There are many rasps that you may see advertised as dry wall rasps although they have not been designed solely for this purpose. These rasps work excellently on plasterboard and can also be used on many other materials such as wood, clay and foam.
Pocket rasp
Like dry wall-specific rasps, these rasps are shorter than other designs and made to fit easily in a pocket. The handles can be made out of either cast metal (usually aluminium alloy) or plastic, and are available in several different styles.
Plastic handle pocket rasp
The plastic handle of these rasps is made by a manufacturing process called injection moulding (see How are dry wall rasps made?). This process allows the body or handle of the rasp to be shaped to make it comfortable and easy to use.
Cast metal pocket rasp
This type of rasp has a handle made of a cast metal (usually aluminium alloy). As the plasterboard is filed away, the plaster dust collects within the handle/body, allowing it to be tipped and cleaned out afterwards.
The blade fitted to these files are usually fine-toothed, which will give a smoother finish to the plasterboard edge but means they do not remove as much material with each stroke. The blades can be replaced quickly and easily once they become dull.
Two-handle rasps
The two-handle rasp is essentially a larger version of the pocket rasp that has two handles. It is grasped with two hands and used with the same action you would use with a plane. Like the cast metal-handled pocket rasp, the blades of these are usually fine-toothed, but as the blade is much longer more material is removed with each stroke.
You can replace the blades of these rasps just as on some of the pocket rasps (see How to replace the blade of a dry wall rasp).
Multi-tool rasps
These rasps incorporate several tools in one. Along with the rasp, they will most frequently feature a utility knife and/or a plasterboard saw (also known as a jab or keyhole saw).
Multi-tool rasps that feature a utility knife or a plasterboard saw allow one tool to be used for cutting, shaping and trimming plasterboard. This can be a handy way of saving money and space within your tool box, but you must ask yourself how well the multi-tool rasp will do each job compared to individual specialist tools for each role.
These tools are ideal for electricians and other trades people who may need to re-shape a small section or cut holes in plasterboard, but are not frequently having to shape full sized plasterboard sheets.
Shaver rasps
These rasps are made of plastic. They have a short body and a long handle.
The slightly curved blade is replaceable and shorter than on other types of rasp.