robert Heinlein said that metallurgy was the subset where science meets witchcraft.
John Caughey said:
Yes better materials and a better cut. The better files are quick cutters, yet leave a smooth finish. Cheaper ones can gouge or leave an uneven surface.
When finishing surfaces one usually works from coarse to fine grits or aggressiveness. Clean cuts make a big diff in time and material, when discussing Steel, not so much, but I was a jeweler and we paid to have our filing scrap cleaned and remelted. So the less of it the better, that’s why one invests in the quality tool.
MY PERSONAL FEELING; I do not go to Harbor Freight for any tool with an edge, I see their tools as a ‘one time use for a job’ tool. Any extra time is a bonus, not the rule.
I have a set of Sargent Drills, an indexed set from 1976, I resharpen as needed and they cut true. They hold an edge for a long time, so it’s worth it to lean how to care for them. Oh yeah that does make me an old fuddy duddy don’t it?
Like the thread on sharpening an exacto, with a separating disc in my flex shaft I can do a quick job on blade or drill, faster than replacing. Hint side of disc makes a mini flat lap. Sharpen tweezers by grabbing a rotating disc and both faces get ground in parallel. Wear eye protection, discs shatter easily, light pressure.
India is the better source for cheaper files, they will (usually) last longer than knock off chinese brands.
John
John tool sharpening is an art, one I haven’t learned. I should but, but have always bought cheap tools and cussed at them. Your wisdom in this area is valuable. Just a few of the sharpen tips given here are great. I love the tweezers one, I would have never thought to do that.
Devon Sinsley said:
I don’t do much aluminum work but I will file (hehehe) this away for future reference. I have a brother in law that is a machinist and hates aluminum.
Aluminum, like steel, comes in many different alloys. The run of the mill stuff, angles and shapes you typically find in the big box stores is often extruded and in the 2000 series of alloys. It doesn’t drill or machine cleanly. It tends to stick to the cutting edges and is a pain to machine. Better grades like the 6000 series, often called aircraft grade, machines cleanly and can be a joy to work with, 6061T is a commonly available alloy. Cast aluminum tooling plate also machines nicely. I use aluminum rail so I spend a lot of time cutting and filing it when making switches. Being extruded it’s not the best but I have found I can cut it fairly cleanly with a carbide blade on my table saw. I have a jig I use when cutting the points for the frog.
I am a more of a buy a quality tool and take care of it and it will outlast me kind of guy. But I also have bought cheep tools for a this job only kind of thing. As for Harbor freight, I think you can, sometimes, get decent (I didn’t say good) stuff there, that can last if taken care of. No, its not going to outlast me, but it may last quite a few years. Other stuff there is basically one use and toss kinda stuff.
When I took metal shop in school, they had files that were for use only on aluminum. I do not know if the were made different then the files for steel, or if it was just keeping the 2 sets of files separate because aluminum can plug up a file rather quickly.
I have sat in front of the TV, carefully running an exacto knife along each file groove to remove aluminum and plastic before. It seams that the file is a bit sharper after I do that too. Of course it could just seam sharper because its clean.
David Maynard said:
It seams that the file is a bit sharper after I do that too. Of course it could just seam sharper because its clean.
This made me chuckle because I have thought the very same thing.