Bottom Bracket Tap Cutters ITA

Italian-threaded BB shells (36 × 24) live mostly on Italian heritage frames (Colnago, De Rosa, Bianchi, older Pinarello road frames) and on a small set of premium builds that adopted the standard for character reasons. The 1698.1 Italian tap cutters are the matched replacement / kit-conversion pair for chasing those threads cleanly. The cutting teeth are sized to M36 × 1.058 mm (24 TPI), and a single pair handles both sides of the shell.

What this piece does

Italian BB shells differ from BSA in one workflow-relevant way: both sides of the shell are right-hand thread. The non-drive and drive sides both back off counterclockwise from their respective ends; both taps turn the same way in. The 1698.1 Italian cutter pair is sized to that thread and goes into the Italian tap holders (1698.2/4), which sit on the modular handles like the rest of the frame-prep family.

Use cases

• Replacement. When an existing Italian cutter pair has lost its working edge. Italian shells are less commonly serviced than BSA in North American shops, so cutters tend to last longer per pair; still, on a busy Italian-specialist bench they wear like any other consumable cutting edge.
• Configurable kit. Pairing the Italian cutters with the Italian tap holders 1698.2/4 is the route into Italian BB service for a shop that already owns the BSA system. Same modular handles; only the cutters and holders change.

Compatibility

• Italian-threaded BB shells (M36 × 24 TPI, both sides right-hand)
• Fits the Italian Bottom Bracket Tap Holder 1698.2/4
• Drives through the modular frame-prep handles 1695.1/4BI

Specs

• Thread: 36 × 24 TPI (Italian); fits the 70 mm Italian-standard shell
• Pair: two right-hand cutters (both sides right-hand on an Italian shell); premium plus carbon steel; 18 mm cutter thickness; 122 g the pair
• Made in Slovenia by Unior; lifetime warranty

Includes: Two Italian thread tap cutters. Tap holders, the 1697.4 tap guide, and handles sold separately.

Made in Slovenia, since 1919

Unior has been forging hand tools in Zreče since 1919, and sponsors professional road and mountain-bike race teams. The Italian thread is a smaller fraction of the catalog's BB-prep volume than BSA, but a shop that services Italian heritage road frames needs the correct cutters regardless of frequency; carrying the variant is the difference between accepting that work and turning it away.

Pro tip from our mechanics

The both-sides-right-hand pattern is where mechanics trained on BSA most commonly misstep. There is no left-hand tap to worry about, and the muscle memory of “drive-side cuts counterclockwise from the drive side” does not apply. Both taps turn clockwise into the shell from their respective ends. If a mechanic is alternating between BSA and Italian work, slowing down to verify the thread standard on the frame before mounting cutters into holders saves a galled shell.

Italian BB shells also tend to need less aggressive paint-film clearing than BSA on factory carbon frames; many Italian heritage frames are steel with thinner thread-protection paint than mass-produced carbon. Light cutting oil and slow rotation produce clean ribbons quickly.

The full thread-chasing-then-facing procedure is in the BB shell pillar; the Italian thread runs the same sequence with the spec swap: Frame prep: threaded bottom bracket shells →

FAQ

Are both taps in this pair right-hand thread? Yes. The Italian bottom bracket standard is 36 mm × 24 TPI with right-hand thread on both sides of the shell, so both 1698.1 taps cut right-hand and both turn clockwise in from their respective ends. That is the working difference from BSA, whose drive-side cup and tap are left-hand.

Can I use these cutters on a BSA (English) shell? No. BSA shells run 1.37 in × 24 TPI with a left-hand drive side in 68, 73, or 83 mm widths; the Italian thread is a larger 36 mm diameter, right-hand on both sides, in a 70 mm shell. The BSA cutting pair is article 1697.1 — the two pairs are not interchangeable.

Which holders and handle do these cutters mount in? The 1698.1 pair seats in the Italian tap holders 1698.2/4 and drives from Unior's 1695/4BI magnetic frame-prep handle, with the 1697.4 guide joining the two taps through the shell. Holders, guide, and handles are sold separately; the 1698.3 set bundles this pair with two holders and the guide.

How do I know my frame has an Italian-threaded shell? Measure the shell width: the Italian standard is 70 mm, where BSA shells are 68, 73, or 83 mm (100 mm on fat bikes). Italian cups on both sides also unscrew counterclockwise, since both are right-hand thread. Italian threading lives mostly on Italian heritage road frames.