nicholson files

[jackie]

i bought some 8"nicholson  files at a flea market. went camping and after the wood had burned down to just coals i placed the files in the coals. next morning retrived the files. worked because i could drill holes in them for the handle. some of the files were sort of warped do i need to clamp them togeather or how do you keep the from warping and twisting  thank you jackie

[Lin Rhea]

Warpage in your case might be from uneven heating and/or cooling. There's not much control of that in a camp fire.

You might try to eliminate one factor by getting the blades a low red heat and sticking them in a container of powdered lime or wood ashes. Remember this would not be a chemical reaction, it's the insulating qualities that are working.  Then at least the cooling would be even. I feel like that would be a good start. Lin

[longbowman]

Question on this posting.  Does he need to do any more heat treating on these files once he's worked them into the blade he wants?

[Lin Rhea]

Yes, sticking them in the fire to heat (low red color) and then slow cool serves to remove most of the hardness the company imparted to it. So, after the grinding/filing of the blade to shape, you will have to harden it again and draw it back to proper knife hardness.

One thing you should remember about modern made files is that some of them are not as good a steel as the old ones. That's why I prefer to use known steels. Lin

[longbowman]

Thank you!