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Engineering help


Rupert
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I am about to restore a pillar box for my garden.As I stripped the brass off some of the set screws sheared off,i know from when I did my last one the thread is old obscure and unavailable so I can get some brass replacements in metric but neet to retap the holes.I know you have special size drill for the relevant tap and this info was in a handbook but as I don't know whwt its called google is not my friend.Does anybody know the name of this book have one for sale or know where I can buy one?

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Be careful with taps - they can break very easily and drilling them out is unpleasant. Hopefully you've ordered a set of three (taper, second & plug) - don't just try winding them straight in, try about one full turn, then half back. Good luck!

No I just got an assortment box from the machine mart.

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Be careful with taps - they can break very easily and drilling them out is unpleasant. Hopefully you've ordered a set of three (taper, second & plug) - don't just try winding them straight in, try about one full turn, then half back. Good luck!

2/3 of a turn clockwise, 1 turn back to clear it. Use plenty of cutting compound and take you time!!

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I always use a slightly bigger drill than thread depth as webber said 1.5 mm for a 10 mm thread is 8.5 drill,I use a 8.6mm drill bit that way the shaft of the tap won't become bound so easily. A point one or two bigger drill makes it so much easier.

 

Figgy

Edited by figgy
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What ever you do don't put the tap in a drill and use it. You may see many Muppets doing this but it is wrong on so many levels. Check it's level/square earlier before you start cutting to many threads, use plenty of lube, never force a tap, let it do the worthe enk, don't put taps down on hard surfaces (this will damage the tap) keep them clean and oiled, if it's a blind hole don't be afraid to remove the tap and clean the hole, just make sure you pick back up on the threads you've cut, the more times you run the tap down the looser the thread will get, wear eye protection as they can shatter, also gloves due to dwarf etc, use the taps in the stages their supposed to be used eventually finishing with a plug tap, you can identify them by the end of them, the one you start with will be more pointed and will have less threads to the end whereas the plug tap will more or less resemble a bolt with cutting edges and will have a flat end. Use propper cutting fluidpaste, don't use silicone compounds or penetrating spray unless that's all you have. Don't use a tap dry unless in realy soft materials plastic etc. If you have no cutting compound you need to fling a really green grogger and keep it topped up. The amount of turns ratio forward/backwards will depend on many things, cutting compound, strength of material, hole depth, size of tap, how sharp the tap is, etc try using your sense of touch rather than counting turns. Make sure you prep the hole before you tap. Ensure it is smooth with no burrs etc. Especially on the opening as this is where the tap will allign itself. If it all goes wrong and the tap does snap you can get removal tools, or you can (realy carefully) sometimes use punches to remove them. Don't try drilling a tap out with standard drill bits as this will end in tears and/or injury and a mess of the workpiece. Never laugh if someone snaps a tap as you probably will at somepoint. Drill sizes can be slightly out from what they are marked up as, use a vernier caliper/micrometer/hole gauge to pick one nearest to the recommended size, the drill size can be found in the tap manufacturing manual or their are engineers thread cutting books with reference charts. When drilling your hole make sure you do this properly as it can work harden your material and cause issues. That's about it really. Thread closure time?

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goodo123 - thanks for your post. I honestly picked up some decent tips. Bit sad considering I have built cars / motorbikes for nearly 40 years.

 

Never too old to learn.

 

:good::good: :good: :good::good:

 

I'm sure you was taught it at somepoint, I've done a old school fitting using hand tools course Nvq level 3, was a lot of fileing, scraping, etc once you look into the correct methods you realize how much you don't actually know. Give someone a shifter and it's 50/50 if they use it properly. Their are propper methods for just about any tool but I think nowadays a lot of training is lost through cheaper equipment, time constraints and automation.

 

Regarding the vernier caliper it's not super important on high tolerance stuff but it is good engineering practice, also they are useful for depth gauges after you have tapped the hole.

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I'm sure you was taught it at somepoint, I've done a old school fitting using hand tools course Nvq level 3, was a lot of fileing, scraping, etc once you look into the correct methods you realize how much you don't actually know. Give someone a shifter and it's 50/50 if they use it properly. Their are propper methods for just about any tool but I think nowadays a lot of training is lost through cheaper equipment, time constraints and automation.

 

Regarding the vernier caliper it's not super important on high tolerance stuff but it is good engineering practice, also they are useful for depth gauges after you have tapped the hole.

 

How can NVQ and old school go in the same paragraph? Perhaps I am older school than I feel :lol:

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I am about to restore a pillar box for my garden.As I stripped the brass off some of the set screws sheared off,i know from when I did my last one the thread is old obscure and unavailable so I can get some brass replacements in metric but neet to retap the holes.I know you have special size drill for the relevant tap and this info was in a handbook but as I don't know whwt its called google is not my friend.Does anybody know the name of this book have one for sale or know where I can buy one?

Where a bouts are you, down south ? got a shed load of taps & dies, metric and old thread forms and tapping drills, wrenches etc. You are welcome to use them.

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