American made tap and die set?

[jblachly]

Can someone recommend an American-made tap and die set?

I need both US and metric sizes. Have never had a set, so do not know what manufacturers to search for.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Roberts210]

I buy individual ones for pennies on the dollar at swap meets and garage sales and used tool stores. Good old, USA taps and dies can still be found out there. Most people don't know what they are used for these days.

 

[ecotec]

I have a LOT of SAE taps and dies. I have as many as ten taps in some SAE sizes. I find them at estate sales for very little cost.

Metric, on the other hand... I almost never find them at estate sales. I have been planning on buying myself a metric tap and die set for a while now. I will probably pull the trigger on a set this year. I will put in an effort to find a used or NOS American made one. If I can't swing that, I will buy a new American made set.

I have decided to redouble my effort to buy American products this year (used and new).

 

[ecotec]

I have a LOT of SAE taps and dies. I have as many as ten taps in some SAE sizes. I find them at estate sales for very little cost.

Metric, on the other hand... I almost never find them at estate sales. I have been planning on buying myself a metric tap and die set for a while now. I will probably pull the trigger on a set this year. I will put in an effort to find a used or NOS American made one. If I can't swing that, I will buy a new American made set.

I have decided to redouble my effort to buy American products this year (used and new).

 

[Farmall450]

Irwin Hanson. They supply Snap-on.

 

[pstemari]

Good brands are Union Butterfield, R&N, and Chicago-Latrobe. Stick with HSS—you don't need the heat resistance, but the HSS taps are generally quite a bit sharper.

I would suggest just buying single spiral point taps or 3-piece hand tap sets as required. You will wind up spending $$$, getting a bunch of ****, or both (hello Irwin-Hansen) if you buy everything at once.

As far as dies go, adjustable round dies are the way to go if you're cutting new threads. The hex jobs are only really good for cleaning up existing threads.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[Farmall450]

Good brands are Union Butterfield, R&N, and Chicago-Latrobe. Stick with HSS—you don't need the heat resistance, but the HSS taps are generally quite a bit sharper.

I would suggest just buying single spiral point taps or 3-piece hand tap sets as required. You will wind up spending $$$, getting a bunch of ****, or both (hello Irwin-Hansen) if you buy everything at once.

As far as dies go, adjustable round dies are the way to go if you're cutting new threads. The hex jobs are only really good for cleaning up existing threads.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Hanson aren't ****...you can't even spell them correctly.
And for someone who has never had them, they're a perfect way to start out. And available widely (not just industrial supply).

 

[T45]

Look for companyies that sell drill bits and other machinist tooling. Alot of the USA brands have offshored, and there is very limited choice. Quality HSS sets are way beyond the budget of most non-professiona users (and even non-machinist types).

 

[Loscaldazar]

I don't understand the sudden and growing hate on this forum for carbon steel taps. No, they aren't the absolute best, but they work just fine for occasional use that most people use them for. My father still has a carbon steel tap and die set that he got from his father. Both have used them every once in a while and they still work to this day. HSS would have been a huge wasted investment for them.

If you're a machinist or anyone who regularly uses them to cut threads and you want to use carbon steel taps and dies, I'll call you crazy. But for most people.... they're PLENTY good from a quality brand.

 

[L.Cheapo]

I bought a large (75? piece) Craftsman SAE and metric tap and die set back in the 90s. It was fairly expensive back then. Maybe $150? Anyway I don't use them often, but when I need them, its nice to have virtually every size a DIY guy will encounter. No idea if they're HSS or carbon steel, but they're USA made and I've never broken one. Perhaps you can find an NOS or lightly used one via the usual channels.

I prefer a set to individuals, as taps are one of those tools that you only seem to need when all the stores that sell them are closed.

 

[6PTsocket]

The I H sets are not ****. I used the inch and metric sets at work for years. When a tap broke (I worked with animals that had never heard of tapping fluid) I filled in with HSS. Carbon steel is very sharp and the price is that it is more brittle than HSS. With a little common sense it is fine for hand tapping. Drill the right size hole, use the right lube for the metal, go in straight and back off after a couple of turns to clear the chip and you won't break a,lot of taps. It doesn't hurt to start with a taper tap instead of going straight to the plug tap that is in the one tap per size sets. The HSS Chinese taps are often lower quality than the American carbon taps. I have heard that the I H stuff is now imported but I have not verified it. If I needed one tap I would spring for quality HSS which may well not be American but if you need a whole set of quality HSS you can easily spend 500 bucks

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[T45]

I don't understand the sudden and growing hate on this forum for carbon steel taps.

The issue is not the metal, but more they are not ground.

If you are actually needing to tap something even vaugely precise, the whole setup tends to matter...the tap machine, the lubricant, the correct tap (material, flutes, coating etc)...all of that.

there is a good argument on boths sides of the case.

On the one hand, if you are not a machinist, you will spend alot more time re-threading than tapping. so, the argument goes, when you do need to tap, just buy the correct tap ad-hoc. Not only is this more capital efficient, you most likely will not want to use a 'standard' tap when the time comes...reasons being there is now alot of stainless, aluminum, and castings around on modern jobs...so you might want a "correct" tap (even if on a budget).

