How To Clean Clogged Files

Lewis Whowelismige62 · Saturday, December 11, 2021

A neat trick for cleaning files

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Woodworkers often use a block of gum (or crepe) rubber for unclogging sanding belts, discs, etc. Suppliers usually market these as 'abrasive cleaning sticks'. You hold the rubber against the moving belt or disc and, like magic, it removes the sawdust and you're ready to go back to work.
Calm down, I know this is a metalworking site - I'm getting to the point.

A couple of weeks ago I came back from a garage sale with a box of files . Lots of good shapes and sizes, still sharp, but clogged and dirty as sin . A regular file card worked great on the coarser files, but didn't do a thing for the fine and double-cut ones. Then I tried an 'abrasive cleaning stick'. Result: a bunch of files that were unclogged, clean as a whistle and good as new! [img]smile.gif[/img]

Six bucks or less from any good woodworking supply house.
What is an abrasive cleaning stick?
It is a big, crude, honkin eraser.
It does work...on sandpaper, never tried it on a really pinned-up file, but it could work ther too.

I was taught never to use a file card....because they dull the teeth due to the spring steel "bristles". But a piece of brass rubbed along the line of the teeth works pretty well too. I've heard of using scrap fired cartridges, which supposedly work well after being squashed flat.
This absolutley peeks my interest. I do a lot of hand fitting. I have the damdest pile of files you have ever seen. I would disagree with what you say about the file card but also you offer a unique method of cleaning files I have never tried. I certainly have a supply of spent cartridges and will soon try this method. I find myself inspecting freshly used files with jewelers loupes (as my eyes are failing) to pick out hitch hikers. I'll let you know how it turns out. Thank-you for the suggestion. John
The brass pushed with the direction of teeth is the best way I've ever seen........ I do it on # 6 cut files all the time......
Interesting...
I always load mine up with chalk before hand.

Why?

I dont know...

Somebody fill me in.

(an old machinist taught me to do it, but I dont remember why [img]smile.gif[/img]

-Jacob
I think my present file cleaner is a 308 case, flattened for about 1/2 inch in the bench vise. I have a file card with synthetic bristles on the back that gets used for most "casual" filing jobs.
Chalk helps too.

Rick
Snowman,
The chalk acts as a lubricant, which keeps the filings from "pinning"
Rick
Another very effective file cleaner is the edge of a penny rubbed parallel to the direction of the file's teeth. The teeth quickly cut their profile into the soft alloy, and the penny's cicular edge makes it easy to apply pressure just where you need it to remove the "pinning".
A brush with fine, stiff bristles -- another use for a toothbrush -- is a great tool for cleaning files. For "pins" that the brush won't loosen, a piece of soft sheetmetal, wood, or even stiff leather cut to about the size and shape of a 3/4 inch wood chisel is just the ticket.
Files are expensive and I'm reluctnt to shorten the lives of my files by using the traditional cleaning methods. A file card with it's ineffective wire brush is a file maker's diabolical implement to ruing files so they can sell more.
I'm against wire bristles, and soft metals used to clean files. They all pick up abrasive particles ane rub them along the cutting edges, the surest way I know of dulling the very edges you're trying to expose to the work.

No indeed. Use a common paint stirring stick or better a 1/4" x 1" maple or birch ripping from the table saw and sharpen the end on the belt sander like a chisel. Use the chisel edge to plow out the impacted file swarf by positioning the edge suqare with the teeth and pushing it parallel with them just like you'd use a chisel. The wood will almost immediately conform to the teeth and gunk will pile up ahead of the chisel edge. Takes less than 30 seconds.

Use a stiff palm fiber or manila brush to clean out the residues. The fiber brush on the file card is perfect. Rip off the wire brush side to remove temptation leaving the fiber brush.

The "de-pinning" feature found on the end of some files cards are even more distructive to file teeth than the wire card itself. Never use it. It's another file ruining device intended to sell more files. Works too. It wrecks a file in a half dozen uses and renders the file useless as a stock removing tool in a dozen.

If the file is pinned with impacted metal particles then a sharp hard scribe may be used to pick them out individially. As soon as the scribe dulls immediately re-sharpen it. The sharp point has to get under the pin to lift it out. A blunt point will only dull the file possibly forcing the pin deeper into its seating.
what about a brass wire brush wheel on a dremel/die grinder type tool, rotating along the teeth?
For years, I've been using a piece of 1/2" copper pipe with the ends flattened. Works fine, last forever, and a 10" piece of pipe won't cramp your hand like a shorter cartridge case will.
Morning, Good Folks from both sides on the pond!
I have done all these three card tricks and whatever but Alan Waterfall is to blame when he posted details of how to remove rust by electrolysis. In Model Engineer- way back- is an article or two about using a similar system but with- I guess- dilute sulphuric/sulfuric acid as an electrolite.
Apparently, it not only cleans the clogged teeth but also sharpens the blunted teeth.

Anyone like to post their experiences in this direction?

Norman
Norman, you may remember Ken Whiston of "Have you seen my Cat?" adverts - well before he packed up his business in New Mills his CATaloge had 'reconditioned files' in it that were produced by the same method. By disolving a few thou off all over the file not only is the pinning removed, but blunted and rounded teeth tend to become more 'pointy'.
I had a few off him, and although they weren't as good as a new file were perfectly satisfactory for ordinary work.

Some imported files these days seem to be made of case hardened mild steel, and what the effect of an acid dip on that would be I'm not sure.
Many thanks, Andrew.
I hope that your verification might prompt other readers to have a go in that direction.
Ken Whiston sent me screwcutting details when I was trying to sort out a Pools Major lathe. Nice bloke.

Norman
Does anybody spray their clean files with WD-40 or Tri-Flow before using to prevent them from loading up? We do this with rotary burrs on die grinders and it works pretty well (when grinding softer non-ferrous) alloys.
i wouldn't spray paraffin or any other lubricant
on my files. try some chalkboard chalk.
i soak my files in mek if they get oil on them.