Trying to learn about rasps

[Rob Young]

I'm gonna put my love of Corradi out there. They are CNC stitched with a pattern that doesn't leave lines. So this gives them the consistency of a machine stitch, but the quality of cut & lack of distinct lines from a set pattern. The pics below were all worked with Corradi rasps + minimal card scraper, that's it.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWnfAnGlZIn/...ckenbushww

https://www.instagram.com/p/BTgUvXHlm0C/...ckenbushww

https://www.instagram.com/p/BSUwjF5Fdef/...ckenbushww

USA
www.corradishop.com
www.ebay.com/usr/corradishop

Europe
http://www.rma-tools.com/

Picked up a few Corradi  rasps and they work great.  Borrowed a few others, US Nicholson & Logier as well as some rando ones I have and the Corradi were almost as fast and almost as "clean" as the Logier.  And a fraction of the cost.  Had I not had the two side by side, I doubt I'd have been able to tell the difference. 

Interestingly, the "fastest" one I had (unscientific test because I'm pushing them by hand so can't guarantee pressures, etc) was the really cheap one made in Pakistan and sold through Lee Valley.  But also the roughest, nastiest surface.

edit to add link to LV rasps I mention above:
http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.as...at=1,42524


"cheap" and fast but one will spend more time cleaning up after them.

[overland]

This is a very useful discussion. I just finished making some canoe paddles. I used a Lee Valley rasp and sandpaper to make the handles, which have some curvature, both concave and convex--along with a Shinto saw rasp that has both coarse and fine sides. I found that the Shinto rasp worked better on flat and convex surfaces than the Lee Valley rasp--the coarse side cut faster and the fine side cut smoother. It all worked out but I had the feeling that I didn't have quite the right tools. Which rasps would you have suggested for a job like this? It's not quite the scale of a Maloof chair but a little bigger scale than a tool handle. I felt I needed a coarse or medium rasp for stock removal and a finer rasp to smooth things out. But which ones?

[Rob Young]

This is a very useful discussion. I just finished making some canoe paddles. I used a Lee Valley rasp and sandpaper to make the handles, which have some curvature, both concave and convex--along with a Shinto saw rasp that has both coarse and fine sides. I found that the Shinto rasp worked better on flat and convex surfaces than the Lee Valley rasp--the coarse side cut faster and the fine side cut smoother. It all worked out but I had the feeling that I didn't have quite the right tools. Which rasps would you have suggested for a job like this? It's not quite the scale of a Maloof chair but a little bigger scale than a tool handle. I felt I needed a coarse or medium rasp for stock removal and a finer rasp to smooth things out. But which ones?

Since I bought the Corrandi (about equivalent to a #10 grain) cabinet maker's rasp, I haven't really used my Nicholson 49 or 50 (Mexico made so considered the #2 choice vs. NOS USA made) at all. I may use the LV "el-cheapo" to hog things down then hit it with the Corrandi, then switch to either sandpaper (about 120) or a mill file.  Recently did a pizza peel (need to post some photos) and the handle is a built-up lamination that was shaped mostly with the Corrandi & a spoke shave (Stanley #151).  

My first choice is a spoke shave, the #151 and if I need a little tighter inside curve, the #152.  If I can do the job with those or a block plane, I find it pretty quick because all I've got to do is blend a few facets with high grit paper.  But tight inside curve, the rasps work well or working up against a perpendicular surface where the spoke shave just can't go.

[Timberwolf]

Since I bought the Corrandi (about equivalent to a #10 grain) cabinet maker's rasp, I haven't really used my Nicholson 49 or 50 (Mexico made so considered the #2 choice vs. NOS USA made) at all. I may use the LV "el-cheapo" to hog things down then hit it with the Corrandi, then switch to either sandpaper (about 120) or a mill file.  Recently did a pizza peel (need to post some photos) and the handle is a built-up lamination that was shaped mostly with the Corrandi & a spoke shave (Stanley #151).  

My first choice is a spoke shave, the #151 and if I need a little tighter inside curve, the #152.  If I can do the job with those or a block plane, I find it pretty quick because all I've got to do is blend a few facets with high grit paper.  But tight inside curve, the rasps work well or working up against a perpendicular surface where the spoke shave just can't go.

................
I bought a couple of these just to satisfy my curiosity..They are machine stitched but work surprisingly well especially for the money.

https://www.amazon.com/NKTM-Golden-Taper...+and+files

[C. in Indy]

It was one of the (likely French) hand-stitched rasp companies that has been portrayed on the (Canadian) "How It's Made" program on TV.   Very impressive!

One thing I didn't know, they actually make similar but opposing rasp models depending on whether the user is right-handed or left-handed!

Chris

[AHill]

Both Auriou and Liogier make excellent rasps. Liogier employs several rasp makers that used to work for Auriou. I have Auriou and Liogier rasps, Gramercy (made in Pakistan), US-Made Nicholsons (#49 and #50), Heller (vintage NOS), and the Iwasaki Japanese mill-toothed files. The Iwasaki's are very aggressive and bite into the wood quite a bit. You need a light touch with them. They leave a decent surface, but they are really more of a roughing tool. The Hellers and Nicholsons are decent, but leave a surface that needs a fair amount of scraping or sanding to get smooth. The Gramercy rasps are stainless steel. They do not cut as aggressively as the US ones, but they do leave a finer surface. Liogier and Auriou are a significant step up from the rest. They cut aggressively (coarser ones) and leave behind a very decent surface which requires minimal sanding or scraping. On a scale of 1-10, I rate Auriou 10 and Liogier 9.5. Gramercy 7. Nicholson 5. Iwasaki 6, mostly because they are so aggressive they are more difficult to control. I have not used Corradi rasps. The only complaints I've seen about Corradis (and any other machine made rasp) is the tips don't come to as find a point as the hand-stitched rasps, and the teeth don't go all the way to the edge of the rasp. The latter complaint is something to consider if you need to rasp close to the edge of a surface like the v of a saw handle or a carving where there's an abrupt angle in the wood.

[Philip1231]

Quite by accident, I came across the sleeve for the Auriou rasp I have been using for the past few years.  I had never owned or used a rasp prior to this one. It is, and I reserve this adjective for special tools: magical.  It is amazing at sweetening the fit of a mortise/tenon joint.  It is almost always on my bench when I am doing joinery.  

   

   

[AHill]

Even Paul Sellers - who is generally known for being very frugal about tools - uses Auriou rasps.  I should throw in that a good rasp makes shaping a joy.  Using cheaply made or lesser rasps is like using dynamite to dig a hole to plant a flower.

[Cooler]

I watched a TV show once where they discussed "pattern maker rasps" which they showed as cutting faster and leaving a smoother finish than a regular rasp.  The barbs are hand cut, so these are more expensive.

https://www.woodworkingshop.com/product/ax18846n/

Note the irregular placement of the barbs which are hand-cut.

[Philip1231]

I believe all the Auriou rasps are hand cut. That would explain their prices.

I watched a TV show once where they discussed "pattern maker rasps" which they showed as cutting faster and leaving a smoother finish than a regular rasp.  The barbs are hand cut, so these are more expensive.

https://www.woodworkingshop.com/product/ax18846n/

Note the irregular placement of the barbs which are hand-cut.