taiwanluthiers
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2016
- Location
- Xinjhuan District, New Taipei City
I swear, if I ever have to buy taps again it will be HSS. Not that there's anything wrong with HCS if you buy expensive ones that has been properly heat treated and ground (like Greenfield), but avoid brands like Hanson, Irwin, etc. because they're all hardware store HCS crap.
I broke enough HCS taps in my receivers that I have had enough... I bought a few Walton Tap Extractors hoping I will never ever have to use them (and put how good they are to the test).
Basically it seems like it's real hard to break a HSS tap, I do not think I have ever managed to break one except this one time when I forced one into a piece of aluminum into a hole that's too small, under power (this will break any tap), basically my fault...
But I broke so many cheap HCS taps doing it carefully by hand, using plenty of lubrication.
I got a HSS 6-48 tap, a few bucks more than the HCS Hanson but it taps pre-hardened receivers so well I was afraid I'd overload it. I'm told HSS is harder to break too... I tried to break a HSS drill bit before and it was hard to do to say the least (they are not as brittle as you think).
I broke enough HCS taps in my receivers that I have had enough... I bought a few Walton Tap Extractors hoping I will never ever have to use them (and put how good they are to the test).
Basically it seems like it's real hard to break a HSS tap, I do not think I have ever managed to break one except this one time when I forced one into a piece of aluminum into a hole that's too small, under power (this will break any tap), basically my fault...
But I broke so many cheap HCS taps doing it carefully by hand, using plenty of lubrication.
I got a HSS 6-48 tap, a few bucks more than the HCS Hanson but it taps pre-hardened receivers so well I was afraid I'd overload it. I'm told HSS is harder to break too... I tried to break a HSS drill bit before and it was hard to do to say the least (they are not as brittle as you think).