I'm playing around with an Ulka pump (52 watt/brass fitting)--I THINK it's a 1/8" BSP fitting but not sure if it's BSPP (parallel), or BSPT (tapered)? Or something else??? Does anyone know? The pump comes with a gasket so it's probably a......Thanks!

It is 1/8"-28 BSPP and sealing methods would depend upon what you are trying to screw into the snout.

doublehelix wrote:The pump comes with a gasket so it's probably a.....

I would agree with BSPP. Parallel threads need to seal either on the face, or at the tip of the fitting. As mentioned, depends what you want to fit on the end, the typical fitting would be a mushroom nipple soldered to copper tubing with a BSPP nut. The mushroom then seals against the tip of the fitting.

BSPT (or any tapered thread like NPT) is designed to seal on the threads themselves. They benefit from a bit of teflon tape to both lubricate as well as act like a sealant.

If you have calipers, you can also tell what kind of fitting you have. Start measuring a male fitting at the base of the thread, then the tip...if they are the same it's a parallel thread, if smaller at the tip it's tapered.

erics and EspressoForge--THANK YOU so much for this information...I'll start measuring.......

As a side note-- has anyone tried to use a Waterpik pump for espresso--removing the pump, and using it like an Ulka device?

Can a waterpik sustain 8bar? I think it is a cheap plastic plunger with a Mabuchi motor...

??Don't know the pressure-- for laughs, I'm going to try to measure the pressure in an old unit I have. Whatever is inside the Waterpik, I'll know soon, since I will be dissecting it. The pump is durable, since it's been used multiple time a day, for 4 years....No, I do not have any plans to swap it for Ulka pumps in my machines.....

I opened the Water Pik; it's very old-- I think bought in the '60's.....the motor is a simple, sturdy, shaded pole motor connected, via some gears, to a piston-type pump-all nicely enclosed in a plastic housing. Now to measure its pressure.....