S
Swede
Guest
I have what I feel is a fairly complete home shop, but this is one tool I have yet to acquire. Either they've been too expensive, too beat up, or I simply haven't talked myself into one yet.
The CDCO sale on QCTP holders got me browsing their catalogue, and they have an automatic tapping head for something like $150. I realize this is a Chinese tool; you tend to get what you pay for. But let's assume for a moment that it is a brand new Tapmatic or Procunier.
Are these devices a valuable addition to a shop? I've always wondered about this. Tapping is an art, especially the smaller taps, and a broken tap (shudder) is an all too common problem if one gets impatient or hamfisted. If I'm doing a deep 4-40 tapping of a blind hole in aluminum, it is probably going to take 3 or 4 entries and exits to clear the swarf, or a broken tap is likely. How are these heads used in these cases? Do you drop the quill, let it self feed until the friction clutch mechanism trips, then back it out to clean the tap and the hole? Then repeat? How do you determine where to set the adjustment? Every situation is different: 6-32 in blind stainless vs 6-32 in a shallow, through hole in brass, etc.
I've had occasion on some projects to tap dozens if not hundreds of holes, and I must admit, it gets very tedious indeed. The thought of tapping under power has always appealed to me. If $150 will make my life a bit easier vs. tapping, it'd be money well spent.
The CDCO sale on QCTP holders got me browsing their catalogue, and they have an automatic tapping head for something like $150. I realize this is a Chinese tool; you tend to get what you pay for. But let's assume for a moment that it is a brand new Tapmatic or Procunier.
Are these devices a valuable addition to a shop? I've always wondered about this. Tapping is an art, especially the smaller taps, and a broken tap (shudder) is an all too common problem if one gets impatient or hamfisted. If I'm doing a deep 4-40 tapping of a blind hole in aluminum, it is probably going to take 3 or 4 entries and exits to clear the swarf, or a broken tap is likely. How are these heads used in these cases? Do you drop the quill, let it self feed until the friction clutch mechanism trips, then back it out to clean the tap and the hole? Then repeat? How do you determine where to set the adjustment? Every situation is different: 6-32 in blind stainless vs 6-32 in a shallow, through hole in brass, etc.
I've had occasion on some projects to tap dozens if not hundreds of holes, and I must admit, it gets very tedious indeed. The thought of tapping under power has always appealed to me. If $150 will make my life a bit easier vs. tapping, it'd be money well spent.