Recommendation for a tap handle

[country gent]

several things help with a well done tapping job.1) a hole of the correct size and round and straight 2) a good cutting fluid thicker is better on blind holes a wax or grease style will help push the chips up and out. 3) chamfer the hole this makes it easier to start and turn the tap Top and bottom. to thread dia or a little bigger. 4) how you turn the tap makes a big difference also. Simply turning it in will give a long chip that may bind or wedge A back and forth rotation breaks the chips into small piece making them more manageable. 5) Last and this is a big one once the tap is started let it cut and pull itself thru dont try to force it with added pressure. 6) turn smooth and even rotate it with out bending or flexing. Taps are good for hundreds of holes in a machine or tapping fixture since there is no flex or bending.

[bangerjim]

Three choices in my several tool cabinets:

Starrett, Starrett, ................and Starrett.

Can't beat the quality or accuracy. I have 2 of them that are 100 years old an still goin' strong!


Buy quality and you only buy ONCE.

[alamogunr]

I've got a drawer full of taps and wrenches that were in a roll around tool box that I bought as excess when I was working. Now I have a few more that I got to fill gaps when I had a need. One thing I have is a set of Greenlee pipe taps that I got when I cleaned out the garage when I was serving as executor of the estate of an aunt that passed away. They had been in the garage for at least 15 years after my uncle passed. I've never used them but have loaned them to friends that had a need. Always returned. Good friends.

Many of the taps in the drawer are strange sizes and standards and are mostly used in machines rather than hand tapping. Doesn't matter to me. If they are the right size they probably will work. Kind of tough to get some of them started but I usually look around for a start tap and use the machine taps as bottoming taps if needed.

It was from this assortment that I learned about special taps for pressure applications. Don't remember what they were called.

[country gent]

Another thing to watch out for is the small dull tap. They will get you every time. Ive seen taps show a marked twist in the cut rotation as they dull its time to replace them. Using a tap to long is a recipe for failure. LOL. When the starting or plug gets dull grind it to a bottom, Another in tough jobs is to modify the tap to where the threads and flutes are only as long as you need, this makes for a much stiffer stronger tap.

On production tapping in a machine cutter grinders did this to new taps cutting off and sharpening to just the needed length. these shorter taps would tap a lot of holes in a days time before needing replaced.

[Dapaki]

I have a few handles of various price points but an old SEARS one remains the most used, the barrel nut moves smoothly, locks up well and the ratchet is tight. I have welded nuts to the back of some, turned the tails down to fit a drill press chuck and even welded on stock and turned it down to fit the M2 Taper on my mini lathe.

Use what works for you but I would think about Shars if I were looking for new.

[indian joe]

Spanners are for nuts and bolts - the crescent wrench is for when you forgot to bring the right size spanner (or too lazy to go get it) .........any cheap junky tap wrench will beat a crescent wrench or socket ratchet all day every day for turning a tap -----do yourself a favour - get the tap wrench.
And yes the drill press is an ideal way to start a thread straight - or the tailstock of a lathe if its a hole in a piece of round like a ramrod thread etc --

[Shopdog]

Old,Starrett.... Greenfield,and a very nice big Columbian here. Amongst several home brews.

One trick to using a long tap handle;

Used in conjunction with a drill press,you can use the tap handle(with tap installed) as a center locator for the part. Get the leade part of tap in the hole,with a pin in the chuck to fit snuggly into the area above tap.... created by the jaws of the handle. Or,a tapered pin to locate in the tap's center.

Then stand back and check the X and Y axis for the part being directly under the chuck. It should appear as a perfect,level,and square cross.... like a large "t" . You're gonna see even the slightest of misalignment. Try it.

We have a Bridgeport with ALL the bellsNwhistles(co ax,edge,and center finders,yadayada).... and still use the above visual check on a longish tap handle. This is one more reason to buy quality tooling. It isn't "always" apparent what other conveniences they offer.

Good luck with your project.

[Dimner]

Old,Starrett.... Greenfield,and a very nice big Columbian here. Amongst several home brews.

One trick to using a long tap handle;

Used in conjunction with a drill press,you can use the tap handle(with tap installed) as a center locator for the part. Get the leade part of tap in the hole,with a pin in the chuck to fit snuggly into the area above tap.... created by the jaws of the handle. Or,a tapered pin to locate in the tap's center.

Then stand back and check the X and Y axis for the part being directly under the chuck. It should appear as a perfect,level,and square cross.... like a large "t" . You're gonna see even the slightest of misalignment. Try it.

We have a Bridgeport with ALL the bellsNwhistles(co ax,edge,and center finders,yadayada).... and still use the above visual check on a longish tap handle. This is one more reason to buy quality tooling. It isn't "always" apparent what other conveniences they offer.

Good luck with your project.

do you have a pic of what this looks like? I'm trying to visualize it. Even if it's not your own pic, something from google images?

Thank you so much everyone, tap and drill bit comes today, tap handle comes tomorrow. Excited to start practicing.

[country gent]

A lot make a little spring loaded plunger with a 60* point on the plunger it goes in the chuck and is compressed then when turning the tap spring pressure has it feeding and following the tap down keeping it straight and centered

[Shopdog]

Just a quick pic. If the C/L of the hole,isn't inline with the chuck,the tap handle will show it visually,dang quick.

[Daver7]

A lot make a little spring loaded plunger with a 60* point on the plunger it goes in the chuck and is compressed then when turning the tap spring pressure has it feeding and following the tap down keeping it straight and centered

^^^^^^^^^
thats the way we do it.

[jorg0370]

Thanks for all the ideas guys. I ended up going with a park tools th-1. It's a pretty good brand and less than 20 bucks. Description says it goes from #0 to 5/16". So that should be good for me until I can get to the flea market and look for a few vintage ones in the appropriate sizes.

And country gent, thank you very much for that writeup. This summer when the robotics team is doing projects to increase their skills on fabrication, I'm going to add this to the list. It will be a great project for them. I have always found that the most satisfying and educational projects have been the ones where I am making my own tools.

I was going to recommend the Park Tools tap wrench. I picked one up last summer after breaking the cheap one in a $20 metric set. The difference in quality is remarkable. I've had decades of good experience with Park Tools, they're well known in the professional bicycle community.