IRWIN Tap Set for Machine Screws, High Carbon Steel, 10-24 NC, 3-Piece (2528)

No idea how good the taps are as I never got them. I did receive the outer case and it appears to be of high quality, very easy to open. In fact, it was so easy to open it was in the shipping box in a preopened state.Photo is the item as received.Amazon, you're great for most things, but there is no thought for small items that may pop loose in shipping. This isn't the first time that this has happened. Fix it!Edit: So someone at Amazon must keep an eye out, as I received an email requesting what to do to make it right. I just wanted my taps, and they sent out a new package that actually had the taps in them. They were and arrived in fine condition a couple days later. So with these and a set of 10-24 that I bought locally I now have plenty in this size. These particular taps are well made and work fine with a bit of Tap Magic fluid in steel and aluminum. Well worth the price. Now if Amazon could keep small stuff in their boxes....

Had to hand tap a hole in the hardened alloy part and regular tap was just not able to get a bite.This set with taper starter tap did the trick. Started with a taper and slowly in 1/16 revolution increments with lots of downward pressure and plenty of cutting oil was barely able to start it. Took it slow as tap was encountering real resistance from hardened material of the part. Lot's of back turns to clear chips, as i was fearing tap might snap in the hole if i load it too much. Things got a bit tense as it was twisting along the long axis noticeably. On basis of this observation i'm concluding that tap is not high-carbon (HC) steel but rather HSS. I had HC taps snap on me with less twist than this tap was able to handle. Wanted to make this clarification since description does say that it's carbon steel.

Anyone who has used thread taps will know that there isn't much to say about them. They either work correctly, or they don't. These work correctly. The three different tapers is nice, allowing you to tap a blind hole. Most tap sets only include one taper for each thread pitch, so if you want to tap blind holes you will need to purchase the other tapers. I already have a tap set but needed the bottoming tap for blind holes. This set is just the ticket. I imagine the other thread pitches made by this company would be just as good as this one.Make sure to use thread cutting lubricant, and to frequently break your chips by reversing direction every full turn so you don't get the tap stuck. ANY tap can be broken if you don't use it correctly.

Note that these are commercial ground-thread type, not the higher standard Class 3 precision ground thread types. They produce a class 2B thread, but that should be good enough for most uses. And they are High Carbon Steel, not High Speed Steel, so they will wear out faster, but cost less. Even so, they ain't cheap.

I bought these to replace one I broke tapping into steel. I twisted the angle a little too much and had to remove the stuck tap, which was neigh impossible. This kit comes with a flat, tapered, and tap style tap. They worked fantastically, perfect threading, good quality, and came in a nice little case.

While obviously the per-piece cost would be less if buying a whole set, I really do not need a whole tap/die set, just a few common sizes is perfect. I would much rather pay a little more per-piece and buy a couple duplicate's of the sizes I use rather than a whole set where I end up using only a few pieces, so I am glad they sell these individually.I would rate the tap as very good quality - I was able to make several repairs and the tap still looks new. If you need a 6 -32 NC (course thread) this is a good choice - nice tool at a fair price.

Had two (2) "real shallow" holes I was tapping and managed to break the bottom tap (after I ground most of the already short bottom tap partial threads off) So, I would say operator error and not the fault of the tap set. Drilled out the hole diameter slightly and used a 10-32 tap to complete the 2 holes after a local machine shop edm'ed the broken tap piece from the one hole.. That went well I'm happy to say. Did not have to remake the pc., but cost me 3 times material cost to save my work hours.

This set of 3 drill taps are of excellent quality and perform as advertised. A great product at a good price.Made in the USA as well!