fartymarty
Well-known member
This post was moved from another thread for more exposure. Basically I want more information about 5/32-32 machine screw which I guess is a specialty type size? I have never heard of this size before and I wonder if there are others that I've never heard of. There seems to be plenty of taps and dies available to make this thread but when I try to find a size chart that includes it; or a thread checker kit that includes it, I'm coming up with nada.
back story: I was using some aluminum threaded inserts from Harbor Freight to repair my mower's recoil starter. Either due to the quality of the Harbor Freight stuff, or my ham-handed technique, it resulted in numerous stripped threads followed by drilling them out and finally acceptable (?) installs that lasted only a about a week. I decided that I needed a better install tool and some steel threaded inserts. Not doing a whole lot of research I ordered both from Amazon.
Set up: Two days later after they arrived, I was looking over the threaded inserts and noticed that one of them was "5/32-32"...?...I had never heard of such a size before, but then I don't get out much. I checked the insert against a thread checker and it was closest to a #8-32 but would bind just a bit at the end of the thread and not go on all the way. I tried it on 10-32 and it wouldn't even start. No luck on my metric thread checker either. I have never heard of a fractional size below 1/4" only number sizes. ̶I̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶a̶ ̶l̶e̶g̶i̶t̶i̶m̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶5̶/̶3̶2̶"̶-̶3̶2̶ ̶s̶i̶z̶e̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶s̶p̶e̶c̶i̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶p̶p̶l̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶s̶?̶ I see from a google search, that there are companies that make taps that size so I guess it is a legitimate size, but I've never run across it before.
Question: Is there a special application for that size that any of you know about?
edit:I just went to my high school era Machinery's Handbook (1966 17th Edition) thinking that if there was an answer I could find for myself, that it would be in there. No. Closest I could find was a 3/16-32 British Standard Fine screw.
back story: I was using some aluminum threaded inserts from Harbor Freight to repair my mower's recoil starter. Either due to the quality of the Harbor Freight stuff, or my ham-handed technique, it resulted in numerous stripped threads followed by drilling them out and finally acceptable (?) installs that lasted only a about a week. I decided that I needed a better install tool and some steel threaded inserts. Not doing a whole lot of research I ordered both from Amazon.
Set up: Two days later after they arrived, I was looking over the threaded inserts and noticed that one of them was "5/32-32"...?...I had never heard of such a size before, but then I don't get out much. I checked the insert against a thread checker and it was closest to a #8-32 but would bind just a bit at the end of the thread and not go on all the way. I tried it on 10-32 and it wouldn't even start. No luck on my metric thread checker either. I have never heard of a fractional size below 1/4" only number sizes. ̶I̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶a̶ ̶l̶e̶g̶i̶t̶i̶m̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶5̶/̶3̶2̶"̶-̶3̶2̶ ̶s̶i̶z̶e̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶s̶p̶e̶c̶i̶a̶l̶ ̶a̶p̶p̶l̶i̶c̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶s̶?̶ I see from a google search, that there are companies that make taps that size so I guess it is a legitimate size, but I've never run across it before.
Question: Is there a special application for that size that any of you know about?
edit:I just went to my high school era Machinery's Handbook (1966 17th Edition) thinking that if there was an answer I could find for myself, that it would be in there. No. Closest I could find was a 3/16-32 British Standard Fine screw.
Last edited:
