Luthiery Laboratories

This is a half-round bastard file from Home Depot. Half-rounds have the most aggressive teeth of any file, on both sides, but not as dangerous as rasps. Mine see as much use as all the others put together - they are terrific on wood. I have no problem sanding out the marks from the file. The last couple of necks here were done a lot more with the half-round than the Japanese files. These come in 6, 9, and 12-inch sizes; all are useful.

Here's a trick: files usually go dull near the end, that's where they get used the most. If you have an angle grinder or some other kind of ceramic cutter, just cut an inch off, smooth over the cut end, and you have a new file !!! Home Depot recently gave me a little angle grinder that would cost as much as three or four good replacement files. Like a bench grinder, this is a tool that quickly pays for itself. You can also grind the end of a file into a handy little chisel. Always remember to grind the burr off the handle of a new file.