IRWIN Tap And Die Set, Metric, 41-Piece (26317)

Hanson Irwin means quality. There is no substitute. There is a reason SnapOn uses these for their Blue Point brand. These are an investment, not just a tool.

I have always been able to count on Irwin products the drill bits are getting hard to find though

I almost didn't order these due to the complaints and pictures of the machining defects (large, hanging burrs) in the dies. However, after looking around, I realized EVERYTHING else is hencho en China so I took a chance, figuring I could always send 'em back if I didn't like what I saw. The dies in my set DO in fact have a bit of a burr in some of them, but it's on the back (non-cutting) side of the entrance "ramp" to the die, and will have no effect on threading performance whatsoever. Now mine weren't as bad as those in the other reviewers' pics, but I wouldn't even consider the burrs in mine to be a defect; they don't hurt a thing. Otherwise, the finish on the taps and dies is excellent, and I'm very happy with them. All the dies and all but the smallest three taps are labeled "USA," and it could just be that there wasn't room on the line to mark the smallest taps - they appear to be identically manufactured.Now for the bad... I would guess the tap handles and pitch gauge are all Chinese. The chuck-style tap handles are made of steel and seem pretty good, but the chrome plated tap and die handles are all made of some pot metal Chinesium, and feel pretty darn cheap in the hand. I've got US made tap and die handles from my mid-90s Craftsman fractional set, so the handles weren't a big deal to me, but for the money, and given the quality of the actual taps and dies, I would have hoped for better here. The case is decent, but a couple of the taps are tight in their slots, and the tray will not sit properly unless the die centering tangs are fully closed, which is a minor annoyance. Overall, I'd give this set 4.5 stars, mainly because they put the quality where you really need it, and have kept making these in the U.S. which matters to me both in principle and for practical reasons (they actually work). I gave it 5 stars because a tie goes to the runner.

For what this set costs, the case was disappointing. It is cheaply made plastic and the smaller dies do not fit securely in their compartments and because of that most of them were out of place when I opened it. In addition, the die wrench was only partially assembled so when I picked it up the screws and plates fell and rolled under my workbench. Now I have to hunt for them. Not good, Irwin!!

Happy with tap & die set

I was hoping to finally have a decent set of taps and dies for service work. I've had a bunch of Irwin taps over the last 20 years and they are generally a good name with decent tolerance.Edit: After talking to Irwin it turns out they won't warranty any taps or does that aren't Irwin brand. So you're getting garbage for the price of an Irwin tap and die set that nobody will warranty.Further, nobody at Irwin will explain what tolerances they are expecting these to be held to.Imagine my surprise when I opened the case and saw barely any Irwin taps in the case. Dies are just as bad. So how do they match up? Badly. Class of fit for unbranded taps is MEASUREABLY worse. Measured three of them (8x1.00, 10x1.5, and 12x1.75) and all fell in between +/-0.025 inches (+0.018, +0.011, -0.025 respectively) . Which is way worse than what I expected. Dies weren't deburred either.Fractional set I ordered was all Irwin brand and in tolerance of +/-0.005 inches.As an added bonus, the taps don't lay in the blow molded case well, the 5x1.00 and the 8x1.00 sit proud of the wells for them.Flash on the case was also not trimmed meaning the data card can't sit flush in the lid. They did include a nice card telling me this was made in China too.I've reached out to Irwin via their website with my issues. This set was supposed to be a good set, but all I'm seeing is making me question if they are worth a damn anymore.Debating returning.Edit: Irwin suggested I return it to Amazon. I've started an exchange to see if they're all garbage