Filing Guides

[niall Y]

I used a couple of bits of ally angle for years as soft jaws on my smaller vice. It's out of service ATM as I've got a bigger one. I cut, and mitred the ends, and bent them round to stop them getting knocked off easily. They're pretty rough now, but if they were kept just for filing, they're be OK.

Hmm... I'm wondering if I couldn't adapt your idea, and simply glue on some hardened spring steel strips to the top face of the aluminium angle . Much the same way that Aluminium thicknessing beds on planers have a stainless plate glued to the surface.

 

[Amplidyne]

You could just make them out of light steel angle.
As already said, it's only a guide, you'd have to file quite definitely for a bit to make any real difference to wide steel surfaces.
As I've said before, I'm not keen on running files onto hardened steel personally. It does damage the teeth.

 

[niall Y]

You could just make them out of light steel angle.
As already said, it's only a guide, you'd have to file quite definitely for a bit to make any real difference to wide steel surfaces.
As I've said before, I'm not keen on running files onto hardened steel personally. It does damage the teeth.

All my files, over the years, transition from from best, to second best. so I wouldn't be at a loss to find a, not so-precious one, to use for that last flush cut. Not that I don't nurse along certain of them, that I reserve for specific tasks.

I came to a decision earlier today to purchase a pair of magnetic aluminium ,jaw protectors. When they arrive I will experiment with surfacing them with hardened steel tops.

I will post, with pictures, how I get on later.

 

[Amplidyne]

All my files, over the years, transition from from best, to second best. so I wouldn't be at a loss to find a, not so-precious one, to use for that last flush cut. Not that I don't nurse along certain of them, that I reserve for specific tasks.

I came to a decision earlier today to purchase a pair of magnetic aluminium ,jaw protectors. When they arrive I will experiment with surfacing them with hardened steel tops.

I will post, with pictures, how I get on later.

I've got some of those aluminium magnetic jaws. They work well.
Be interesting to know how you get on.

 

[--Tom--]

Easy enough to harden some 01 ground flat stock and then epoxy it onto the aluminium. Carbide is nicer though, and has become relatively cheap