Broken Tap Removal by Metal Disintegration Machine (MDM)

[@jackkrinkov9273]

He probably doesn't remember me but i brought him a firearm part with a broken tap in a threaded hole. I asked him how much and he said $50 and come back on Monday (it was Fri morning). So I said " What if I gave you a hundred bucks?" And he says "come back in an hour and it will be finished." So anyways He did a fine job fixing my gun part and we BS'd for about half an hour about guns and offroad riding . Really a cool guy.

[@The_DuMont_Network]

Now that there's funny, I don't care who you are. You gotta love the guy!

[@The_DuMont_Network]

@@Plankyoutube More like thought of you as a jerk on general principles.

[@The_DuMont_Network]

@@Plankyoutube not gonna get in a pissing match over gun ownership. My choice your choice.

[@kevyncagle6941]

Why be mad over a gun thing? If that's part of his biz...

[@nashole23]

fuck yeah.

[@indigocharlie7218]

What a cool dude! Could watch and listen to him all day. Notice how well spoken he is, no erms or ohms between words. A wise man with a focused mind. Excellent video, was enjoyable and educational at same time.

[@drkastenbrot]

he talks so slowly tho

[@solidamber]

@@drkastenbrot and constantly repeating what he already said

[@davidhutson4842]

Noticed ALL you said myself

[@robertmacgregor9555]

drkastenbrot l

[@roryvonbrutt7302]

@RollinRat Absolutely so so true, of course if they speak you know they understand because they say the same thing, ''I know, I know, I know''‼️®™️

[@psiewert83]

I find it shocking that there are enough broken taps in the world to keep a private business open. That's amazing.

[@youtubasoarus]

They probably do other work in between. Most shops do many types of machining.

[@kevinstearns4198]

there wouldnt be if people used the taps right.

[@jheetman]

it happens all the fucking time in high volume manufacturing.

[@ikegel1923]

yeah, well when the guy in charge of buying shit only gets plug taps and bitches when they get chewed up you start getting taps broken off. seeing as the part is usually worth about many times the shipping cost off it goes to the guy with an mdm

[@kevinstearns4198]

very true!!!!!!

[@thelegendaryblackbeastofar39]

Thank you so much for posting. Really enjoyed watching you work.

[@opforind]

Removing broken taps, drills and stripped bolts was my favorite thing to do when I worked in a machine shop. It was a nice break from running production jobs that never seemed to end and you really felt like you had accomplished something and saved the company some money by fixing a part that would have been scrapped.

[@shondrajohnson6136]

Ur a glutton for punishment I wish u worked at my shop lol

[@Pyle81]

We have a local retired machinest that bought a Acer Knee mill. And all he does is broken off taps, Studs, and bolts that guys tried to drill out with a hand drill then got the hole off center and made a hell of a mess. The best yet was a head off a 1066 International Tractor that the grandson had a bright idea of using a air impact on a cold engine to try and fix a exhaust leak. He broke off ALL the studs but 1. When I went to look at the job I told him there was nothing short of pulling the head off and taking it to this gentleman. The Grandfather said no problem, And the Grandson just rolled his 20 yr old eyes. And was positive there was no fixing his disaster. So the next day with head in (2 hands) We set it on the mill table and he started his magic. 2 hours later and 5 inserts to fix the out of shape holes. The job was done. I asked him how much?? He said normally he would get $40.00 a hour, would 2 hrs at that rate plus the parts be good?? I handed the man 4 $100.00 bills and said "NO, I think you need to raise your rates on jobs like this" A good machinest an save you hundreds if not thousands in some cases. Sadly the man's getting older and can't do the work he used to. And there's no one younger coming along to do this kind of repairs any more. Its sickening to think these talented men will take this knowledge with them to the grave with out passing it along to the next generation.

[@braddeal6445]

Specialized services like this can be a life saver for some people. It's a pleasure watching an old timer share his knowledge with younger guys who have respect for a lifetime of experience. I never even noticed his gum chewing until it was mentioned in the comments. I was too busy watching and learning something new. Great video

[@sygnusadun4832]

That was an absolute pleasure to see in action. Not nearly enough proper machinists left out there who can still use these kind of tools.

