What do the files look like and how to choose them?

A file or a file is a reduced version of a file. They are different in shape, the overall size remains. The length of these miniature files is only 8, 12 or 16 cm. How the files look and how to choose them will be discussed in this article.

Mini file - file - a tool that is used for fine surface treatment. Outwardly, this is a really small file. It is also made of high quality steel, has rows of notches of different sizes. Half the length of the file is a handle. Hand files are often fitted with a wooden or plastic handle for convenience. Although, if the use is infrequent, you can work without it, even if it is not so convenient.

In addition to hand files, there are options for a jigsaw or an electric saw.

The scope of application of files is wide enough, this is due to a huge variety of their shapes and sizes of notches. Needle files are widely used in jewelry and modeling. Making duplicate keys is not without them; they are used for delicate woodwork, for example, for adjusting the nut of a guitar. Of course, you can try using a flat file for sharpening knives, but there are more specialized and, accordingly, more effective tools for this.

The main difference from a file is in size. Hand files are immeasurably smaller.

The dimensions of the tool, of course, affect the size of the notches. Actually, it was invented for making small notches of files. The difference in the size of the notch can be quite significant, especially for the so-called velvet files, which remove no more than 0.05 mm of the material surface in one pass.

The variety of needle files is huge, this is dictated by the vastness of their field of application. You can start with a section shape. In the sets of files supplied to the retail network, you can find flat rectangular, square, rhombic, triangular, round, semicircular, semi-circular, trapezoidal, knife-shaped, oval ... And this is not a complete list, there are more exotic varieties. They also differ in the shape of the canvas, for example, there are straight lines with a blunt end, and there are also conical ones, gradually tapering towards the tip. The groove file has, along with a wide flat edge, narrow edges, designed for processing various kinds of grooves.

Classical the file looks like a smaller copy of the file. It is these tools that are most often sold as part of kits. Some specialized jobs may require more specific items. For example, jewelry set of files may seem to an ignorant person as a completely absurd set of tools invented by a crazy master. In fact, such intricate files are necessary for the precise processing of precious metal items with complex surface relief. Peculiar and thin needle file for processing various holes.

Of great importance for the choice of tool is the so-called grain size - the size of the notch or the abrasive used for spraying. Yes, mineral abrasives such as corundum (emery) or artificial abrasives of similar hardness are widely used in diamond files.

Let's look at some examples of file classification.

The faces of the files can have a variety of shapes: flat, convex (round, semicircular) - they always have a notch, but its size may not be the same. Often, non-specialists take for a smooth surface a face that does not have visible roughness - this is the so-called velvet file intended for grinding the surface of the workpiece being processed.

High-carbon steel of special hardening serves as the material for the manufacture of needle files. The material has increased hardness, but brittleness becomes the reverse side, which is inevitable with this manufacturing method. Rough handling can cause the blade to break, making further use of the tool impossible. Typically, these files are used for wood or metal processing.

Diamond files have more specific properties, in which an abrasive material, usually of artificial origin, sometimes ceramic, is sprayed onto a relatively soft metal working surface.

The surface of the steel file is cut like a classic file. Of course, in the case of a mini-file, it will be much smaller. This is precisely the essence of the reduction of such an instrument.

The number and size of the notches are standardized. In this case, numbers are affixed on the non-working surface. The number determines the number of notches for each centimeter of length: No. 1 - 28-40 notches, No. 2 - 40-52, and so on up to 122 notches at the file with No. 5.

Needle file handles come in a variety of designs. This is determined by the functionality of this part of the tool. The length of the handle of a hand file can be the same as the length of the working part, and sometimes even longer for short files. As a rule, it has a circular cross-section. It is convenient to put the handle on such a handle. Sometimes, along with the sets of files, you can purchase a removable handle, which can be used by attaching the desired file to the handle, and removed after use. Sometimes the files are already sold with a plastic handle. The best is considered to be a non-removable pressed paper handle, specially treated.

The handles of the files intended for use in special devices have a different shape and length. They are generally shorter than hand tools.

Modernization of hand tools occurs when it is adapted to electrical appliances. This is how sets of needle files appeared for working with an electric tool that gives the working part translational movements - a jigsaw or an electric saw.

It is very inconvenient to use such files in the "manual" mode. Specialization, as usual, led to a loss of versatility.

However, working with a file using an electric drive significantly reduces labor costs for surface treatment.... Such tools are increasingly used where a large amount of the same type of work is required.

As already noted, special work will definitely require special tools. These are the tools that jewelers need.

Special jewelry needle files - riffles - are difficult to confuse with another instrument. The special shape, special notches - everything distinguishes these specialized files. With their help, they carry out rough processing of the workpiece, and its finishing, up to grinding.Most often, such a tool has magnetic properties - this is necessary in order to make it easier to separate waste (the smallest metal shavings). Steel dust is attracted to the instrument, only precious gold or silver dust remains on the surface.

The standardization of the shape and size of the files led to the development of GOST, according to which the production of this tool takes place. According to the current GOST 1513-77, the industry produces five types of steel files:

• if the handle of the tool is marked with numbers 1 or 2, it can be used for the roughest processing;
• numbers 3 and 4 are suitable for more delicate work;
• number 5 can only be used for finishing and sanding.

GOST 32461-84 dictates the basic requirements for diamond files, determining their grain size, the size of the sprayed mineral particles, as well as the shape of the blade.

