Tapping Head

george tichbourne

george tichbourne

Joined
Apr 19, 1999
Messages
3,560
I have avoided purchasing a tapping head for a long time but now that I have decided to start making tactical folders I broke down and ordered one.

I got a Sowa unit for small taps and tried it out the other day.

I din't have the correct drill size for the #2 tap so I went ahead and tapped a hole drillled for a 0-80 screw with the #2 tap. It was very tight but it went through a slick as you would want with no tap breakage.

I can't figure out why I didn't go this way before, given the price of taps and the rate at which I was breaking them.

George
 
I'm on my second tapper. I bought my first in 1984 and the inside of my thumb and wrist have never been better. It's still a thing of wonder when you're tapping a couple hundred holes in an hour or so without any breaks. The tapper also allowed me to get a tighter thread, no more over size holes. Now I just have to figure out how to use the drill press without using my shoulder and arm.
 
I have the exact same one.

The first day i got it, i did my best to break some taps in scrap & couldn't do it.
Big smile on my face
 
I have a procunier brand and love it. I use the standard size drilled hole called out for on the drill/tap charts without oversizing it and don't break any taps either.
 
I have gone ahead and purchased some coated gun taps for use with this machine because they have a thinner shank above the thread so nothing will jam if I go too far. Expensive though.

George
 
What kind of tap should we buy? I've broken taps and blamed it on cheapass taps! Which ones will tap hundredes of holes?
 
Bruce,
I tap very many 10-24 holes for my file guides. I'm tapping stock from 1/4" up to 3/8" using a # 23 bit for roughly 75% thread.I bought a box of 12 Greenfield taps last fall and I still have 12 left. These things cut like a raped ape but are pretty expensive. Individually they sell for 12-14 bucks. I also swap them around every couple dozen holes.

The box says (well it doesn't say anything really), but you know what I mean:
EM- stainless steel spiral flute
GH5 NC 10-24
I also bought them in 3/8-16 with the same results. Use tapping fluid religiously too.
 
Mine are Greenfield EM-Stainless Steel Gun 2-56 GH3 NC Plug.

I have used them before for hand tapping and they are quite good.

George
 
I use a 5/64 with a forming tap.
I cut them down by about 1/2 and grind a new point on them.
Im taping .182 thick titanium and it takes 3 or 4 times of backing out and back in to get through.
 
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