Cutting Tap Chamfers 101
Most cutting taps are available in three chamfers. Taper, plug and bottom are how they are referred to in most of the current literature. Why do we choose one over the other and what are the advantages?
Unlike a drill or center cutting end mill, taps introduce the cutting edges by means of a chamfer. Drills are cutting on the tip (axial), center cutting end mills plunge (axial) then may traverse to cut radially on the workpiece. Most end mills are cutting on the radius, but they are to leave a “straight” or “smooth” finish.
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Cutting Taps vs. Forming Taps
A significant majority of the threads produced in manufacturing today are machined with cutting tools: typically taps and thread-mills for the internal threads, and threading dies and thread-mills for the external threads. These tools are the historical standard for this purpose and a familiar go-to for machinists. As machined materials and applications change with customer demand, alternatives for tooling follow suit. Although both cutting tools and forming tools produce essentially the same thread, and are gaged in the same manner, the requirements for their use, and results achieved, are in many ways different.
Historically, internal threads were created by