Pipe Spiral Point Taps

Pipe Spiral Point (Gun) Taps

Pipe spiral point taps — sometimes called gun taps — have a chamfered cutting end with angular chip-pushing geometry that drives the chip ahead of the tap, through the work, and out the bottom of the hole. They're the right tool for production tapping in through-holes, where chip evacuation forward (rather than back up the flutes) is the fastest way to clean threads. AIMS Industrial stocks pipe spiral point taps in BSPF for plumbing, hydraulic, and pneumatic threading work.

How spiral point geometry works

The cutting end of a spiral point tap is ground at an angle that catches the chip and shoves it forward through the hole as the tap rotates. In a through-hole, the chip exits the back of the work cleanly; the flutes themselves don't carry chips back to the top, so they can be straight (no helix) — which makes the tap stiffer and more economical to manufacture. The result is faster tapping speeds in production work compared with straight-flute or spiral-flute taps.

Sizes

Pipe spiral point taps are stocked in BSPF (parallel pipe thread) in the common sizes: 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 3/4, 1 inch, 1-1/4, 1-1/2, and 2 inch. BSPF threads are parallel and seal with an O-ring or sealing washer, not on the thread itself.

Where spiral point earns its place

• Production fitting manufacture — high-volume threading of brass, stainless, and aluminium pipe fittings
• Through-hole threading — where the hole exits the back of the work and chips can clear forward
• CNC machining centres — spiral point taps suit the high-speed peck-tap or rigid-tap cycles modern CNCs use
• Free-machining materials — brass, free-cutting steel, and aluminium where the chip breaks cleanly

Spiral point versus spiral flute — choosing right

Spiral point: through-holes, high-speed production, chips evict forward. Spiral flute: blind holes, chips evict back up the flutes. Don't substitute — using a spiral point in a blind hole packs chips at the bottom and breaks the tap; using a spiral flute in a high-speed through-hole production setup is slower than spiral point. Match the tap geometry to the hole type.

Brands stocked at AIMS

Sutton Tools, Bordo, and Champion cover the pipe spiral point tap range in HSS. HSS-E (cobalt) versions and surface-coated taps (TiN, TiCN) are available for more demanding production applications.

Tapping practice

Use cutting fluid, drill the correct tapping drill size, and run the tap at the manufacturer's recommended surface speed for the material. Spiral point taps perform best in powered tapping setups — manual hand tapping is possible but slower and offers no advantage over straight-flute. For production work, a tapping head or CNC rigid-tap cycle is the right driver.

Need help selecting between spiral point and spiral flute, or sourcing a less common size? contact our team — we'll work through the application.