From Newsgroup: rec.crafts.metalworking

FAILURE

First off I pretty much only buy HSS taps. They tend (generally) to be tougher than carbon steel taps.

Today I broke a bottoming tap off in a mold. DANG-IT! At first I just
said one of the synonyms of poop over and over a few times. Maybe emphatically with other expletives for emphasis.

Then I figured, "What the heck. The mold is ruined (well not saleable) anyway. I'll try welding a nut to the tap. I thought MIG might be the
trick since the wire would poke down inside the nut, but it broke off at
the first since of pressure. Then I tried TIG which after I finally
quit sticking the nut to the tungsten and regrinding it kinda work, but
it also popped off pretty easy. Then I tried sticking little dabs of stainless wire to the top of the tap until there was a little column of material I could slide the nut down over. Let me say this is way beyond
my skill level. Then I slid the nut on, and started an arc, added a
little material, and let it cool.

It worked... sorta. The column of material stuck to the tap. The nut
stuck to the column of filler. The tap just broke off a little deeper.

I drilled it in a different place for handles and added it to my
personal collection of molds after stamping an X on all sides to remind
me its now a reject. Its replacement is machining right now.

Maybe (but I doubt it) off I had cooled it off slowly in vermiculite
overnight and then heated the aluminum mold I might have had a chance,
but my gut reaction is the result would have been the same. The tap was
just to stuck and it would still just break off deeper.

However, if I had done that with a carbon steel tap I think it might
have worked. The tap would have been annealed partially and no longer
been as fragile.

I don't know. I just thought the anecdote might be useful to somebody
else. It didn't really cost me anything except a few cents worth of
filler and a few cents worth of gas to give it a try.
--
Bob La Londe
CNC Molds N Stuff

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From Newsgroup: rec.crafts.metalworking

"Bob La Londe" wrote in message news:10s66ip$12dq5$1@dont-email.me...

FAILURE

First off I pretty much only buy HSS taps. They tend (generally) to be
tougher than carbon steel taps.

Today I broke a bottoming tap off in a mold. DANG-IT! At first I just
said one of the synonyms of poop over and over a few times. Maybe
emphatically with other expletives for emphasis.
-----------------------------

Since the TIG may have annealed it, perhaps you could see if a carbide
masonry or glass drill in a centering sleeve cuts it now. I drilled the hard sprocket pivot on a chainsaw bar with a glass drill, to attach the bar to an Alaskan mill with nothing protruding below the bottom side. Hopefully it
will allow slabbing a larger log.

The shank end of HSS drill bits can be soft enough to turn down with HSS
lathe bits to fit smaller, shorter drill chucks or collets. I copied the hex and retention groove of a 1/4" quick connect shank on a 3/8" drill bit.

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From Newsgroup: rec.crafts.metalworking

On 20/04/2026 23:36, Jim Wilkins wrote:

"Bob La Londe"-a wrote in message news:10s66ip$12dq5$1@dont-email.me...

FAILURE

First off I pretty much only buy HSS taps.-a They tend (generally) to be tougher than carbon steel taps.

Today I broke a bottoming tap off in a mold.-a DANG-IT!-a At first I just said one of the synonyms of poop over and over a few times.-a Maybe emphatically with other expletives for emphasis. -----------------------------

Since the TIG may have annealed it, perhaps you could see if a carbide masonry or glass drill in a centering sleeve cuts it now. I drilled
the hard sprocket pivot on a chainsaw bar with a glass drill, to
attach the bar to an Alaskan mill with nothing protruding below the
bottom side. Hopefully it will allow slabbing a larger log.

The shank end of HSS drill bits can be soft enough to turn down with
HSS lathe bits to fit smaller, shorter drill chucks or collets. I
copied the hex and retention groove of a 1/4" quick connect shank on a
3/8" drill bit.

I've used cheap diamond plated hole saws to remove a broken 3/8" UNF
tap. I had some in a suitable size to cut down the flutes largely
missing the core and the cutting edges, it took 2 or 3 but they were
cheap and it saved the part which-a I finished off and put to use.

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