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Best tapping fluid for cast aluminum

It's hard to beat Tap Magic. In a pinch, try diesel or kerosene. I know this is old school, but boiled lamb fat works well.(lard) It especially works well with rotary files (burrs) on aluminum. It keep the chips from sticking in the burr teeth.
 
It's hard to beat Tap Magic. In a pinch, try diesel or kerosene. I know this is old school, but boiled lamb fat works well.(lard) It especially works well with rotary files (burrs) on aluminum. It keep the chips from sticking in the burr teeth.
I asked my wife if she had any boiled lamb fat, the look she gave me was priceless.
 
What do you have for coolant??

Just use that "straight", not cut. Its got all your high pressure additives and
all that fun stuff in it.

I seldom use Tap Magic anymore, except for the real nasty stuff.. I've
got a little cup of Blaser on the bench, works great.. One massive benefit,
WATER soluble.. Cleans up really really easy.
 
This is for a Keith Black hemi block. It kicked a couple of rods thru the side of the block, was patched and weld repaired. I have to drill and tap 2 of the pan rail holes. A new block is $7000 so I don't need any problems. I ordered a can of alumicut and a can of aluminum tap magic. Thanks for the replies.
 
When I absolutely gotta make a good thread and I'm worried about loading up a tap, I use Moly-Dee. I know it is more of a stainless steel cutting fluid... but it seems to have magical properties.
 
I asked my wife if she had any boiled lamb fat, the look she gave me was priceless.

You have no idea how nasty the job of first finding waste lamb fat, then cooking it down to drippings. I could not find lamb lard anywhere, so I sourced the waste fat at an Indian restaurant. I then lit off my gas grill in the middle of my yard and started cooking down the fat to drippings. The smoke, fumes and stink was horrible. Eight hours later, I now have a kilo of the stuff in the fridge. It will last me a lifetime, but it really works well porting heads.
 
Sounds like the OP has the problem licked, but..
Another vote for Relton A9.
Anchor lube for stainless and hi-temp alloys.
Neatsfoot oil for carbon steel.
 
LPS-2. We have used it for 30 years on all of our aluminum parts. It's actually a little better in wrought than cast, but is still a great lube.
 
Have you considered roll/form tapping those pan holes instead of cut tapping? I'd guess that if it's welded material being tapped, it's going to be quite soft. That should lend itself to be roll-tapped better than being cut tapped.

I've had the best luck with a super-slippery lubricant: STP (if you can find it), 90-weight gear lube, something else thick and "clingy".

PM
 
Moly-Dee with roll taps will give you the strongest threads. Just make sure you're drilling the right size hole for the percentage of thread your looking for. I tapped thousands of holes with the same tap and all passed a thread Gage test.
 








 
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