{{Short description|Filing tool}} {{About|the filing tool||RASP (disambiguation)}} {{more citations needed|date=June 2016}} thumb|Fine wood rasp [[File:HoofRasp.jpg|thumb|Farrier using a two-sided file, double-cut on the visible side and rasp cut against a horse's hoof]]
A '''rasp''' is a coarse form of file used for shaping wood, metal, or other material. Typically a hand tool, it consists of a generally tapered rectangular, round, or half-round sectioned bar of case hardened steel with distinct, individually cut teeth. A narrow, pointed tang is common at one end, to which a handle may be fitted.<ref name="lye 12" >{{Citation | last = Lye | first = P. F. | title = Metalwork theory, Book 1 | publisher = Nelson Thornes | year = 1993 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=bM01FIZce7IC | isbn = 978-0-17-444313-1 | postscript =.|pages=12–13}}</ref>
== Uses == Rasps come in a variety of shapes—rectangular, round, and half-round—and vary in coarseness, from finest, "cabinet", to most coarse, "wood".<ref>{{cite book |author=Hasluck |first=Paul N. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AjZ-EvlC38MC&pg=PA119 |title=The Handyman's Guide: Essential Woodworking Tools and Techniques |date=February 2011 |publisher=Skyhorse Publishing |isbn=978-1-60239-173-4 |page=119}}</ref> Farriers, for example, commonly use rasps to remove excess wall from a horse's hoof. They are also used in woodworking for rapidly removing material and are easier to control than a drawknife. The rough surfaces they leave may be smoothed with finer tools, such as single- or double-cut files.
Rasps are used in shaping alabaster. Saws and chisels are used to rough out alabaster work.
Machine-made rasps have uniformly stamped teeth. They often leave deeper marks as rows of teeth follow each other exactly, and will require a subsequent smoothing step.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wood |first=Tools For Working |title=All About Rasps and Rifflers in Woodworking |url=https://toolsforworkingwood.com/store/more/AU-Info.html |access-date=2025-07-16 |website=toolsforworkingwood.com |language=en-US}}</ref> A hand-cut rasp is still a premium tool for carving work, as the slight variation in tooth spacing avoids this 'tramline' effect and so they are still available, at a price.
== See also == * Metalworking hand tool * Surform * Woodworking tools
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{Commons|position=left}}
{{Cutting and abrasive tools}} {{Woodworking}}
Category:Alabaster Category:Files (tool) Category:Metalworking hand tools Category:Woodworking hand tools
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