HSS taps for mild steel, aluminium, brass and stainless at conventional speeds — 50-300 threads per tap depending on material. Carbide taps for CNC production runs in hardened steel, aggressive feeds, or high-volume threading where HSS wears too fast. Carbide costs 4-6× more but may last 10× longer in the right application.

Straight flute — general purpose, chips pushed back up the hole, best for through-holes. Spiral flute — chips pulled out of the hole, best for blind holes in tough material. Spiral point (gun tap) — chips pushed forward through the hole, best for through-holes in ductile materials.

Match drill size to tap (most broken taps come from undersize drill holes), use proper cutting oil, keep chips clear, and use a tapping head or rigid tapping cycle on CNC. On manual work, reverse a quarter-turn every half-turn to break chips. Never force a tap.

Yes but it will be slow and the tap will wear fast. For production threading of SS304 or SS316, use M35 (5% cobalt) or M42 (8% cobalt) HSS taps with sulphur-based cutting oil. Run at 30-70% of mild-steel speed.

BSP (British Standard Pipe, parallel or tapered) for water and compressed air fittings across most of Asia, UK and India. NPT (National Pipe Tapered) for US-standard gas and hydraulic fittings. They are NOT interchangeable — the flank angles differ (55° vs 60°). Check the drawing before buying.

Yes — Miranda HSS hand tap sets in metric, BSW, UNC, UNF, BSP. Each set includes taper, plug and bottoming taps for each size. Individual sizes also available. Machine and nut taps ordered separately.