All Forming Taps are Not Created Equal

by David Aly, Aerospace Specialist, OSG Tap & Die
 
Just because you’ve tried one forming tap, doesn’t mean you’ve tried them all. We had the recent opportunity to prove that OSG forming taps are better than the rest. 
 
As a supplier of custom fabricated metal products and machinery, one of our customers approached us wanting to get better chip control during their tapping operation. Located in Winona, Mississippi, they have a 92,500 square foot manufacturing facility for producing fuel tanks, hydraulic tanks and custom designed machining fixtures.

A common problem with cut taps is the rats nest that is created when cutting more ductile materials. A Roll Form tap doesn't create chips, so the problem is eliminated

​After discussing the customer’s chip control needs, I recommended OSG’s EXOTAP® NRT® Forming Tap, a more stable, thread rolling tap that makes threads by compressing the work material without creating chips. Because no chip is produced, breakage due to chip packing and bird nesting is eliminated.

The EXOTAP® NRT®  also has significantly reduced friction resistance because of its special threading design and surface treatment. Made from VC-10 Powdered Metal High Speed Steel, this forming tap has a longer tool life when tapping difficult to machine materials like carbon steels, alloy steels, stainless steels and aluminum alloy.

OSG’s EXOTAP® NRT® Forming Tap is a Roll Form Tap extrudes the thread form by displacing material. The Groove serves two function: Permitting lubricant to reach the lobes of the tap while forming and to permit air to escape from the bottom of a blind hole during the tapping process.

​Initially, the shop foreman, Mr. William Smith, was hesitant about using a forming tap due to a bad experience with a competitor’s brand. After I showed William a presentation and a chip flow demonstration video, he was willing to give our forming tap a chance.
 
We approached his staff with OSG’s EXOTAP® NRT® Forming Tap in hand.  After explaining the test with the operator and reiterating
that there will be no chips, we began the trial.

A few days later, I called to check in on their progress. William enthusiastically explained that he was still running the same tap. He had lost count of the number of holes produced but assured me that it was well over 1,000 holes! After such a successful run with the first test tap, he purchased more of the test size, now truly convinced that all forming taps are not created equal.