Can someone recommend a good tap and die set (cheap or fairly priced)? Has anyone bought on from ebay? Thanks Frank
harborfreight.com my friend, got 2-3 sets form there for everything and the stuff works as it should. THem chineese work chepa but are smart too, they make some good stuff. they sell on ebay too.
good an cheap dont go together....I bought a cheap set on ebay, learned a lesson on that set, i believe its the same stuff that was at harbor freight....very hard and brittle broke 2 in 5 minutes....:Smarty: I went and bought a craftsmen set and never broke one, plus had a lifetime so if ya get carried away they will replace
10-4 there buddy.. :TU: I would never buy that harbor freight chinese crap on a bet. Snap a tap off in block you just paid thousands of dollars for in machine work and parts then tell if it's worth it. :Smarty:
I use my cheap universal HF set for chasing threads only. I would never attempt to cut with it...I have a basic snap-on set for that. Extracting a broken tap can push one towards felonious assault or suicide. Devon
Exact opposite here, when I was making handle bar rises so folks could use the stock ones. I used then $5 shock stud extenders to make the stock riser studs longer and had to re-cut the female end thread for metric. Were one size smaller and the threads cut well, plenty of bit and not choppy but they were not easy to cut. After just doing 1 set, 2 re-cuts any brand was starting to fail. Didnt matter what brand it was, spent near $15 on just one tap and it only did 2-3 sets like them all. Them shock extenders are super hard. I then started to just go cheap and only did 2 sets per tap to save trouble. Them shock extenders are super hardened. Rest of the junk I do is chase or soft metal work. But when it comes to hard stuff, they dont fail any quicker.
If you decide to save money and purchase an inexpensive tap/die set like Harbor Freight offers (which I've broken in the past), at least step up and spend some money on a high quality tap extractor. Eventually you'll need it. Devon
Well you need to know when to stop, few turns in, few back, over and over, don't let it get to many threads into a new cut and back out to clean. Though at first you can sing them suckers through metal. Have yet to find a fail proof extractor. Usually end up drillin out.
My HF tap wouldn't even tap one hole I had drilled out from a broken seat mount bolt in the floor of my 58. I learned really fast that I need to buy a high quality set. The HF tap just rounded itself out in the hole...pretty sad.
OH, If you can afford Snap-On, thats the way to go, but...i only use mine 1 or 2 times a year, the craftsmen is ggod enough for me...I have a box full of snap on for work, but as i get older, unless i use it alot, sears is the answer for me....anything for work, i get snap on or matco.... i actually like matco more and more, their waranty is like craftsman, bring it back they replace it, lately snap on sucks on replacements, they will, but you almost have to threaten to never use them again, i know thats the dealer, but there are more and more dealers getting harder and hard to deal with.....( i travel, so i see 10 different dealers a year)
Not everything has to be Snap-On....:moonu: My dad has a Starrett set he bought in the late 60's.....still use it today and never had a problem. If you are not in a rush.....visit some local pawn shops...you can get some deals on tools...usually 50-60% less than what they sell for new......ya....and you can even find Snap-On tools there too!
I bought one from Mac Tools when I worked for Acura. I would say its the same quality as Snap-On. Buying cheap tools is a waste of money IMO. Kurt
AHHHH....Starrett...the best percision tools on the market.....can ya even buy them anymore? if you could, would you be able to buy that quality any more and be able to afford it? great stuff...had a set of Starret mics many years ago...somone liked them more than me.....:blast: :spank:
And always use a high quality cutting fluid. Yes, you CAN use wd-40 or PB'laster or some other pentrating oil, but that is not the correct stuff. You don't put 10-w-30 oil in the differential, do you? You could get a set of thread chasers to clean up threads; using a tap or die always removes some metal.
