By Tom and Kay Benham, Contributing Editors, Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist
Metalsmiths often experience difficulty generating a long edge that is flat, straight and square when using the traditional 6" jewelers file. The method we recommend is the opposite of what is usually taught -- instead, we bring the metal to the file and not the file to the metal.
We use a large 14" fine cut file, sold as a Formica file for smoothing the edges of countertops. We place the file flat on the bench top then, holding the metal in a vertical position, pull it along the cutting surface of the file. We find this method generates a long, flat and square edge in a fraction of the time of the traditional method.