Review: Narex Premium Hand Stitched Rasps

Review: Narex Premium Hand Stitched Rasps These rasps are nice and sharp, and the quality of the hand stitching is perfectly irregular.These three Narex Premium Hand Stitched Rasps are ready to work right from the package. The hornbeam handles are a nice size, have a modest finish that I found favorable for gripping, and are also a comfortable shape to hold. The transition from the brass ferrule to the handle is smooth, which eliminates the risk of snagging your hand on a rough edge. My hands are on the smaller side, so a handle that isn’t overpowering is important for me. With that being said, I think these handles hit the mark perfectly for an average hand size. I put the rasps through their paces, working on end-grain red oak while shaping stool seats to a convex curve. I found them to have a nice balance overall, from the comfortable handle to the rasp’s length and width. The rasps feature 9 in. of toothed surface in this useful half-round shape. There were no clogging issues, and the rasps cut cleanly and quickly. They are nice and sharp, and the quality of the hand stitching is perfectly irregular, which leads to quick cuts and the ability to remove the previous scratch pattern well. Hand stitching is also preferable because the stitches go to the edges of the rasp, giving more working surface. The set transitions well through the various grains (levels of coarseness), from a heavier cutting action with the coarse rasp to a prescraping or presanding finish with the fine one. I approached my testing of these tools with a critical eye, but I do not have a complaint. I would recommend these to any woodworker looking to add rasps to their hand-tool cabinet. —Ashley Pieper is a furniture maker/designer in Pennsylvania. Narex Premium Hand Stitched Rasps $95 to $150 each, $330 for set of three Fine Woodworking Recommended Products Veritas Wheel Marking Gauge Tite-Mark Marking Gauge Starrett 4" Double Square Log in or create an account to post a comment. Sign up Log in