Good File (for FINISHING Only!) - Solid construction, great ergonomics, reasonable price, & works well for small finishing tasks
Thus far, I am very satisfied with the Coastal Pet stainless steel Nail File. It was reasonably priced, it has good ergonomics that allows me to get good leverage and get the job done. MY NEEDS FOR A FILE I purchased this file for my rabbit. Rabbits have extremely tough nails that are extremely hard, and on bigger bunnies they are very thick. The same complications apply with larger dogs, so I generally purchase dog clippers for her. With extremely hard nails, I need a clipper that is sharp and can cut at a very precise angle (if it can't, it will fracture/crack the nails, which is incredibly painful and a medical issue.) I have clippers that can do that, but the downside is it leaves a very, very, very sharp angle on the nail (more or less, a "bur."). This can snag on carpet and result in serious injury. So a critical step in clipping her nails involved filing them to avoid that kind of situation. I have tried a lot of products including mechanical ones. To date, I find the easiest thing for my application is still a good manual file. PRODUCT DESCRIPTION I have had luck with other products from the Coastal & Safari names so I figured it was a good choice. Measuring about 8 inches in overall length (with a file blade length of about 3.25 inches, a handle length of about 4.75 inches, and a tapering handle width of about 1.2 inches at its thickest point), this file is extremely lightweight. With a good-sized handle and a good-sized blade, the size makes this capable of handling nails of all sizes. The grip is an ergonomic rubberized grip and large enough so even larger hands can get leverage on it. The construction of the file itself is advertised as being a stainless steel head with diamonds, and the file itself is curved. As others have noted, this is a FINISHING file. It is nowhere near being coarse/aggressive enough to be used solely to upkeep nails (it would take hours to use it in this fashion.) It does not remove a lot of material as its primary purpose is to allow you to remove the sharp edges that occur from the usage of clippers, and leave a smooth edge after usage. (On a side note, if you DO want a product that can grind nails in place of having to cut them at all, Dremel makes a product for this and unlike the Peticure and other products, it is extremely effective & practical.) MY USAGE OF THIS PRODUCT For my need of finishing cut nails to remove the sharp burs, this Coastal file has worked well for me. While I wish this was a little more aggressive, it has enough bite to do its job. I find the rubberized grip helps me attain more precision by reducing slipping, and by making the file itself curved that it reduces slipping. For the money, it gets the job done and it seems to be reasonably well made. I will update this listing in a few years on how well the file holds up after extended use, but as of now I am satisfied with this product and I recommend it to others. Read more