[@pssst3]

Love watching a skilled artisan at work

[@tomgrafton8681]

+pssst3 thanks a lot compliment

[@tomgrafton8681]

+pssst3 also, if theirs any parts that are small enough, surprisingly, shipping is not as expensive as you might think

[@dtThurman]

I was a machinist in a factory for ten (10) years circa '67--'76 and somewhat perfected a process of removing broken taps other maintenance techs had broken. I only had small high-speed steel chisels, such as Tom mentioned made of M2 steel. Later I went to work for another company who brought in an EMD machine. Once the factory tech showed me what it would do I almost hugged him. When you work with "bull work" mechanics an EDM machine pays for itself quickly.

[@dj6769]

I’ve been a mechanic around 44 years worked on cars trucks heavy equipment and aircraft and have never seen or knew such a machine existed. That’s the slickest thing since sliced bread! Great job!!

[@zajtoja]

EDM is nothing new

[@MaturePatriot]

I didn't realize there was that much demand to remove broken taps. From the looks of that casting and the work that had been put into it, you saved them a ton of money. Great work Tom Grafton. You keep chewing your gum, to heck with the boo birds.

[@gymkhanadog]

I bet you it's because of automation. Got a big CNC machine doing tap work which has no 'feel' like a human doing it.

[@bradhaines3142]

@@gymkhanadog youd be amazed how many people break taps. some real idiots out there

[@ronshekelson]

I was thinking the same thing. We usually just weld a stud to the broken tap and try and back it out. Otherwise you have to drill it out in progressive steps.

[@destro513]

@@bradhaines3142 ugh everyone in every machine shop breaks taps.

[@loudonrebel5383]

@@bradhaines3142 look out the master machinist Brad has spoken.

[@MiklaDfar]

It is unfortunate that these types of trade skills are disappearing. You don't see nearly as many young folks saying they want to be a machinist as there were back in the day of us Boomers. Best experience of my life was working a machine shop, getting my hands dirty and making stuff you can touch.

[@mark5862]

Hi there! I remember sending you a part (model steam locomotive frame) about 8 years ago to have a #5-40 tap removed. Great to see you on youtube.

[@MrDazvere]

Was doing spark eroding in the late 70’s early 80’s in our machine shop where dopey turners kept breaking drill centres in their work pieces!

[@TorqueTheRich]

As a 40-year Journeyman Tool & Die Maker, that was very satisfying to watch.

[@scootergem]

That calm voice and demeanor makes me think that he can do about anything! Great vid.

[@markharrisllb]

The amount of money and time you save with your expertise must be phenomenal. Especially if the tap broke very late in the manufacturing process, which is when they are usually used. They could have ended up having to rebuild the entire part to get the precision needed. You also have brilliant presentation skills, you kept the viewer fully informed all the way through. Thank you.

[@danokerr9929]

As a professional and home machinist. The whole process of conventional edm and wire edm was a very hard thing to master for me. It takes skill and knowledge to do this right. I used to take taps out using graphite and trode holders. Never a dull moment

[@voxellab4339]

WOW what a natural teacher. Everyone who wants to make instructional videos should follow Jerry's example in HOW TO.

[@tomjeffersonwasright2288]

No by guess or by gosh, or scratchin' your butt. Just methodical steady progress to success. I love to watch a pro work. Even in my little town of 3,000 people, I swear there is $50,000 of outboard motors sitting idle for broken off bolts. If you ever come to the Gulf Coast, bring your machine. LOL Thanks for a good, clear video.

[@tomgrafton8681]

+tom jackson Thanks for the compliment

[@lordthomastravis1617]

Sharing the knowledge and the information

[@rickguyevans]

Brilliant presentation! Have been an old-school millwright for 40 years and am amazed at this process. The feeling of dread is a familiar one, when either a broken tap or easy-out changes the entire scope of an otherwise straight forward job! Thanks for sharing. Rick (the mech-a-nic)

[@MrShobar]

Thanks, Tom, for a fine demonstration of old-school, pure unadulterated know-how.

