An end-user out of Indiana was interested in taking their tapping operations offline. They offer CNC services for customers in the automotive, heavy truck, and agricultural industries, so they deal with many cast iron parts. The problem they were facing was that they were breaking too many taps and scrapping too many parts. Tapping cast iron presents a challenge because it emits small chips of metal. If not careful, the hard spots can cause tap breakage. The end-user wanted to see if the FlexArm was a solution to their problems, so they sent in their parts for a tap test.
The GHM-18 (signified with the ‘M’ in GHM) was selected for the tap test because it allows vertical and horizontal tapping. First, we used an m10 tap to tap both the through and blind holes on top vertically. We then adjusted the multi-head by aligning it horizontally to the part using the alignment plug. The alignment plug ensures the tap stays perpendicular to the workpiece, helping maintain thread consistency.
Next, we replaced the alignment plug with the m14 tap and tapped the blind holes horizontally. The FlexArm was able to quickly and easily go from vertical to horizontal tapping in no time at all. The FlexArm did not have an issue with the hard spots in the cast iron material. The built-in mechanism in the tap holder clutches out anytime it encounters an obstruction, preventing tap breakage before it can occur.
If you are having issues tapping cast iron, or you’re just looking to take your tapping operations offline. Contact us, and learn more about our tapping arm solutions.
