SHINTO FILE

T

tmr

Well-Known Member
I just recieved a shinto file from amazon in the mail......I was hoping that it would work good on desert ironwood for rough shaping and stock removal on handles....went into the shop and put a block of ironwood in the vise and give it a try......looks like it is going to work great.....I was avoiding using a lot of ironwood because of the way it would plug up belts and regular files but i think this tool is going to be a game changer......anybody here been using the shinto files for any lenght of time and have an opinion?
 
I haven't tried a shinto file yet, but I have switched to using rasps for shaping my handles. I have a 3-piece set of Narex cabinet rasps and a 6-piece set of much smaller 6 inch rasps (think needle file size). Since I switched to rasps, the symmetry and even ness of my handles has improved.

I may have to look into adding a shinto file to the line up.
 
I used to use the Iwasaki Carving Files. They work very fast and shave off material as opposed to gouging it off, so it leaves a MUCH smoother finish without the deep marks of a rasp and doesn't tear out at the edges as much. The Shinto saw file is one I haven't tried yet, but may get one for roughing handle shapes out in more dense/belt clogging materials!
 
When I used to make longbows, I used the Shinto Rasps, and they rule for shaping wood. No deep gouges like you get with farriers' rasps and the like. When I made D-Bows I even used them to tiller. Very good wood shaping tool.
 
I am surprised that there weren't a bunch of people using these......one of those best kept secrets I guess...a definite game changer for ironwood etc
 
I think most use their grinders to shape handles. A 2x72 with a small wheel set is hard to beat for handles. Even Ironwood has a hard time resisting a new 60 grit belt.
 
That is a wacky looking kind of file but I can see how it would be effective and not clog. Almost like you took bandsaw blades and riveted them together into a diamond pattern. Too bad they don't have a slightly rounded version?
 
I clogged a 40 grit AO belt on Desert ironwood pretty quick yesterday, but a 40 grit Zirc Oxide belt at a little slower speed worked great! Maybe I gotta slow down when grinding the ironwood.

I gotta find my Iwasaki Carvers files...
 
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