[@marcmckenzie5110]

What satisfying work, and what a great service you provide. I can just imagine how many people over the course of your career have heaved a great sigh of relief when you informed them you saved their bacon.

[@mohabatkhanmalak1161]

And now you need to make out the invoice. lol Very dedicated procedure, and that machine, new to me. This is metal surgery at a specialized metal hospital, at the hands of an experienced metal surgeon!!

[@boblolo3977]

Hopefully the client didn't acquire an Invoice Disintegration Machine (IDM).

[@manlystyleunder50]

absolute waste of time, this procedure destroys good equipment and clearly resulted in serious damage to the thread

[@manlystyleunder50]

@@jefrhi clearly you have a micropenis

[@jaishetty8586]

well, the same machine that burns the hole in the tap, also burns a another hole in the customer's purse.

[@clifficus]

manlystyleunder50, Oh fuck, here we go again, this same old numpty with no brains opens his pie hole again, When I want to hear from an a** hole, I’ll fart.

[@johnmorris8703]

I sure enjoy watching a true craftsman work. Would love to spend time talking with him. Well Done, Sir.

[@SkillfulBasher]

Pretty sure this guy could care less that you guys don't like him chewing gum. Its his job and hes making this to show people his machine, not to attract huge amounts of supporters.

[@rogeronslow1498]

Couldn't care less.

[@Mercedes-Guru]

I didn't know he was chewing gum until I read all the comments.

[@rynohorn3819]

A lip full of chewing tobacco would be much healthier haha

[@esnevip]

His shop his rules.

[@jaishetty8586]

These elderly master craftsmen could put newer engineers to shame...Loved every bit of this Video.

[@nlo114]

Good demo. We have a guy near me called 'The Thread Doctor' who travels around garages and workshops doing in-situ work like that, high quality job, with a high-quality price. He has saved a lot of engine castings from being scrapped, so well worth the money.

[@greatdiesels7422]

Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge, Mr. Grafton. It was a privilege to watch you work.

[@alexandrevaliquette1941]

This guy know his shit! Impressive, calm, nice to watch... Thank you for sharing Jerry!

[@rexmericle5068]

Fascinating! I'm a 66 year old gearhead who does a bunch of my own work and I love these kinds of videos. Super cool, Jerry!

[@billarroo1]

Nice video, good job, I was working on an Owens 30 ft wooden boat in Long Beach, ca harbour assembling an engine in the bilge, cleaning out the headbolt holes from rust, I had a 1/2" x 13 tap almost 1" into a hole, when some a-- hole was speeding through the channel and the wave rocked the boat so severely it through me over the block, and I broke off the tap about 1/8" below flush, 10 hrs of wd40 chisling punching blowing air, I finally got it out clean, plus a Walton 3 flute tap extractor, what a f--%$kin nightmare, anyways glad to see how the pros do it. Thanks

[@marcjtdc]

threw*

[@franciscovera828]

William Ambrogio hey that was me on the other boat!!!!

[@peterbaldwin7225]

Peter

[@peterbaldwin7225]

Model paint mixer

[@bobm549]

Like " this old codger " , I am 65 and still working as a millwright and chewing gum constantly. It helps the brain stay sharp . Nice work Tom , beats the hell outa working hours with small chisels .

[@geowhyrock]

I would love to look this fit at his age. I like his calm demeanor. Always in control. Good learning vid. Would be amazing to be his apprentice

[@rickfeith6372]

I had no clue that this was a legitimate service. That hunk of machining that you removed the broken tap from was gorgeous. Excellent work sir, that's a cool ass machine.

