Tap, and die handles

[Aukai]

Great information NGB, and Mr Waller, thank you. I am slowly getting educated,,,,,, at a late age.

 

[Downwindtracker2]

There are machinists who will give a better answer, but here is my understanding. Hex dies are for the home handyman or the auto mechanic. They are basically for rethreading. There are also hex shaped thread chasing dies as well, and I think every manufacturer makes his own judgment for outside sizes. Best used with a crescent wrench, chuckle. They are tight and will clean up threads to the point of almost under sizing them. In maintenance we used them a lot to fix bugged up threads. There are round dies with out splits, one size fits all sort of thing. And there are round dies with splits, they take die stock with three set screws. On the first pass the split is left open, then on the next pass the closure is adjusted to the fit you wish. The most common round sizes are 1" and 1 1/2", but there are smaller and larger.

 

[RJSakowski]

My original tap and die holders were included in a Craftsman set many years ago aqnd continue to serve me well. I also have a full set of die holders covering 3/4" round to 2" round dies, probably from Travers or WTC. More recently I acquired the two sizes of Irwin/Hanson in post #16 above. They will accept a 3/8" ratchet which is useful for larger taps. I also made a supersized tap guide to fit them. It has a 1-1/4" workinhg range rather than the 1/2" range of the commonly available taps. Finally, I recently bought a three piece set of Tee handle tap wrenches on sale from HF that are surprisingly decent quality.
https://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece-t-handle-tap-wrenches-38560.html

 

[Aukai]

I have no shortage of Tap, and die sets NOS kromedge, Irwin Hansen, drill hog, Snap On thread chasers. Seems like some redundancy, most are HSS

 

[Bob Korves]

Hex dies and round dies have both been made in different styles for cutting threads and for straightening damaged threads. The real differences are in the geometry of the cutting edges. Thread cutting dies cut and remove metal, and have sharp positive rake cutting edges to do so. Thread straightening dies are designed to re-form existing threads. They are designed to not remove metal, if possible, but rather to push it aside, re-forming and straightening the threads. To find out which type you have, look at the cutting edge geometry, not whether they are hex or round. Hex and round die shapes are chosen for the desired method of holding the die, for a nice square entry to the rod with longer opposed handles, or to be held with a socket or wrench in difficult access situations. Different trades often do better with different dies, and that is why we often see auto mechanics with hexagon dies and/or repair chasers.

 

[mmcmdl]

Mike . Here is what I pulled from the garage . Haven't been down to the shop yet , but if you see something you like ……………...I'll throw it in the box ! These are all old , no Chinesium here ! Read up on the difference from round to hex dies above . Some cut while others "push" . Call them machinist dies vs. maintenance dies . HSS vs. high carbon etc . Depends on what the job is as always .

 

[Moper361]

Mike . Here is what I pulled from the garage . Haven't been down to the shop yet , but if you see something you like ……………...I'll throw it in the box ! These are all old , no Chinesium here ! Read up on the difference from round to hex dies above . Some cut while others "push" .

Nice little collection that ,I would not mind a couple of the die handles ,

 

[mmcmdl]

And I also possibly might have a ton or so of taps and dies , as hard as that is to believe ! I swear , you pack stuff away , and it multiplies over the years !

 

[tcarrington]

Aukai - OTOH, depending on the size of the threading you are doing, you might find Joe Pie's tip to be useful

I use these, shop made holders and who doesn't need another project?, since I am generally making small parts with #2 to 1/4 inch threads. This way you can always have the tap in a holder, it doesn't take up much room in the box, ready to go. For larger threads you might like holders to allow power-tapping, but I do agree with all the good advice above, a good quality tap wrench is a thing of beauty and necessity.

 

[mmcmdl]

Mike , your next phase , when time is money .