Is there anything worse than breaking a tap?

Crashing a CNC machine in a way that does costly damage is worse, certainly. But breaking a tap off in an expensive part that’s nearly finished has got to come in a close 2nd place.

I just finished the 11th episode of CNC Chef for Cutting Tool Engineering. This video gives you 7 ways to avoid breaking taps:

7 ways to avoid breaking taps from Cutting Tool Engineering on Vimeo.

Watch the video for details, but my 7 ways include:

1. Choose the best hole size
2. Use Form Taps where possible
3. Thread Mill critical and tough jobs
4. Use purpose-made Tapping Lubricants
5. Use the right tool holder
6. Extract chips with a spiral fluted tap
7. Mind the depth on blind holes

Taken together they provide a wealth of techniques that will make breaking taps far less likely in your shop.