'Scuse the nit-picking, but - no. That'd make for a crude axle-and-bearing, but not for a threaded interface. There won't be any material overlap for the threads to grasp on to between a 1/2" hole and a thread with a 1/2" outer diameter . The hole in which you can cut a 1/2 thread will be a tad smaller, as will the easiest measurable diameter be even after the thread is cut.