In the world of files, a Stainless Steel Hand File is quite a rare specimen! Steritool is the only manufacturer of stainless steel files in the world. The files are available in Bastard, Fine, Medium and Coarse grades and in various lengths and widths.

In what type of situation would such a hand file be necessary? It is usually in a situation that the object being altered with the file has already been passivated to remove "free iron" and to initiate the formation of the passive layer. By using a stainless steel file the minimum of iron is transferred to the surface of the stainless item being worked on, so less passivation will be required to restore the passive layer.

Applications where this applies are in critical material applications in industries such as jet turbine, aerospace, nuclear, pharma, biotech, high purity water, high purity vacuum, stainless steel fabrication, architectural fabrication, nanotechnology and others. The files are manufactured from 440C type stainless(vacuum hardened to 60HRC) with a welded 316 stainless handle and passivated to ASTM A697.

The process of passivation is sometimes misunderstood. It is not a scale removal treatment, nor anything similar to a coat of paint. It is a post-fabrication method of maximizing the inherent corrosion resistance of the stainless steel from which the work piece was made.

Not everyone agrees on the precise mechanics of how passivation works. It is certain, however, that a protective oxide film exists on the surface of passive stainless steel before it is fabricated. This invisible film is extremely thin, about 100,000 times thinner than a human hair!

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