# What is best and easiest tapping method?



## ome (Sep 14, 2013)

Without power on lathe or drill press, or a manual 250.00tapping machine. 
Wanted to still develop the feel for tapping, so did not want a tapping head for my mill. 
Thanks 
jon


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## Tom Griffin (Sep 14, 2013)

Not sure exactly what you are asking, but there are lots of ways to tap. The most obvious is to simply hand tap by holding the tap in a tap handle, starting it square and breaking the chip every half turn or so. You can also use a tapping head in a drill press or mill. My favorite method is to power tap in the lathe or mill, or with a cordless drill. This requires a two flute spiral point tap, a good grade of tapping fluid and a light grip in the chuck of the machine driving the tap. I'm planning on doing a video on power tapping over the next few days. It's the method I use most of the time.

Tom


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## Bill C. (Sep 14, 2013)

ome said:


> Without power on lathe or drill press, or a manual 250.00tapping machine.
> Wanted to still develop the feel for tapping, so did not want a tapping head for my mill.
> Thanks
> jon



If I understand your question correctly you have a milling machine.  Using a two fluted tap mount it in a drill chuck. Put the spindle in neutral or loosen the drive belt. Start the tap by gently bring the spindle and tap into the hole and hand turn it until you make at least three or four turns.  Loosen the chuck and move the spindle out of the way and use a tapping handle to finish threading the hole.  If using a four fluted tap you will need to back it out after every turn to remove the chips. Thats how I do it.  Use a good cutting fluid too.


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## SteelSlicer (Sep 14, 2013)

Whenever possible, make the hole a through hole and use a spiral pointed (not spiral fluted) tap.  Some people refer to them as "gun" taps.  That kind of tap pushes the chip ahead of the tap, and you don't have to stop and reverse direction to break the chip like you do with a hand tap.  If you have to tap a blind hole, spiral fluted taps work well, because the force the chip back out of the hole.  If you only have hand taps, you have to back off and break the chip every turn, but a through hole still keeps the chips from packing up on the bottom.  Also, if you're not doing a large number of holes, drill the tap hole, don't move the table, and use the spindle to guide your tap handle.  Most smalle T-handle tap wrenches have a chamfered hole in the end so you can put a spring-loaded center against it, and some larger taps (1/2-13 and up) have a center hole in the end of the tap and you can do the same thing while using a larger tap handle.


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## bob vaughan (Sep 14, 2013)

Here's what a spiral point tap does.  This is on the mill, shutting off the machine before the tap enters, letting the tap coast in, and hitting reverse quickly when the tap goes completely through.  1/2" thick steel with a 5/16" tap.


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## DMS (Sep 14, 2013)

I like to use a spring loaded tap guide. These chuck in the spindle, and apply downward pressure on the tap, and help to stabilize it. You then drive the tap by hand. I don't think I have ever broken a tap doing this. The devices themselves are pretty cheap.

http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PARTPG=INLMKD&PMPXNO=5810267&PMAKA=325-5179


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## OccupantRJ (Sep 14, 2013)

I usually power tap with the mill in back gear using a two flute gun tap. The slow speed gives you plenty of time to react to go into reverse at the proper time.


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## clevinski (Sep 14, 2013)

ome said:


> Without power on lathe or drill press, or a manual 250.00tapping machine.
> Wanted to still develop the feel for tapping, so did not want a tapping head for my mill.
> Thanks
> jon



Jon,

I personally found that tapping by hand was MUCH easier when I converted an old drill press a friend gave me to a tapping stand.  This keeps the tap square to the work (which I normally mount in a small drill press vise) and makes the whole operation simple, while decreasing the risk of broken taps from going in at an angle.  You can also use a drill press (without power) by simply chucking the tap and placing the handle of the chuck key in the tightening holes to turn it.  Apply a LITTLE downward pressure until the threads are started.  Go forward 1/2 turn, then back one full turn to break the chip, then forward one turn so you are back where you stopped, and repeat.  Every 3-4 turns, when you feel it's getting hard to tap, back the tap all the way out, clean it (I use a chip brush), and recoat tap and hole with tapping fluid.  I found that, for me, the best tapping fluid (which is important for easiest tapping) is Tap Magic Pro-Tap.  Good luck!

- - - Updated - - -



bob vaughan said:


> Here's what a spiral point tap does.  This is on the mill, shutting off the machine before the tap enters, letting the tap coast in, and hitting reverse quickly when the tap goes completely through.  1/2" thick steel with a 5/16" tap.



Well, that's certainly the fastest tapping method I've seen!