[@LiveMusicOntario]

I might be around Jerry's age. Back in the late 70's my father mentioned that there was this thing called "EDM" that could make a good living for somebody who could apply themselves to it. I was more of a biology/science person and that's what I pursued but I get it. If you imagine not breaking a tap inside final parts, but inside one of a kind tooling and dies for a factory where something went wrong, there's basically no price they wouldn't pay to get that tooling restored and back to work on the line. Figure out what they paid for that one off die to be fabricated in the first place. My father supplied non-ferrous metals mostly to industry. We had a guy show up at our house after dinner because my dad took home a piece of copper bus bar about 1.5 feet long for this driver to pick up since the warehouse would be closed by then. (My dad was great that way for customer service.) They sent a driver in a 5 ton cartage truck from Sarnia non-stop to Toronto to get that bus bar. That's all that truck came all that way for. The driver was headed straight back to Sarnia with nothing in that 5 ton truck but 1.5 feet of copper bus bar so their factory line could get powered back up.

[@Donsantel1]

This is exactly how EDM got started. I worked for a company that built die sinker and wire cut EDM machines 20 years ago. Really neat stuff can be done with those machines.

[@danielsmith1529]

EDM is a different principle and it is performed in an oil bath.

[@daveticehurst4191]

It is Kerosene not oil, BUT it can also be distilled water ( De ionised )

[@xenonram]

I had no idea that many people were breaking brook buys and taps to have such a highly specialized company in operation. Who know someone could make a living doing this. Amazing.

[@jimviau327]

You know when an old pro is teaching. Good job.

[@666McMahon]

Exhilarating to see someone on KZbin that isn’t a total hack. This man knows his trade and does it well. Good job Tom!

[@Mercedes-Guru]

Cool machine. Did not have one around when I needed it. Had a 300SL in the shop with a broken tap in the cylinder head. Instead of pulling the head I got my Dremel with a few ball grinding stones and ground thru center of tap in about 30 min. Removed the flutes and found a broken stud below that. Did some more grinding to hollow out the stud and collapse it. Saved a $7000 head in 1.5 hr.

[@johnconrad5487]

Sounds like something I would attempt to do. how did you center it and how did u get to that depth to get the broken stud. how was it held so steady that u did not hit the threads?

[@Mercedes-Guru]

John Conrad Thanks for the question. The amount of stud in the head was shallow. On a 2 1/4" long stud only 3/8" of it is in the head. This seems to be common with European DIN studs. So the Dremel ball grinding stones had plenty of shank. As for holding it steady I had the intake and exhaust manifolds off so I could crawl into the engine bay and brace myself. Then just grind a little bit at a time. I submitted this as a Tech Tip to Engine Builder mag couple years ago and they published it. I had no choice but to do this. Didn't have access to Tom and his cool machine.

[@danhalfhill9169]

Ah, great to see that there are still some old-school machinist folks still out there! It’s the end of a great era....

[@delcoleman7121]

In England this process is called Spark Erosion.

[@ughesh]

Its been an honour to watch you at work

[@scoop4363]

Dad retired as a master machinist years ago and during his career I would often go to the shops and get a little job done here and there. He was a master in every sense and could do the most extraordinary things with metal. I remember him describing this process but never saw it performed until now. Of course, Dad's response would be "don't break the tap." Well, that's good advice but stuff happens. I only broke one tap in my whole life and was able to twist it out with a pair of needle nose. Whew! Lucky.

[@drgrunn174]

Scoop oh man, U're really, really lucky ... I've got a 'new' motorcycle last year ... only 30 years old ... had to remove 3 broken bolts for just the first month ... lucky me they were not high hardness. Unlucky me one of them is actually not a bolt, but welded holder with threaded end. But anyways, can't use such machine. This is kind of specific, I see the workhead can't angle, so you have to level the part somehow. It is utterly strange the yellows are not selling such machines in hundreds already. But of course re-modeled for 'home use'.

[@scoop4363]

@@drgrunn174 Wow, I would love to see what you're up to. It's possible Dad taught me some trick that would help you out but without a clear shot at what the problem is . . . well good luck is about I have to offer. One thing though, wonder if someone with some real know how could develop a hand held device that would work. I'd say that guy would make a few bucks.

