Thread: Rasping Personalities

maybe my eyes are deceiving me, but the surface of that nicholson rasp does look like it's hand cut, or has moved some when having teeth cut.

They are, as you say, dense teeth that don't allow the rasp to bottom out, and the cut is finer and slower than you'd expect based on the size of the teeth. That remains true with the current offerings. the one criticism I guess people could make, which I also learned stitching rasps last year, if there isn't some space around the teeth, you can get a pretty compacted cake in the rasp teeth and a file card or wire brush can be needed.

I can't remember if that cake will come out with a backward stroke, which will clear initial pinning from files and as much as people lecture others about only forward strokes on files, I've filed a lot of metal in the last several years and at least some backward strokes are invaluable if a file pins - it stops the pinning and you don't get stuck removing the deep marks. I don't remember the rasp clogging being an issue other than slowing things down, though, so I guess not quite the same.

I think the need for expensive french rasps is overblown - you can do as you have done and find stuff floating around that will serve the same purpose.

HI David


Pretty sure the Nicholson is machine cut. The spacing is too regular. The difference, the machine was excuting an arc and stitches flattened tops. It's unusual or at least new encounter for me.
When first tried thought the rasp would run well/start smoothly but did not anticipating the smooth surfaces

The Chinese rasps have the arcing style but not the flattened tops, so ultimately the surface is not as smooth (but far from terrible)

It's pretty long beastie as well. Think the stitched length continues for 350mm.

Originally Posted by MartinCH

HI David


Pretty sure the Nicholson is machine cut. The spacing is too regular. The difference, the machine was excuting an arc and stitches flattened tops. It's unusual or at least new encounter for me.
When first tried thought the rasp would run well/start smoothly but did not anticipating the smooth surfaces

The Chinese rasps have the arcing style but not the flattened tops, so ultimately the surface is not as smooth (but far from terrible)

It's pretty long beastie as well. Think the stitched length continues for 350mm.

Just to confirm, we're talking about the rasp second from the top in the picture?

Nicholson did shape rasp teeth that looked like hoods rather than skinny little prickles. Rasp #2 from the top has some odd wandering in the rows that is unusual in machine made rasps - unless the oddness is sort of symmetrical.

I don't usually find much old nicholson stuff floating around on shelves other than files, though. If the rasps are around, they are extremely coarse machine made rasps that ....well, I don't know the purpose. If they're big, we usually assume for farriers. If they're not big, then it's hard to guess. Lots of stuff still done by hand like models and pattern making. The most crude and big toothed of the lot are hard to even hold, though.

The interesting Nicholson Rasp is the second from the bottom (cause it looks machine made and coarse but run nicely and finishes smoothly). The modern low cost rasp (Chinese) is the 3rd one from bottom.
From the top the second, third and fourth have irregularities in the spacing - have assumed are hand stitched. These where blunt but received capability are diamond filing the teeth.
The intent was provide a comparison between various rasps finishes, and also show that the Chinese rasp is capable rasp.

As for the big rasps while perhaps some were used by farriers I think the biggest use was construction.
ie- widen a hole for a pipe/ flatten down a stud to suit a wall panel/ make a notch to run a wire and so on...
There was a long rough Nicholson's in my fathers kit and thats what I have assumed it was for.

PS- Used a long rough rasp too sort an undersized hole at the back of cabinet the other day- The rasp could reach and sorted problem rapidly...