Posted by David Sherman on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 at 4:48PM :
In Reply to: Re: Taps and dies posted by Ken See on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 at 2:01PM :
I buy they whole set, then individually replace them when I break them, find out they cost 4X as much one-at-a-time, and then learn how to tap carefully and not break them. Of course if I need an odd size, I have to buy it separately, like the 1/2-12 tap and die I needed to rebuild an old Hall & Brown lumber planer that was built with all Whitworth threads. Fortunately most Whitworth threads are the same pitch as UNC, and if the difference in thread profile interferes with a UNC screw or nut, the a UNC tap or die can be run down the Whitworth part to make it fit.
Those old taps in the neat little slide-top finger-jointed wood boxes are a great find. I have a few of my grandfather's that he had for working on his donkeys, and I take real good care of them compared to the Chinese ones I use most of the time. Of course the old ones are all made in the USA and are top-quality tool steel. Some of the Chinese ones are plain old carbon steel and wouldn't cut a thread on anything, but if you can get them for next to nothing at a yard sale, they're good for cleaning badly rusted threads that would chip a good tap or die.
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