Taps, are a unique form of drill bit that are designed to engrave a screw thread inside a pre-drilled hole in a workpiece. Threading taps are available in a variety of styles and sizes. These vary in features such as thread angle, helix angle, depth, and pitch diameter. Threading tools can be used manually, on a lathe, or milling machine.

Hand Taps

Handheld threading taps, or hand taps, are available in three main variations:

  • To start, a taper hand tap, sometimes known as a ‘first cut tap’ is used.
  • The second, called a ‘plug tap’, has a less gradual taper than the first cut tap. This continues the threading process deeper into the workpiece.
  • Finally, the ‘bottom’ has a very small taper and a thicker end. This extends the thread all the way to the bottom of a blind hole.

Machine Taps

In industrial use and for manufacturing processes, handheld threading taps are inefficient for mass production. Most common are Threading taps, such as machine taps or thread mills for . Machine taps offer a much wider range of applications.  For use on harder materials. Thus, reducing the human labour required to produce a finished workpiece.

Machine taps are designed to direct material chips away from the machine and its components. Reducing any risk of damage to the workpiece or the thread.

Thread mills are available with through coolant to prevent overheating. Thus, allowing for superfast machining. The thread tap can be removed for repair or replacement; swapping out a new tap couldn’t be easier.

The type of threaded hole required dictates the helix angle and direction. For example, through holes, blind holes, and deep blind holes all require a different approach. However, the material type has a strong influence on the direction of the helix. Ina addition to whether it produces short chips or long chips.

Prima Tooling’s impressive range of threading taps are available in four fantastic ranges. DIN, ISO, Automotive Tapping, and the Tecline Performance Series. We stock many different variations of threading taps.  These include Unified National Coarse (UNC)/Unified National Fine (UNF), British Standard Pipe (BSP)/British Standard Pipe Taper (BSPT), National Pipe Taper (NPT)/National Pipe Taper Fine (NPTF), and trapezoidal threading taps

For more information on the ranges and models of carbide end mills we have in stock, visit our shop, check out our engineering tooling catalogues, or get in touch with Prima Tooling today! Want to learn more about milling cutters? Check out our main page.