I hand thread a lot of titanium, 7/16-20 blind holes, 1" deep with a little extra hole for relief and chip clearance. I've found OSG taps to be about the best, but a little pricey. I used to use a sulfur-based cutting oil, but found I actually had better results tapping the holes dry. With the oil, the tap would chatter and chips would break off the cutting edge. When I tried it dry, that didn't happen. Still, I think that it would be better to use a lubricant. Is there something better suited for titanium than sulfur-based cutting oil?
- posted
20 years ago