Machinist

[Lawrence London <lfljvenaura@gmail.com>]

Tap Follower | What is a "tap guide"?
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/general/what-heck-tap-guide-250254/

You chuck it in your tailstock (or quill) to apply pressure to the end of a tap when manually tapping.
and in doing so, it keeps the tap concentric/co-axial to the hole

A few more details- the spring-loaded plunger can be turned around. One end is pointy to fit into tap centers or the hole in the end of a tap handle, and the other end is concave and fits over the pointy end of smaller taps. While one can tap straight holes without one of these, it can go a lot faster with one.

The great thing about the tap guides discussed above is that you can chuck them in the same chuck as you used to drill the hole with, assuring alignment.

Another item that is called a "tap guide" is a piece of stock with a hole drilled in it. You hold it against the workpiece and tap through the hole. This gets your tap started perpendicular to the workpiece surface. Hopefully, the hole you are tapping is perpendicular, too!



I have one similar. They work well for their intended purpose. I have also used mine to scribe lines on slightly irregular surfaces in a mill, after I ground the point sharp.

Images for Tap Follower
https://www.google.com/search?q=tap+follower&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiR9OyW0-rUAhUK6yYKHdm5AYEQsAQIOw&biw=1366&bih=612

TIPS #359 pt 1 HOW TO MAKE A TAP FOLLOWER tubalcain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y79op3DM4uo