[@Mappy-xn1om]

Im an EDM master 23 years now - I do it all, hole pop,wire EDM, sinker EDM ! cool video man !

[@sh115067]

This is a craft I didn't even know existed. Cool

[@zajtoja]

I was aware of the EDM technology but have never thought about using and EDM machine for broken tap removal. This is great

[@treeguyable]

Wow, I was so in to the tap removal, never noticed the gum. Soap opera people do ,I guess .

[@tommyguns9008]

Mike Sokolow Or little nerds that couldn’t turn a screwdriver but know 69 positions on butt-fuckin

[@frederick2690]

You would learn more with Tom in a week than a year in school. I appreciate the video.

[@Strothy2]

He has probably forgotten more then most of us ever learned ^^

[@samhouston1673]

Machinists are the coolest people with amazing knowledge and skill.

[@d3vnull86]

The hard rods are no longer the rockwell you state after grinding. When you grind it and you see that metal change colour, that's the metal losing it's hardness and slowly becoming annealed.

[@jaishetty8586]

The tip need not be that hard to fuck the hell outta that dead tap shred. the back needs to be hard so the hammer could strike it well.

[@Allemay]

All I wanted to do was go to sleep because I'm exhausted but I couldn't stop watching. I wish everybody making a video was as cool as this cat. I get the feeling there's nothing he couldn't do. And if there was something he'd tell you and be right about it.

[@loganpe427]

Who could _possibly_ give this a thumbs down? Why? Some people's kids, Jesus H Cri...!

[@DNALawyer]

That was practically a life-changing experience watching such a professional approach to handling the problem. ... a great example to follow, and I think I will!

[@jirizhanel795]

I use carbide used endmill , about 70% smaller diameter then the happy itself, to fill out the tap. Of course works only on HSS taps.

[@LincolnSP150]

At Kearney & Trecker we had a tap burning Machine very similar to this one, but I never was shown how it was done till now. Thank You for the excellent demonstration.

[@whitebear26]

Thas called removing broken taps like a boss

[@barrynovak9458]

Very interesting. Tom is well spoken and a pleasure to listen to.

[@nraynaud]

Wouldn't it make sense to include the service of finishing the taping for a small fee? 1) the customer doesn't have a tap anymore 2) if you break your own tap again finishing the job, you have the means to get it out without too much extra cost, the part is already on the EDM table.

[@jmblur]

+nraynaud1 You'd need full specs for the tapped hole - thread depth, thread tolerance class, bottoming or taper tap.... much better to let the customer finish the job than risk screwing up a big, expensive part! Plus, there's likely other holes that still need tapping.

[@sulferoil]

Thank you Mr. Grafton for showing this. Scares the heck out of me when I tap a pistol so I use a new tap and use carbon steel so I can use an carbide endmill to remove it if necessary. When I'm making things at work, I'll tell the engineer how many operations are left where I can turn my work piece into scrap. :)

[@billarroo1]

Oh and I'm 71 and I can't chew gum it sticks to my dentures, keep chewing !! 😆

[@Pancho-ws1sw]

Im 28 lost my front teeth at 16. I can't chew either sticks to my partial dent

[@johnerway7255]

Great job Jerry, seen this done in the early 70's, always interesting to see this special work completed. Thanks

[@eqgmrdbz]

Excellent video, kept me riveted (LoL) the whole way thru.

[@waynegriffiths5143]

A physically ripped old guy with a razor sharp mind.

[@hddm3]

Man that’s cool. I bet that tool is exspencive as hell

[@coldy5915]

I visit this channel every month in hope of upload. 😊

[@rachelschoeneman3925]

This is so sweet, I come by and watch every once in a while, too. Unfortunately, Tom passed away in 2016 ❤ This is my stepdad and watching him do his work in these videos is always heart warming. He was amazing at what he did and hopefully his videos were a help 😊

[@sleddarcheddar]

This shit makes me happy. Old school techniques shared.

