Thread: Video on how to use rasps

Thank you for making and posting this. I for one, had forgotten how useful files and rasps are in the workshop and the level of control they give in comparison to chisels on cranky timber.

Thanks for the reminder.

I was always told NOT to drag the rasp over the work surface on the backstroke.
Push over the wood, Lift and bring back for next stroke not touching.

Does dragging backwards cause the rasp to blunten faster or not?

Originally Posted by _fly_

I was always told NOT to drag the rasp over the work surface on the backstroke.
Push over the wood, Lift and bring back for next stroke not touching.

Does dragging backwards cause the rasp to blunten faster or not?

Even though I claim to produce the best rasps, I am surely not the best rasp-user.
But still I will try answer your question by a question : how can you do differently than dragging backwards (without pressure) and still have an efficient and confortable work with good control of the rasp ?

Back stroke clears the fibres from the teeth.

Great post!!

I will NOT post any photos of my rasp work for comparison!

Nice.... if a picture says a thousand words, a video must say a million.....

Thank you for posting that video

How did you persuade Gilles to demonstrate for you?

For those that missed the credit, Gilles' web site is Gilles Grangeon ébéniste créateur contemporain, Rhône Alpes Auvergne - Haute-Loire. Réalisations

if you don't read French, and I don't, you'll need to get your browser to do the translation

Pretend you're using a hand plane = only works on the forward stroke. Go easy, let the tool do the work. Plus, at maybe the equivalent of 4-grit paper, the scratches are a booger to sand out. For wood carving, rasps are a dream for shaping because I can go back into the wood with mallet & gouges without the worry of hitting a sand grain (no, I don't enjoy sharpening quite that much).