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## itsme_Bernie (Sep 14, 2013)

DMS said:


> I like to use a spring loaded tap guide. These chuck in the spindle, and apply downward pressure on the tap, and help to stabilize it. You then drive the tap by hand. I don't think I have ever broken a tap doing this. The devices themselves are pretty cheap.
> 
> http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PARTPG=INLMKD&PMPXNO=5810267&PMAKA=325-5179



This is what I use too, and I use the one I made even more often, with a thinner shank.  


Bernie


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## itsme_Bernie (Sep 14, 2013)

clevinski said:


> Jon,
> 
> I personally found that tapping by hand was MUCH easier when I converted an old drill press a friend gave me to a tapping stand.  This keeps the tap square to the work (which I normally mount in a small drill press vise) and makes the whole operation simple, while decreasing the risk of broken taps from going in at an angle.  You can also use a drill press (without power) by simply chucking the tap and placing the handle of the chuck key in the tightening holes to turn it.  Apply a LITTLE downward pressure until the threads are started.  Go forward 1/2 turn, then back one full turn to break the chip, then forward one turn so you are back where you stopped, and repeat.  Every 3-4 turns, when you feel it's getting hard to tap, back the tap all the way out, clean it (I use a chip brush), and recoat tap and hole with tapping fluid.  I found that, for me, the best tapping fluid (which is important for easiest tapping) is Tap Magic Pro-Tap.  Good luck!
> 
> ...



Charlie!  Did you ever post pics of that?  I'd love to see it!



Bernie


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## nightowl499 (Sep 15, 2013)

TomG said:


> Not sure exactly what you are asking, but there are lots of ways to tap. The most obvious is to simply hand tap by holding the tap in a tap handle, starting it square and breaking the chip every half turn or so. You can also use a tapping head in a drill press or mill. My favorite method is to power tap in the lathe or mill, or with a cordless drill. This requires a two flute spiral point tap, a good grade of tapping fluid and a light grip in the chuck of the machine driving the tap. I'm planning on doing a video on power tapping over the next few days. It's the method I use most of the time.
> 
> Tom



cant wiat to see the video ,


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## Frank Ford (Sep 15, 2013)

There are lots of ways to tap by power or hand, but BY FAR the most significant issue for me was the tap itself.  Once I discovered high speed steel spiral point taps, I was hooked.

Giving and throwing away all my old Hanson, Craftsman, and other carbon steel taps was the single most significant thing I did to improve my tapping ability, confidence and accuracy.  My problem of jamming and breaking taps was eliminated immediately, and I even had far less difficulty guiding them by hand.  Lubrication is necessary for good results, but a good tap with any old oil works way better by hand compared to a cheap tap with the best technique and lube.


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## metalman (Sep 15, 2013)

Jon,
To answer your question, the easiest and cheapest way to tap a hole without a lathe or drill press... IMHO is to use a tapping block to get the tap started..  You can buy a tap guide like this for around $25-$30: 


Or you can make one easy enough. It can just is a piece of scrap flat bar with a hole the size of thew tap to keep the tap perfectly perpendicular to the work. To make the  tapping block with out a drill press, drill a hole the size of the tap at least twice the thickness of the diameter of  the tap. You can use another scrap of flat bar with a vee grove cut or  filed on one side as a guide to keep the drill perpendicular. Then simply position the tapping guide over the hole on the  work that needs to be tapped. Apply tapping fluid and start tapping the  hole. After several threads have been cut, the  tapping block can be removed and the tap will guide itself. 

My other favorite low cost tapping guide is a tap handle that has telescopic guide base. I liked my first one so much I got another one when it was on sale. They cost about $45 now.


Like others, I'm a big fan of good spiral point machine taps too.


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## Philco (Sep 15, 2013)

Frank Ford said:


> There are lots of ways to tap by power or hand, but BY FAR the most significant issue for me was the tap itself.  Once I discovered high speed steel spiral point taps, I was hooked.
> 
> Giving and throwing away all my old Hanson, Craftsman, and other carbon steel taps was the single most significant thing I did to improve my tapping ability, confidence and accuracy.  My problem of jamming and breaking taps was eliminated immediately, and I even had far less difficulty guiding them by hand.  Lubrication is necessary for good results, but a good tap with any old oil works way better by hand compared to a cheap tap with the best technique and lube.



Frank is absolutely correct about the high speed steel spiral point taps. The first time I used a quality tap over the cheap tap I thought I had drilled the hole oversize because the tap went in so easy. There is nothing more frustrating than spending a bunch of time on a project & then breaking a tap off in the last stages. Save the cheap taps to clean out threaded holes that are rusty or are full of dirt.
Phil


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