[@manlystyleunder50]

worst technique ever, incredibly time consuming, ruins good equipment and causes significant damage to the thread

[@somepunk2541]

I have always wondered how professionals did this. Thank you for showing that.

[@MikeBratcher]

I didn't read through every comment on here, but I didn't see anyone bring this up. He mentioned that he has these chisels that have been tempered to a certain hardness. He then proceeds to sharpen them on a high speed grinder to red hot. Doesn't that remove all the hardness or tempering and normalizing that the manufacturer put into them? I'm no expert, and don't profess to be. Maybe someone that knows can enlighten me.

[@hyperhektor7733]

in theory it could, it depends all on how long the heat has time to travel trogh the workpiece. If you grind only for a short time it has very limited effect on the hardness. Also keep in mind that the part which is glowing is also grinded off. Keep the grinding time short. If you need to grind more , always have a water pot nearby so you can cool the part every ~3-8 seconds or so ( you can feel the heat with you fingers, if its hoo hot to hold, you are too late, cool it before you reach that point.

[@drkastenbrot]

the tip has lost its hardness at that point, yes

[@TennisCoachChip]

I think he only got it to dull red, not cherry red.

[@Fireship1]

Awesome work Tom. Broken taps are the curse of mechanics everywhere! You have the cure!

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

Hey Jerry ... does grinding the M2 Chisels not draw their hardness ?? Great vid by the way 😎👍☘️

[@kknives_switzerland]

M2 is HSS steel and probably they are tempered to "red hot hardness" - but even if they get a little softer, they seem to work well for him🤷🏼‍♂️

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

@@kknives_switzerland yeah... Its jist that I've ground a lot of hss over the years & tbh I've found that "bluing" it during the grind doesn't help with tool life, on the capstan lathe I ran, despite the "red hardness" attributed to hss... but as you say, it seems to work for him ! 😉 Thanks for chipping in ! 😎👍☘🍺

[@kknives_switzerland]

@@peterfitzpatrick7032 I totally agree on the blueing part; I run all my grinding equipment water cooled for that reason - in knife making, not the slightest discoloration is allowed to occur.

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

@@kknives_switzerland I'm assuming its flood coolant... No dipping a hot piece in cold coolant.. 🙄😏 I dry-grind to reduce the risk of micro-fractures... just takes a little longer... 🤓 But I'm mostly only grinding hss blanks so not as critical as your grinding sounds... 🤔 😎👍☘️🍺

[@kknives_switzerland]

@@peterfitzpatrick7032 Yes, flood coolant! Got some videos up on it if you want to take a look. Thick blanks are an entirely different game than a 0.015 inch thick cross section like it is common in knives - let alone the edge itself! Always cool to peek into other crafts!

[@albinstroniarz807]

Bravo to YOU!... This kind of expertise is not seen by every human!.. The precision and the thnking that goes into the process of repairing, what ever goes wrong, is what lands on hands that are capable!.. Bravo for making this so easy understood. Thank you for sharing your experience!..

[@MyLeafy1]

were not in church or in a formal setting, chew on brother.

[@gabaktech]

how can you do that in a car? you can take it apart to put it in that machine

[@kathulemerald8000]

so this is where iron-man ended up

[@arcturusbbqsausagemaking2435]

Great video I worked as a welder fabricator for 38 years retired now ,And broke many a tap building ski lifts I sure do miss working in the shop welding and Fabricating anyways keep the videos coming... be well

[@JoseLainez]

once I heard the chewing I could not stop hearing it haha great video.

[@mjac5044]

Way cool machine you got there, Jerry! Reminds me of air-arcing welds at B & W in Canton, OH back in the early 70's! Awesome video, 5 Stars! Thanks for posting. You're an artist...

[@jamesmgordon83]

Lol at you entirely ruining the temper on your “hardened” m2 chisel on that grinder. You can actually see the tip glowing red. Lol

[@danielsmith1529]

I guess you think he never did this before. I would venture to suggest that the chisel isn't meant to be sharp, just tough.