All files are divided into three size groups according to their length.

• Small with a length of the working part of 50-80 mm - they are also sometimes called mini-files.
• Average, the length of the working part of which is 120 mm.
• Big the file has a length of the working part of 180 mm.

The variety of shapes of the working part of the file is also standardized.

• Flat with a blunt end files can have edges with different cut sizes, which determines the scope of their application.
• Square file, usually has the same edges. It can be used to machine grooves with right angles.
• Rhombic filing can be in demand when processing grooves that have both an acute-angled and obtuse-angled structure.
• When processing complex relief elements of the workpiece, it can be impossible to do without files, with smooth transitions: semicircular and oval. The first one most often has a flat edge with a small notch and a semicircular edge with a larger one, but the combination of the size of the notches may be different. The oval is evenly covered with a cut of the same type.
• Round in cross section Needle files also have one type of notch. They are usually distinguished by a wedge-shaped, often called acicular, shape.

Needle file production has a number of requirements. First, it is necessary to ensure that the alloy is of the correct composition. Deviations from technology are unacceptable, as the tool requires increased hardness. Secondly, and this is no less important, the application of the notch, which should be without gaps and the same depth. Thirdly, hardening, the process must take place without technological disturbances, otherwise the product can be hardened unevenly, and this will cause its deformation or create preconditions for the formation of cracks and, as a result, breaking of the working part.

Not every enterprise can provide conditions for the production of products such as files and needles.

The production of products of increased hardness from special steel has been mastered in the so-called old industrial regions. A number of European companies specialize in this, in fact, not material-intensive products at all.

Let's try to present a kind of rating of manufacturers of this specific product.

• The highest requirements for the quality of products are made by a Swiss company HOFFMANN GROUP... Traditionally, for the manufacturers of this country, products undergo multi-stage control. As a result, only sets that meet all standards appear on the shelves, the price of which, at first glance, seems high. However, in the case of Swiss files, it is quite justified.

• German companies PFERD and HAUPA offer a wide variety of file sets from large, classified mini-files to the usual sizes of hand files. The number of items in the set is from 6 to 12 pieces.

• Traditionally high quality sets are offered by a Polish manufacturer TOPEX... The sets contain steel hand files of various shapes with different cut sizes, usually in sets of 6 from this manufacturer.

• Soviet-made filing sets are still popular. Despite the years that have passed since the collapse of the USSR, products with the Soviet quality mark and GOST are somehow present on the market and do not lose their fans.

• The traditions of production in Russia have not been lost, and now the market is quite successfully conquered by a domestic manufacturer with a laconic name "Russia". High-quality sets of files that fully comply with GOST continue to be produced by the enterprises "Tulamash", "Volzhsky instrument" and some others.

• However, no manufacturer in our time can compete with numerous Chinese companies. Some of them, in particular the Russian-Chinese joint venture "Bison", produce very high quality products that meet Russian GOST standards.

The choice of Chinese products is huge, but do not forget that most of the products under well-known European brands are also produced in Chinese enterprises. There is also an unnamed product, the quality of which is not guaranteed by anything, its main advantage, as a rule, is its low price.

Working with a file, despite the seeming simplicity of this tool, is not so easy. Due to the small size of the tool and the high hardness of the material of manufacture, combined with fragility, the blade breaks easily. The danger of this increases significantly if the workplace is poorly equipped. In addition, working with a small file in one hand and holding the workpiece in the other is also inefficient, especially when precise surface finishing or finishing is required.

For such cases, in the arsenal of the master there should be files not only of different grain size and shape, but also various additional auxiliary devices.

It will not be superfluous to have a workbench for work, preferably a stationary one, and on it you need a mini-vice or clamps.

When choosing a file, one should proceed from the needs. The variety of these tools is huge and it is quite possible to find the right one for a specific job. If the files are required constantly, for example, for adjusting keys, in modeling, jewelry, radio engineering, and many other places, it is better to purchase sets of several pieces of different characteristics.

The kit usually contains the most popular types, but there may be less common options. Often a new set is purchased precisely because of these rare items. In this case, the most popular ones can accumulate over time several pieces. You can, of course, buy needle files one by one, but one must take into account that, despite the hardness, even very high-quality steel is developed over time, and the diamond spraying crumbles, and the properties of the file decrease. For this reason, workshops usually have more than one running file.

As already noted, the use of a file is not difficult, but it, as in any case, has its own nuances.

• During handling and storage, one should try to avoid oily surfaces, and any contact with lubricants. This significantly reduces the abrasive properties of the notch or spray.
• Long-term use of steel files can lead to clogging of the notch with the smallest chips, an important role in this process is played by the charge formed during operation, which attracts metal dust. It is quite possible to clean the notch from the metal; for this you can use a steel brush.
• You can "sharpen" a file or even a file using chemicals, citric acid eats away well "dirt".Some samples of household chemicals do an excellent job with this task. To remove traces of oil, wipe it with the popular kitchen remedy "Fairy", you can also use the "Mole" sewer cleaner.
• It is important not to allow the appearance of rust on the surface of the files, it "eats" the notch, rounding it. Automotive rust removers are not bad for dealing with such a scourge.
• It is convenient to use a removable handle for working with files, some modern manufacturers supply such file sets they produce.
• When working with a file, it is important to choose one whose size and cut are appropriate for the task at hand. Sawing a groove with a filed file is also possible, but it will take a lot of time and effort.