Anyone have experience cutting a HSS tap out of a hole? I have a SS Ruger coming into the shop with a broken 6-40 tap below the surface. No EDM shops close by. I seem to remember doing one quite a few years back and I think used a 4 flute carbide with some form of nitride coating. ALTiN? Speerchucker?

Side question, are Vaquero SS guns as miserable to D&T as SS Mini 14's?
The memory is the second thing that goes, cant remember the first.

Thanks

Seems like with all the stuff on the internet there should somewhere be a plan for a handheld EDM tool.

I got one hole on a stainless Mini-14 receiver drilled and tapped to tie down a scope mount whose rear was clamped to the ears that previously held the peep sight. The gunsmith told me he wore out two carbide taps and would never do another one. Subsequently, I discovered that the scope mount wasn't the only factor in the biggish 100-yard groups. Oh well...

quote:

Originally posted by kendog:
Anyone have experience cutting a HSS tap out of a hole? I have a SS Ruger coming into the shop with a broken 6-48 tap below the surface. No EDM shops close by. I seem to remember doing one quite a few years back and I think used a 4 flute carbide with some form of nitride coating. ALTiN? Speerchucker?

Side question, are Vaquero SS guns as miserable to D&T as SS Mini 14's?
The memory is the second thing that goes, cant remember the first.

Thanks

Just remember...the last guy to touch it gets all the blame

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Originally posted by Duane Wiebe (CG&R)Just remember...the last guy to touch it gets all the blame

Yep. I'm clean on this one. Have pictures and emails from the original effer upper. He freely admits it. That's the only reason he gets standard pricing, and not double.

So far, knock on wood, I've been successful with solid carbide end mills. Yes I have broken some, but no in the hole. If I hadn't been given a handfull of them, it could have been costly.

I have a broken tap removal kit sold by a machining tooling company. They are out there.

quote:

Originally posted by Pegleg:
I have a broken tap removal kit sold by a machining tooling company. They are out there.

Thanks. It has been my experience that, when those kits are used on smaller taps (this one is 6-40) one winds up with the tap and the kit stuck in the hole!

quote:

Originally posted by kendog:

quote:

Originally posted by Pegleg:
I have a broken tap removal kit sold by a machining tooling company. They are out there.

Thanks. It has been my experience that, when those kits are used on smaller taps (this one is 6-48) one winds up with the tap and and the kit stuck in the hole!

Yup!!

quote:

Originally posted by TomP:
Seems like with all the stuff on the internet there should somewhere be a plan for a handheld EDM tool.

Funny.......but no

I have had some luck in the past using carbide jewelry burs in a high speed tool; the small ones will reach down and trim the flutes off off the tap pretty well. Generaly takes three or four burs to get it. Real deep it might be hard to get to; I was only working a 1/4 inch deep.

Anyone had luck freezing the broken tap and shattering with a punch?

If it’s a blind hole a carbide tap remover is best I know of. If hole goes through I’ve hammered the broken tap through using a punch, then open hole up to next size and tap again.

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Originally posted by Bobster:
Anyone had luck freezing the broken tap and shattering with a punch?

No

quote:

Originally posted by Bobster:
Anyone had luck freezing the broken tap and shattering with a punch?

not even with dry ice ...

Butch discussed my preferred way ... carbide/tin coated undersized endmill .. flood cooling, to keep the chips from causing more of a mess, and grind it out .. since a cnc is REALLY patient on pecking and light cuts, it usually works

I have used diamond tip dental burs to remove broken taps. Check with a local dentist and he will probably have a few he will parts with. A high speed grinder with cut them out.

https://www.riogrande.com/prod...und-bur-2-1mm/343136

Run them fast and wet with a light touch.

Ive seen a couple of the best gun smiths I know shatter them with a hammer and a punch..scariest thing Ive ever seen but it worked in every case without damage to the hole or its threads..YOu have really hit them hard to crack them up, but one blow did it..How they can do it is beyond me and I would never try it.

I really try not to break taps but it does happen. As Ray said, Hammer and punch does the job.