[@jamesmgordon83]

I guess you don’t understand the basic heat treating/metallurgy. Chisels are meant to be in the 40-50hrc range. M2 steel is usually hardened to around 61hrc and above. So this would be kind of a special purpose chisel. Heating it up to the orange temps(1500f or probably higher from what I could tell) isn’t only going to drop it beneath that hardness, but it’s going to completely ruin the heat treat. If he intended it to just be any old chisel that would be super soft, why the hell would he use m2? The fact that he took the trouble to mention it was m2, leads me to believe that isn’t the case. Lastly, doing something wrong for a long time doesn’t make it right.

[@laurieagnew6706]

He never specified how exactly it was hardened though did he. My supervisor showed me nitrided ejector pins that looked almost identical to those he used. Hardest metal ive come across and would be perfect for this job

[@12345NoNamesLeft]

@@jamesmgordon83 He told you it's M2 High speed steel. You can get it red hot without affecting hardness.

[@jamesmgordon83]

@laurie Agnew He went to the trouble of saying “m2 steel.” That is a tool steel and it’s meant to be heat treated before use. Otherwise any old mild steel would work. Seriously, I don’t know how this is hard to understand. In regards to the “nitrided” ejector pins, that is a process that only hardens the surface. Once you sharpen it a time or two, it’s gone.

[@YoeyYutch]

Nice work. Good delivery. What I really liked about this video has nothing to do with tap removal. Your putty technique for directing the water is brilliant! Ahh the beauty of simple designs. It's just the thing I need to keep the coolant under control on our mill at work. Thank you sir!

[@MFKR696]

People must be breaking alot of taps for you to be able to make a career out of this lol. Best wishes.

[@jc-0h]

Had a smaller version of this machine at the machine shop I worked at. It had a chart with common standard thread diameters against electrode diameters and machine heat settings. We could burn out between #10 to 5/8" diameter and simple calculations allowed for metric conversion. For some reason I was fascinated with it and took time to clean the machine up and organize the electrodes. It wasn't long after that it became my duty to repair broken taps for all of the machine shop and mechanical assembly. Most taps were broken by manual drills going into large steel tubing followed by bottom end taps into aluminum, again manually. In my 2.5 years at that company I had burned taps out of many different mild steels, cast/6061/7075 aluminum, and phenolic which is a plastic composite for high temp applications. I used old center punches ground the way Jerry used his M2 magnetic chisel. For larger than 5/8" broken taps, which was rare, I'd burn a 1/4-1/2" hole and slide a bolt in, tack welding it in place and turning the tap out as anything we had of that diameter was a through hole and cold be accessed easily from the other side, with few exceptions. Aluminum threads that were cleaned out usually were drilled out after the tap was removed and were rethreaded with a special insert depending on application. Aluminum is very gummy when machined and takes special care to ensure it doesn't weld to the tap. Something that when using a cordless drill will happen instantly if the drill is wobbled and the clutch isn't set right. Another place where people screw up is trying to "eyeball" a drill size to the inner diameter of a tap. The smaller the tap the more precise one has to be and the blueprints will specify the basic minor and major diameters necessary for the drill. Engineers [should] take care when they specify those sizes since different applications require different contact areas between the screw thread and base thread.

[@tickyul]

Insane, I had no idea!

[@tomgrafton8681]

The process has been around a lot longer the most people realize.

[@tickyul]

Tom Grafton Brilliant, how much did that rig cost?

[@tomgrafton8681]

tickyul 25,000.00

[@tickyul]

Tom Grafton YIKES, that's a LOT of repair jobs! Well, then again, seeing the complicated jobs you do......maybe not THAT many!!!!!!

[@paulbakovic7475]

You are awesome!! Keeping alive techniques and professions that are slowly disappearing!!

[@wrecktal_seepage]

ASMR for the people who love hearing people chew gum... Me on the other hand. I can't stand it

[@przyszli]

Fucking mounth clappng pig, can't listen to this abomination

[@mariushart]

Not gum, it's the putty. Chewing keps it moist and reusable.

