CDCO HSS tap and die set

P. Waller said:
Why would one buy a "set"?
Please explain this.
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I get why a person that has few or no taps would buy a set. The problem is that a decent quality set doesn't come cheap and possibly won't have the particular tap you need for that special project. If you're patient you can buy taps as you need them and pick up lots of them that you don't necessarily need as they come along. Auctions, garage sales, ect.....before long you'll have more taps, dies, reamers, and drills than you know what to do with.
 
Chuck K said:
I get why a person that has few or no taps would buy a set. The problem is that a decent quality set doesn't come cheap and possibly won't have the particular tap you need for that special project. If you're patient you can buy taps as you need them and pick up lots of them that you don't necessarily need as they come along. Auctions, garage sales, ect.....before long you'll have more taps, dies, reamers, and drills than you know what to do with.
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And you still won't have the one you need for that special project...LOL
 
I suppose that I now see the logic,
I have one particular part to make that requires one particular thread so I will buy a set that includes 23 tools that I do not need.
Makes perfect sense (-:
 
When I'm working on a project or making a repair and I need to cut a thread or tap a shaft, I need it at the moment, not a week later. Special ordering a tap or die to complete the work,not only costs the price of the tap or die but also the shipping cost. I could throw a bunch of other things on the order to fill it out but that just adds more stuff that I don't really need. I happen to live in a machine tool wasteland. The last local supplier quit business decades ago. I also happen to be 20 miles from any big box store the might even carry the particular size that I need, forget about a quality tool. A trip into town to buy one carries a asu4rcharge for motor fuel.

I bought my first tap and die set more than forty years ago. A Craftsman SAE set, most of which I still have. I can't honestly say that there is a tap or die that hasn't been used. Over the years, I have added to the collection and have a fairly complete set through 1".

Metric taps and dies are a different story as I didn't have a need for them until comparatively recently. I have some of the smaller sizes of taps and a few dies but nowhere near a complete set. I had the opportunity to pick up a cheap metric set a few years ago and did so. They are there for emergency use and if just one of the the taps or dies does the job it will have paid for the set. Over time, my collection of good metric taps and dies will grow and the cheap set will be replaced. Until then, it fills the gap.
 
Still have my old Craftsman set also. Have a cheap HF set, and have ground a few down to use as bottoming taps. I do enough different types of work, that I doubt I will ever regret having too many. Like most kinds of tools, they are a little like tribbles in nature. Mike
 
The only tap and die set I've ever owned is a HF one and in the last 2-3yrs I've tapped close to 100 holes with it, many power tapped too. Most of the tapping has been in alum and some in cast iron. Either I've gotten lucky so far or I guess I'm not brute forcing them enough lol.
 
stioc said:
The only tap and die set I've ever owned is a HF one and in the last 2-3yrs I've tapped close to 100 holes with it, many power tapped too. Most of the tapping has been in alum and some in cast iron. Either I've gotten lucky so far or I guess I'm not brute forcing them enough lol.
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I've actually had the same luck, just going slow and taking my time. I saw HSS on that set and got excited. I have a couple taps from the local supply place, they're about 20 bucks each! They do cut much faster, but are pretty pricey. I've gone to a few auctions and flea markets, haven't come across any taps or dies, so I thought this was a decent option for now. What about the taps/dies from Shars for about 5-8 dollars each? Have you guys had luck with those?
 
I've been buying YG-1 spiral flute taps here and there. They tend to run about $14/ea, but cut so easily that it's worth it to me. Even in hard materials.

I haven't found any dies I like. I got irritated and just single point external threads on the lathe right now.
 
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