On the other side of the argument, is that tape and dies sets actually are nothing more than glorified rethreading kits anyways, and they are good to buy because they have more complete coverages of sizes, and are more capable for more damaged work that needs more help than a normal rethreader....and there is still lots of non-precise fabwork that a farmer/homeowner/DIY guy needs to do around the property, on lawnmowers, sheet metal, furniture, fixtures...etc. And this tends to require all manner of variety.

Somewhere in between, is also the argument that having an organized set of "prblems solvers" is still agood idea even with middle/low quality tools. If for nothing else than buying indexes and machinist storage will cost more than the dang tap and die kit in blow molded case (and even then won't be better to throw in the back of the pickup). So these guys say just buy the dang kit and replace the main ones with better tools as needed.

The last voice in the discussion is the realist--who says the main issue is broken taps, not even precision. And to avoid the problems of broken taps--and the cost and work damage--you need to buy the better if not the best taps you can.

The truth for your application is probably somewhere in between all of these sides of the discussion. Frankly, I think it also depends on the price and deals you get when shopping. One can afford more mistakes and options when buying at huge discounts. When money (pricey options) or space become huge concerns, you need more quality and less tools.

Lastly, like many "pre-emptive" tool purchases, consider just taping your credit card inside an empty tap& die set. Then buy what the situation requires, when it is required. This might be the cheapest, and best, solution for many.

 

[WittHay]

Learn something new everyday. Always had a organized set of taps and dies Snap on/ Irwin Hansen type and a collection of taps and dies stored away in a old tool chest.

Is there a way to tell the difference between a HSS and carbon steel tap?

 

[mbshop]

I have used ace metric set since the 70s. Still have it. Have another ace set labled blue point. At no point did I ever have an issue untill I abused one and broke it or they just wore out. Yes, they do dull. I also had a german 3 step tap and die set for bigger stuff when I worked on mb buses. I know some like to get critical about thread cutting but for an averge guy or shop, any good set will do. Because of my job I chose to buy the best at the time. If your job depends on it, get the best.
if you are at home almost any decent set will do. Just use the proper cutting oil and care and you will be just fine. Cutting threads should never be forced. If you are forcing it then yer doing it wrong.

 

[JAKE-THE-TOOL-MAN]

I have metric and sae sets made by Hanson, the quality is good and they are made in the USA. The reason I prefer to have sets on hand is when I need a tap I usually need it right then and there and dont have time to wait on one. I agree with others that its cheaper and you can end up with much nicer taps if you buy as you need them, but not everyone has the time involved to wait when the need arises.

 

[skruft]

I only use taps and dies occasionally, so two Craftsman sets and a rethreading set I bought many years ago have been fine, except that the tap wrenches that came with them were junk. I found a couple of larger sets at flea markets and garage sales so that I could handle larger bolt sizes. I use these for everything except pipe.

 

[dr_clyde]

What you want is a set by CTD. Consolidated Toledo Drill. They make Norseman magnum drills. You can get metric and sae, dies, handles and all, HSS in a nice case. You can even get spiral point taps, which is cool if you plan to use them with a mill or some other power tapping device. If I were to buy a set, this is what I would get.

I have mixed feelings on the whole "tap and die set" thing. Most all machinists I know, including myself, typically don't buy sets. Car people, on the other hand, love sets.

This goes for just about any sort of consumable. Drills, files, carbide burrs, taps, and so on. Why people pay tool truck prices for re-badged twist drills escapes me. Good carbide burrs are like, $10 from the welding supply but people will pay $40 a crack for ones off the snap on truck. WTF.

Same for tap and die sets. I don't give 2 shits if that 1/4-20 tap has a lifetime warranty if it snaps off in a hard to reach spot in a machine that's down and the line is waiting for me to get the hole threaded. Carbon steel taps don't perform as well as a HSS tap. Period. And taps are one of those tools that need to perform or it can get expensive fast.

I have always just bought 2 or 3 of the size I need, and built my set up this way.

The only benefits I see for sets are the carrying case, and the preparedness to have a lot of different taps fast. You could easily mitigate the latter by taking a couple hundred bucks down to the machine tool supply house and getting one each of the common size taps. Then you have your "set" and are ready for whatever. Get a couple different handles and you're good to go.

I'd pass on the Irwin/Hanson stuff. So-so tools from a company that has gutted good American toolmakers. Get the good stuff from CTD or Union Butterfield. You'll thank me later.

 

[OutsideMachinist]

Good quality taps are expensive. They are also consumables. That part is lost on most people. You dont buy a good quality set then hand it down to your kids. Unless of course you dont do any work with them. In that case you dont need quality taps.

Most sets you buy will be cheap. Buy quality ones as you need them.

 

[Finky198]

As other have stated if you work in or on a dozen different object in a week the kits are indispensable. I don't have time to buy a taps or dies when the need arises. Unless the project forsees a need for somthing specific in the planning stages... I rely on the fact the we have thousands of dollars in threading and retheading tools. Because it causes delays in our work flow, its no different to stocking consumable items. Their just another tool in the box.

We use Snappy/Irwin taps/dies, Lang retheaders, Nes thread tools, and a bunch of others brands of T&D purchased indiv...

Not everyone needs the same set up of course.

 

[66354dream]

Another vote for Irwin-Hanson, I actually received an order for some taps this weekend and they are still made in the U.S.