[@krazytrinisteve]

Did you learn something new or saw something new... wow I would of loved to have you tube when I was a kid

[@davidgibbon8927]

What we called 'Spark Erosion' process back in the early 60's. The 'Jaguars' fitted to the bonnets (hoods) of Jaguar cars were made using that process. Great video. Thanks!

[@blainesweeney521]

Jeez spit the gum out

[@inthebriarpatch]

Yeah, I'm gonna throw a guess that he doesn't give a shit Blayne

[@Stu-SB]

That was superb... could watch an old Engineer at his craft all day long

[@ModMINI]

Excellent. Wouldn't it be funny if the tap you used broke off again in the hole. :-)

[@tomgrafton8681]

***** It's happened!!!

[@ModMINI]

***** I was joking. (That's what the sideways smiley is for) :-) But Tom (above) says that it has happened.

[@sikofu2]

***** Chasing threads just means gently running the tap through to check the integrity of the threads. Tapping is where you actually cut the treads and he did say he was chasing them. I've never seen someone break a tap chasing threads ever.

[@xenonram]

***** I'm sure the company that broke the tap weren't using any cheapo taps; judging by the piece they sent in.

[@elias1579]

All that effort I’ve done using busted old tap extractor kits 😥😥😥 and here you are relaxing on the damn deal 😂😂😂

[@blaineabshire4921]

That chewing gum sounds are driving me nuts...

[@8068]

Excellent job. Here's hoping your next 40 years will be just as successful.

[@davejack8973]

dude... the gum ... really....

[@desktorp]

probably paranoid about his breath after smoking a huge joint

[@armenbagdasarian6144]

you are the guy in Santa Ana. you saved my butt years ago with a busted exhaust manifold bolt. thanks!!!!

[@benrodir2]

if you are going to make a youtube video, take the time to spit out the gum. Rude.

[@gagantron]

the man looks like he could probably break you in half with a look. He's been at this for years, and his experience speaks for itself. If he wants to chew gum, let him chew gum, man. He's earned it.

[@ericg4006]

quit your fucking bitching and enjoy the video

[@reverendgreen5442]

Why is it rude to chew gum while talking?

[@gagantron]

hey now, picky as he is, no one deserves that. he just didn't like the dude chewing gum. Is that really worth saying things like that? I'd rather remain quiet and be thought an asshole than open my mouth and remove all doubt. Be kind, people.

[@michaelbeary]

Lol. "he's earned it". Either it's loud, obnoxious and disrespectful or it's not. I've worked very hard in my life too - so what's this supposed to be, a comparison game to see who deserves to be obnoxious or not, or who could beat up the other person or not?

[@-DC-]

for anyone with a engineering interest your videos are fantastic.

[@BarnacleBrown]

Great video. But man dont chew gum while recording your audio like this .......

[@tomgrafton8681]

+Isaac Dahlvang hard habit to break, but i did, thanks to your comment!

[@BarnacleBrown]

+Tom Grafton great job on that! stronger than I am haha. I can't get off cigarettes. thank you for your response!

[@marvellerife5258]

Wow Tom did that bring back memories for me! My dad owned a tool and die shop and as a kid working there in the sixties that was my job, the machine was a Elox brand edm tap extractor the process was exactly the same!

[@Sk3llyt0r]

the open moth chewing and talking with gum in his mouth is very distracting. sorry.

[@gratefulDeadHead1234]

nah

[@foxxriderr]

that guy is cool as fuck he can do what he wants

[@Sk3llyt0r]

I think the subject matter is great. Just wish it didn't have the extra bit.

[@DocBlasto]

You better be fuckin sorry.

[@mrjohnnydrinkard322]

Sean K yeah, i hate when those moths buzz around chewing and eating your cloths and shit....and those moths with gum are worse. I got a bug zapper just for those moths. Those moths get really upset when you confuse them with butterflies 🐛

[@hudsonhawk0016]

The days of old school machinist like this man are over unfortunately.