Just got back to checking this thread. Yes, I use gun taps in variable
speed drills all the time. Don's right though. 6-32 is right on the ragged
edge of sensible. It all depends on the alloy you're tapping, how far
you're going, and which lube you use. 1/4" 6061 or thiner, through hole,
proper lube, and a sharp tap, and you can pull the trigger all day long.
Give it a try. At least the 6-32's are inexpensive. As with any tapping
job, keeping the tool aligned to the hole is really important. It's just
that much harder to do with the weight of a cordless drill.

- Bruce

"DoN. Nichols" wrote in
:

Ah ha. An improvement! Can you run those in 6-32 or 8-32 in aluminum
with a low speed cordless drill?

The 8-32 should be no problem. 6-32, however, is the thread
from hell. Someone made a poor choice many years ago when they decided
to stretch the 32 TPI standard all the way down from 10-32 to 6-32. By
the time you get to a #6 screw, the threads remove such a large
percentage of the overall diameter that the resulting thread (and tap)
is quite weak for either side loads or over-torquing. With the tap in a
hand drill (battery powered or with a power cord) it becomes hard to
hold the drill motor in line with the hole for the whole time of tapping
-- especially when you are trying to switch the drill from forward to
reverse.

What would be a much better way to go would be with a tapping
head in a drill press -- but this can run into money if you aren't lucky
about picking up an appropriately sized used one on eBay or at a swap
meet.

If I can get it by the crusty old codger I'll do it.

The gun taps -- pretty likely. The tapping head (if you don't
already have one) --probably not. :-)

Good Luck,
DoN.