selective filing?

[caliber45]

Gents -- I see periodic admonitions about not using metal files for both brass and steel -- but to use them for one or the other. Other than metal clogging the "teeth," which can happen with either metal, what difference does it make? Enlightenment would be welcome. -- paulallen, greencastle, in

[JDK]

Steel will dull your files to the point that they will skip on brass and not cut.  I know it seems funny as brass is softer than steel but it's true.  You can keep them sorted by painting the tangs different colors.

Use your files on brass until they start to skip or are not giving you the performance you desire then relegate them to steel.....once they are too dull for steel use them on wood until you can get them sharpened.

Enjoy, J.D.

[caliber45]

Thanks for the info, J.D. Never knew that. Interesting. Is it cost efficient to get a file sharpened, rather than replacing it? Where does one go to get a file sharpened, and how pricey is it? -- paul

[JDK]

Boggs is the go to company for file sharpening.  Look under the current thread on files and rasps for contact information.

Check 'em out.  Their fees seem reasonable compaired to the purchasing new ones.

Enjoy, J.D.

[LRB]

  To best of my memory, Boggs uses a flowing acid wash to do the sharpening. I have rejuvenated slightly dull files with muriatic [pool] acid, but it takes a pretty long soak to get noticable results. Something stronger would do better.

[bluenoser]

I checked Boggs out a few days ago.  As I recall, they use a technique called "liquid honing" on the back side of the teeth.  Apparently, the process uses abrasives carried in a steam jet.  The prices looked very reasonable to me.  Unfortunately, in my case the shipping from and back to Canada would probably be prohibitive.

Laurie 

[rich pierce]

Nitric acid such as used for making iron-AQF stain cleans up and sharpens files, but they catch bits in the teeth worse than before because they are pitted all over, microscopically.

[Tom Moore]

There was a thread a while back on using Coca Cola to sharpen files. Check here:
http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=9512.0
-Tom

[shortbarrel]

i have sharpened large 8, 10, 12 inch files. you clean them, paint them with a cold browning solution. put them in a high humidity place,coat them everyday,and when they look like you have ruined them,take them out and put them in a full strength muratic acid solution for about a hour. works on smaller files, 6" and 8" , but to a lesser degree,these will pin the shavings. works on mill or bastard files. I do a lot of work on old wrought barrel and  refiling the flats gives a file lots of grief. if you take the smaller files and rub them with fine and across the teeth,  it helps to prevent the plugging.

[shortbarrel]

the small files should be rubbed  across the teeth with a fine abrasive, sand or other abrasive. been filing on a barrel for 9 hours,thats my excuse for not getting my first post right

[Jerry V Lape]

I have two file racks on the wall with a full selection in each.  The handles on one set is marked brass and then an abbreviation for the cut.  The other set is similarly marked for steel.  The steel ones for the most part used to wear brass markings.  In a related way, I learned to shift the belts on my drill press to lowest speeds for brass so the drills don't catch and spin the brass as easily.