How awesome do my tools have to be?
It’s easy to get carried away when adding tools to my shop. The options for used antique hand tools are not very broad in the Edmonton area, so it’s tempting to get in the habit of just splashing out for high quality new stuff from one of the contemporary makers. When it came to buying a rasp last year, it was not so easy to make a decision about my purchase. I knew I needed a rasp, but it wasn’t a tool that topped my list of sexy shop items. So it wasn’t encouraging to see the price of a good Auriou or Liogier rasp.
I spent some time reading online reviews and figured out that the primary feature I valued in a rasp is that it be hand-stitched. This just means that a machine did not create a perfectly uniform spacing and depth of tooth on the tool. Stitching the teeth by hand leaves a non-uniform pattern which helps prevent each tooth just dropping into the cut created by the tooth directly in front of it, sot it’s a more efficiently-cutting tool.
Problem is, being hand-stitched seems to be one of the primary features responsible for the high price of the Auriou and Liogier rasps.
BUT…there is another option. Lee Valley, in addition to selling the top-shelf rasps, also carries a line of Ajax hand-stitched rasps for a great price. They’re not as beautiful with their chunky black plastic handles (that was easy to knock off and replace with a wooden handle I turned on my lathe), but the price was definitely right. But here’s the kicker: when I went in to make the purchase, there was apparently an error in their system, and I walked out with the rasp for about 30% below catalogue price. I even gave them the chance to double-check the pricing because I’m such an exemplary human specimen.
At the end of the day, I’m very happy with my rasp. I only wish I had a few more of various sizes and forms. Unfortunately, the Ajax brand does not include more than the basic types. -m
Hey Marty 