Subject: Re: Newbie Tapping Question

From: [email-masked] (Ken Christianson )
Date: 3 Oct 1995 06:41:39 GMT

In <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (Greg Lewis)
writes: 
>
>
>
>Why not just pull the drill bit out of the chuck, insert the tap and
>give the drill spindle a few turns by pulling on the drive belt? I've
>been doing this for years with good results. The tap starts on the
>exact axis of the bit. After it's started, loosen the chuck, attach
>tap handle and twist away!
>___________________________________________________________________
>[email-masked]      	   	     They don't
>Photojournalism sequence      	   	     Call this place
>Department of Mass Communication   	     An institution
>     and Journalism 	      	   	     For nothing
>CSU Fresno, Fresno, CA 93740-0010

Yea Greg !  Someone finally came up with the simplest and cheapest
solution that produces a good result.
     You might even consider using a spanner wrench in the hole for the
chuck key (made out of brass so at to not oval the hole) to turn the
thing - that way your fingers won't get caught in the belt, and they
stay cleaner also.  No, no  MAKE the spanner, don't go out and buy one.
No brass?  Soft aluminum works fine too.

                     oooo
                    o    o        
         ooooooooooo    oo
                       
                        ^ Hooks into hole here.

---

From: [email-masked] (Doug White)
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 95 16:53:20 GMT

<[email-masked] (Clark Battle) writes:
<  ------snip!---
<>  It seems that when I am using my hand tapper
<> eventually the thing gets cockeyed and wont go thrrough the whole way. 
<> Is there a way that I can get the hand tap to tap as straight as my 
drill
<> press?  Ideally Id like a hand powered drill-press-type-thingee that 
would
<> guide the tap in perfectly vertical.  Is there such a beast or is 
there
<> just some obvious technique Im overlooking? 
<    ----snip!-----

The neatest gadget I've found for hand tapping is a tapguide set from 
Brownells (address info in FAQ).  There is a block with a large hole in 
it and a polished bottom with a v-groove for tapping on round stock.  The 
guide comes with a set of sleeves to handle the body diameter of most 
small standard taps.  I haven't busted a tap or tapped crooked for years 
thanks to this.  The drill press techniques are handy if the piece you've 
drilled is all set up, but if you have a bunch of holes to drill and tap, 
changing back and forth is a pain.  The guide also works in odd places 
where you may have had to use a hand drill.

Doug White