bluejay Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 what kind of steel are nicholson files made of?are they oil or water quench? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Shoot them an email, and see what they say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferrous Beuler Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 I don't know the answer to your question bluejay but I do know Nicholson files are no longer made in the USA, they are made in Mexico now. The USA made Nicholsons are fortunately a fairly common flea market find and that's where I get mine. I have not tried the Hecho En Mexico versions yet and won't ever bother because they have gotten horrible reviews on several internet forums. Just google "nicholson files made in mexico" and read all the horror stories for yourself on the various forums. So... If you want quality files to use just do as I and probably an awful lot of folks do and chicken hawk your local flea markets yard sales and farm auctions. I hear good things about this brand, Swiss made~ http://www.grobetusa.com/ If you want Nicholsons to use as knife forging stock I'm sure someone will be along with the particulars for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgirard13 Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Lots of new files are case hardened these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rainbows Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 If the Mexican files are soft then what are the Brazilian made ones like? In England the new Nicholson files are made in Brazil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 I know as of at least a couple of years ago, the Brazilian files where through hardened. One got dropped in my store and broke. It still wouldn't cut as good as a rusty old Black Diamond. Our mill files still say "Made in USA". I'd read somewhere that Nicholson used 1095, or something similar. The ones I've played with forged and heat treated similar too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I just contacted Apex who owns Nicholson. I'll let you know if they respond. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcusb Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Dont know what they are made of, but when they made the switch to mexcio I bought every usa made one I can find, Got a pretty good pile, good things come and go I guess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohio Rusty Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I like the old Nicholson files and Black Diamond files for making flint strikers. I've found a few really rusted or worn out files and they get bought just for making firesteels. Ohio Rusty ><> The Ohio Frontier Forge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KYBOY Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 They are(were anyway) made from simple carbon steel of around 1.25% carbon content.I still use them and they act just like they always did..Ive seen several spec tests done on them..In thin sections, oil quench..The tink fairy will visit you in the water often..Normalize,normalize....normalize.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 I sent an email to APEX customer service, and received a phone call from their materials guy, Russ. He couldn't tell me the exact alloy that they use due to company policy,but he gave me some info about what they do use. 1. Machinists files have used the same alloy for over 50 years, Russ has been there 47 IIRC. Rasps, and other lesser files are a lower carbon alloy as a really high carbon isn't needed to work with hooves/wood. No matter where the files are made, they all meet the same specs. 2. Some machinists files are either case, or pack hardened, to add even more carbon. 3. He said treating them like W1 for heat treating would be a good choice. 4. They have had to deal with counterfeit files from Asia. Some copied their logo very well, but it hasn't been a problem for a few years now. So, those are the deets straight from the factory. Russ was quite nice about the whole question and answer session I gave him, and I understand trade secrets, so I an grateful for the info he afforded us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGUNDOCTOR Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Maybe Glenn can put this info in the sticky section. The more info we get from the actual manufactures the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HennieL Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 what kind of steel are nicholson files made of?are they oil or water quench? My research suggest that the USA and Canada made files were made from 1095 high carbon steel. I have made a few knives and daggers from old Nicholson files (mostly Canadian), and can confirm that they heat-treat beautifully using the 1095 HT figures. Due to the high carbon content it is not a very easy steel to treat properly in a forge, as one need to maintain pretty accurate temperatures and soak times, but using an electric kiln it's a breeze. Spheroidize anneal at 650°C for 2-3 hours, harden at 800°C (soak for 10 minutes at this temperature), quench in brine if blade is thicker than 4mm, else in a very fast oil, and temper twice at 230°C for two hours each. Good luck Hennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meltymanart Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 A few years late to the party but almost every knife and axe blade I've made has been made from an old Nicholson file. When I first started trying to heat treat my blades I quenched in motor oil and could rarely get my file to skate without doing multiple quenches. I did more research and found that Nicholson files are basically made from W1 tool steel, which is a water or brine hardening steel. Now when I quench I either do a very quick initial quench in the oil (maybe 2 seconds) before a full quench in hot water, or go directly into very hot water. This ensures a perfectly hardened blade and I've never had a blade crack on me. If normalized and forged properly warping is not common, though if you do have a warp after the quench you have much less time to correct it than a standard oil quench, I learned this the hard way. I love Nicholson files for blades, they are extremely resilient to damage and wear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted March 8, 2019 Share Posted March 8, 2019 2 hours ago, meltymanart said: late to the party Welcome to IFI Please read this it will help you get the best out of the forum. READ THIS FIRST Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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