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Slightly off topic - Abrafiles

E

Eric the Viking

Nordic Pine
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Andy's thread on the Shetack saw reminded me: i was going through my late father's stuff last week and came across a bundle of Abrafiles. Whoopee!!!

They are staggeringly useful if you want to cut complex shapes in all manner of sheet metal. They also are superb for doing diecast metal boxes for small electronic projects, e.g. for IEC mains inlets and outlets.

I now have quite a few (probably sufficient to see me out in due course), but I still find it surprising that no tool manufacturer seems to have revived them. You can get tile saws, with sharp-ish lumps of carbide stuck to a rod, but not Abrafiles as such. And the few, inferior attempts I've seen on-line are both too short (they tend to fit coping saws), and have lumpy arrangements at the ends, so they won't pass through small holes.

So Abrafiles: gone! Unless someone (who gets out more than me) knows different. Does anyone know of a secret source, or even a stash somewhere?

Wild optimism I know, but every time I tension one up to use I'm nervous in case I break it ("can't get any more"). Time was when I used to go for a musical note before starting...

E.

PS: There was a thread about a stash on one of the model engineering forums, but back in 2023. I think they all sold fairly fast. And yes, I have the adaptors with the 'posh' clips, as well as the ornery ones.
 
They're circular cross-section, usually about 1/16" diameter with little bumps on each end, and fit into a hacksaw frame with adapters.

They have teeth similar to a file, and come (came) in varing degrees of coarseness. The idea is you feed one end through a small starter hole, and they will then cut like a fretsaw or coping saw does in wood. They're superb for rectangular holes or any other awkward shape - obviously you can clean up any corners that need to be fairly square with a hand file, etc.

I think there might have been a short version that did fit a coping saw frame or similar, but mine are the two lengths of ordinary hacksaw blades, (minus a little bit for the adapters).

I can't get to them to photograph them presently, but will if I get a moment.
 
I remember using them (in a junior hacksaw frame if memory serves) to cut some acrylic up (in school) many year ago. I'd wondered what had happened to them as I hadn't heard of them since. Guess they didn't sell enough to be worth keeping them on the market.
 
Search rod saws or rod saw blades and you'll get more. Most will have the swaged end for hacksaw pins rather than the ones Eric mentioned. There are also different lengths to be had too.

Pete
 
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