Mark J Bradakis wrote:
>
> Good cutting fluid is a must when tapping.
>
> When tapping aluminum, I actually use charcoal ighter fluid. It is
> basically deodorized kerosene, a very light oil. And for some reason
> I always seem to have some on hand.
Tapmatic used to make an excellent cutting fluid for aluminum until it
qualified as hazardous waste, since it was, basically, trichloroethane
with a non-sulfurous lubricant. Now, almost any other lubricant is
better than none at all. <smile>
One of the other considerations in tapping is to reverse the tap
periodically, in order to break the chips into smaller pieces, so they
don't foul the tap.
As for getting that broken tap out, if it's big enough to get a pair of
needle-nose pliers in to grab the tap between flutes, that's preferable.
But, when that's not possible, I've found that a small-diameter punch is
about the only fix. Hit the tap hard, shatter it and pick out the
pieces. I've even used, for small ones broken off at a sharp angle, a
hardened scribe (the mushroomed end of the scribe handle is proof of
that).
Cheers.
--
Michael D. Porter
Roswell, NM (yes, _that_ Roswell)
[mailto:mporter@zianet.com]
Don't let people drive you crazy when you know it's within walking
distance.
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