After the write up on my Beall Wood Threader, I thought this may be an appropriate time to talk about metal threads... well, it would have been more appropriate 4 months ago before I got carried away with my puzzles.
Rather than reinvent the wheel treads threads I thought it’d be easier for me to migrate this article I published at Lumberjocks on Sep 14, 2020.
Father's day has just passed in Australia, however, that doesn't mean there's no Father's Day in the US some day in the future and you can put this on your wish list or do yourself a favour, have quite a few drinks, order it online, go to bed and it'll be a surprise present when you sober up later.
This "tool" is not a must have but fall into the bloody handy asset category especially if you believe there are more than 1/4" nuts and bolts in the world.
I purchased this very basic set of imperial and metric ones from Rockler many years ago,
however, when Woodpecker retailed a more comprehensive set (not their brand), and having experienced the Rockler offering, I didn't hesitate to place an order.
Why you may ask? OK, picture this…
You have a pile of "orphaned" nuts and bolts in front of you…
All you veteran oldies can probably identify the pitch by mentally visualising the number of threads… much like the wrinkles in your face to guess your own age, but the baby-bum faced youngies would probably need a computer or at least a calculator/iPhone to count.
Consequently, most of the smart arses out there will simply reach for their box(es) of nuts and bolts and with trial and error, try a random selection of nuts/bolts till they get a match… they then dutifully place them, in like bundles, on the bench so as not confuse them and then have to reach for those boxes again to identify each pile in front of them… after all if you were clever enough to replaced the matching hardware in the right box, you'll only have to pull it out again if you have more hardware to check.
Convinced yet? NO! … OK.
Here in Australia, you can take your hardware down to the local Bunnings store and check the thread pitch with the hanging gauges they have down the hardware isle… only to find some mongrel has either pinched the board or you put the wrong hardware in your pocket.
Getting hotter? NO!… OK, try again.
Many of our frugal members will opt for cheap imported machinery that, damned if I know why, tend to have hardware that is not available in most local outlets…
You reach into your Tap and Die set, you do have one don't you, and drag out your thread gauge(s)…
You choose what seems be the best fit , record the number, visit your hardware vendor and return with what now turns out to be a mismatched thread.
Still not convinced? ... Just one more attempt.
You trundle down to a specialised hardware outlet, like Metro Bolts in Traralgon (Victoria, Australia), this time with the correct hardware in your hand, only to be told they don't carry that item. You then move onto the next remote supplier only to find that you left your "samle" at the previous location who will inform you they tossed that item into the bin as they had nowhere to put back on their shelves… Shizen, now you're missing two of those items.
Still in doubt?… Hell, reminds me of dragging that vacuum cleaner up some stairs with the cord wrapped around the legs… use your bloody welder…
otherwise…
Buy one of these gizmos… You don't need to go apeshit and buy both the full imperial and metric sets, however, if you happen to buy some quality European gear the chances are it'll be in metric… say no more. Furthermore, while that hand is in the pocket, why not just lash out for the full metric and imperial sets.
Then… slip your nut or bolt into/onto a close match and move along the wire until you get a hit otherwise move over to the other system till you get a hit.
Handy addition
near my hardware storage,
If you crap out on both strings for a match, you have really crapped out and are neck deep in the poo. Suggest you give/sell the tool/machinery to your favourite nemesis.
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Don’t be crafty Craftisians,... SHARE your craft!
If your first cut is too short... Take the second cut from the longer end... LBD
Ducky, I keep all the metric shite bolts and screws that come with any overseas products…they come in handy from time to time, but need to be sized when I decide to use them, since I don’t easily speak metric.
Ryan/// ~sigh~ I blew up another bowl. Moke told me "I made the inside bigger than the outside".
I was having lunch yesterday with some of my woodworking friends, one of them recalled being in a Jr High science class that was teaching the Metric system and the teacher said that it was comon knowledge that the Metric system would be instituted in America by 1985. He lived in a smaller town of 40,000 or so that was really a tight knot community, so it was common to see your old teacher at the stores and restaurants, this guy threw that statement up to the guy until recently when the teacher passed away.
Duckie I have two sets of those and other iterations of that from other manufacturers. I find them very useful....they hang in a place of honor in my home "hardware store.
When Aussieland went metric, I gave away all my imperial measuring devices to friend... and the inaccurate ones, that caused me to cut things a tad too short, to my foes.
Then I started my tool fetish and after exhausting our local supplies, I started ordering from Yankeeland... yes, there was a time when shipping cost were quite reasonable. To my horror I discovered that all those imported tools were bloody imperial and I had to re-buy all my imperial give aways... none of my "friends" offered to return their gifts, though I got some of the dodgy ones back from my foes. Restocking cost me a small fortune.
If your first cut is too short... Take the second cut from the longer end... LBD
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