ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Import Pipe dies

I was in a pinch and bought a cheap pipe threading kit from Harbor Freight today. Threaded a 3/4" IMC in my shop just to try it out, it cut a beautiful thread. I wonder how long it will last? Anyone tried these cheap $39 kits?
Also, is regular motor oil good for cutting threads? A friend says that's all he ever uses.

From what I have been told by the worlds contankerous engineer you should not use lube oil for drilling ,threading,and other machine work. the reason being that it lubricates and that slows the work down .on the other hand threading oil is designed for machine work and can take the pressure of nachine work. ask yourself this question would i put threading oil in my car or truck engine?

I prefer Ridgid,as the saying "you get what you pay for"goes.......

Yes I prefer Rigid also, all my tools are quality, but like I said, I was in a pinch, there was no place open on Sat afternoon except Harbor Freight. I despise spending money on junk but I was desperate so I bought it. I was impressed it worked as well as it did, I wanted to know if anyone else has tried one.

I have a similar Harbor Freight set. I limit it's use to cleaning or repairing threads, as opposed to cutting them.
Replacement dies are typically not available. They certainly aren't interchangeable between brands.
Pipe threads are typically hand-cut using a heavy weight, sulphur-containing tapping oil. Some gear lube might be of a similar weight, but will not contain the suplhur or moly necessary for best results.