What is the proper way to use rasps?

[Cottonwood]

HAs any one advice on this? They seem simple tools but how do you get the best out of them?
Cheers Jonathan

 

[carlb40]

Don't buy cheap. I have a mega cheap b+q one and it would be quicker to 2000 grit sand paper :lol:

 

[PAC1]

There is a video on the Lie Nielsen website by Chris Shwartz it covers the basics. It is a two handed tool even though there is only one handle. The other hand holds the work end you should only be in contact with the wood on the push stroke and lift it back. I would only buy hand stitched ones as there is no comparison with cheap machined ones. Good ones are not cheap. If you are left handed some makers offer left or right handed rasps if there is a choice select the correct hand for you it does make a difference. If you want to do sculpture or carve with them then contrary to Chris Shwartz' advice select coarser grain. I have a 3 which is great for stock removal

 

[Trafalgar]

HAs any one advice on this? They seem simple tools but how do you get the best out of them?
Cheers Jonathan

I would watch Noel Liogier if you want to see it done by a bona fide master:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1_PDwWtQQM

 

[Favino]

I´m lefthanded but bought a standard Liogier "cabinet" model half a year ago, No problem to use it at all.
(Maybe I use it as a right handed person? i have the handle in my left hand..)

It might be a lot of money, but it is so worth it.
A joy to use and the surface it leaves is wery smooth given the tool it is.

Compared to machined ones it really is another (lot better) tool.

 

[Kalimna]

I have a couple of Liogier rasps of various profile, length and grain (from 3 to 15), and an Auriou 11 cabinetmakers. Fir some reason, I find the Auriou ever so slightly quicker in action, and also more controllable with finish. However, that might just be because it is the largest rasp I have. Both makes I find excellent to use, and a lot more controllable with regards the finish - a light touch brings a much smoother finish independent of grain. I am not convinced that extra cost of the Auriou is justified over the Liogier, mind you. Plus, Noel is a pleasure to communicate with.
I am quite keen to see how the Italian startup mentioned on another thread prices itself.

I also have a £2 rasp from a 2nd hand tool shop, like a float but with curved 'teeth' (a dreadnought?), which is fantastic for hogging, leaving a considerably smoother than expected finish. I use it a lot on guitar necks (well, the three I have made so far, anyway!).

Cheers,
Adam

 

[Eric The Viking]

I have a couple of Liogier rasps. They're left-handed (as am I). One is a half-round, and the other is a rat's tail.

I think they're brilliant, and I do appreciate the left-handed-ness. I'm used to getting parallel grooves with right-handed rasps, but I don't with the left handed ones. Both cut really fast and well, and produce a very nice finish. There's a huge difference between the cheap ones and the hand-stitched ones like Liogier makes.

E.

 

[Corneel]

I have two Iwasaki rasps, a flat one and a halfround rasp, and use them for handle making. They are a lot better then my Bahco rasps, which I only use for very coarse work anymore.

The Iwasaki ones work better in some directions then others. You have to experiment what works best. A light touch is best when finishing. They leave quite a smooth surface, but sandpaper is still inevitable of course.

I always wonder how a Liogier would fit into my workshop, but the price is still too much for me.

 

[rafezetter]

Just watched them making a lioger hand stitched rasp - very impressive

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ09O3d8y9Q

 

[Cottonwood]

Thank you for all your responces and advice =D> . I watched the aurio factory demo, after seeing how they are made, and that it was French, I am amazed those rasps arent £250 or more a piece...There appears to be far more time and effort in creating them than in hand hammered cymbals!
the reason I ask is because I want to use them for carving (or rather refining) the forms of spoons, ladles, vessells, bowls etc that were begun with axes, elbbow adzes and bent knives etc. I cannot be satisfied with the "tooled surface-non sandpaper" finish which most green wood workers think to be normal and essential. I like a sculptural form that consists of a series of inter related but clearly defined planes, and I think I rather want them to be as smooth as possible-not to "show the grain", but to highlight the form (I use color quite a lot any way)
I got a hand stitched riffer some time ago when I made a saw handle. That was a real departure for me, having to create a pleasing form, that was accurate, clean and precise as possible. I was actually using fine files to clean up the inside corners etc while using a 5X loupe, and really enjoyed it. Any way I digress. That riffer is quite versatile. I got some other rasps, evidently machine stitched. I find it depends what angle I present it to the work. If I get it right, I get a reasonable surface which gets better with cabinet scraping. If I get it wrong I end up with a mini ploughed field, parallel ridges. But I am encouraged that it is possible to get rasps that leave a smoothed surface.
Again thanks for the help, I'll let y'all know how I get on...

 

[Harbo]

Noel Liogier is very friendly and helpful and very happy to give advice.
Don't forget to mention the Forum

Rod

 

[KevM]

A little bit of heresy - I've got a carbide rasp that I bought a few years ago to tidy up some awkward tiles. It leaves a surprisingly good finish on wood if used with a light touch, can be used in any direction, and cost ~£5. It tends to clog quite easily but it's proved its value more than a few times. My other, less heretical, but still slightly oddball rasp is one of those Japanese rasps that looks like a bundle of hacksaw blades riveted together - never clogs and cuts very fast while still leaving a fair finish if you ease up on it, also relatively inexpensive.