Actually Ted, yes they are made but I am not spending 1800$ on the machine to do it.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/EDM-M...2:g:dZAAAOSwVzRau2RF

Depending on the alloy, or how corrosion resistant the SS really is, you might be able to dissolve it with acid. I know it works great to get broken taps out of titanium.

Thanks for the replies and suggestions. I think I am going to go with coated carbide end mills. Did it before and had success.

JPL

Genius! That's right the OP gun is stainless steel. One drop of Nitric acid would eat that steel tap right out of there without affecting the stainless steel. Common and cheap 14K gold test acid would work. Just test it with a drop and make sure it isn't bubbling on the SS.

BUT, the vapors are toxic as hell and the acid also eats skin slowly. Wear safety glasses & chemical proof gloves and do it in a breezy area with plenty of ventilation. It will cook green and smoke yellow and possibly even splash a tiny amount. Keep anything and everything away. Get ready to flush with clear water. Nitric doesn't affect pure stainless steel except for some cheapo Made in Asia stuff that is slightly magnetic.

quote:

Originally posted by jpl:
Depending on the alloy, or how corrosion resistant the SS really is, you might be able to dissolve it with acid. I know it works great to get broken taps out of titanium.

Go to your dentist and get some dental burs then put in a Dremil tool and cut the tap out.

I broke an 8-32 tap in a stainless Ruger M77. I have tapped a few blued ones no problem but this is the second stainless one I have attempted and the first one did the same.
As the tap tip was already sticking down into the bolt raceway I gave it a tap with a steel punch and it popped right out the bottom !
And left enough remaining threads to run a screw in.

quote:

Originally posted by 458Win:
I broke an 8-32 tap in a stainless Ruger M77. I have tapped a few blued ones no problem but this is the second stainless one I have attempted and the first one did the same.
As the tap tip was already sticking down into the bolt raceway I gave it a tap with a steel punch and it popped right out the bottom !
And left enough remaining threads to run a screw in.

Thanks. This one is a trigger guard screw in a blind hole. Cutters should be here today. Let the fun begin...

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:

quote:

Originally posted by kendog:

quote:

Originally posted by Pegleg:
I have a broken tap removal kit sold by a machining tooling company. They are out there.

Thanks. It has been my experience that, when those kits are used on smaller taps (this one is 6-48) one winds up with the tap and and the kit stuck in the hole!

Yup!!

I'll second that opinion!!!

If any of the tap is sticking out above the whole then a punch ground flat like a chisel can be used to "un-screw" the tap sometimes. I have actually had pretty good luck driving them out this way. Does not always work but very easy to try. Works better on bigger taps too.

Sometimes it pays to walk where no man has walked before!!! and a bigger hammer has solved many problems.

Did the Butch method. Pecked it out with a 7/64ths 4 flute AlTin cutter. Rigid setup is paramount! Cleaned up the hole with a two flute gun tap. Done!
Ruger Vaquero is nowhere near the heartache of a Mini 14 when tapping. Moly D is good juju for tapping.

Thick formula Buterfield is the best I've ever used and I'd wager I've tapped a few holes

The key to never breaking a tap is in the size of the tap handle

Use the absolute smallest handle you can and years if not decades will go by without carbide or burning a tap out

The perfect tap handle for small tapping

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:
So far, knock on wood, I've been successful with solid carbide end mills. Yes I have broken some, but no in the hole. If I hadn't been given a handfull of them, it could have been costly.

Dirt cheep cutters on ebay. Knew I would trash a few, but that is in the cost of the job. Used up 2 at $4 each. Went fairly smooth, but the pucker factor was a little elevated. Pulled a bunch of cotton right out of my shorts! Any rate, customer has his gun back in working condition with strict instructions to quit fixing it!

quote:

Originally posted by LesBrooks:
I have used diamond tip dental burs to remove broken taps. Check with a local dentist and he will probably have a few he will parts with. A high speed grinder with cut them out.

Les, thanks for reminding me of this. My late father left me his dental burrs. After your comment I used a dental burr to remove a broken easeout broken off in a broken screw. Mike