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Tool Talk Discussion Forum

setting rivets

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34gp

12-13-2006 11:44:24




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Does anybody have any tips for setting solid steel rivets so they are tight and look like you knew what your doing? Thanks




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Bus Driver

12-14-2006 12:35:18




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
The pieces being riveted together must be pushed tightly together to prevent the rivet from spreading between them. The hole in the rivet set goes over the rivet and the rivet set is hit as the first step to push the items tightly together.



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MarkB_MI

12-14-2006 03:48:14




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
It would be helpful to know what kind of equipment you have to work with and how many rivets you need to drive. You can set rivets with a pair of hammers, or you can make a rivet set. But if you're going to do a lot of them you need either a rivet gun or squeezer. These can be purchased from aircraft tool houses, the Yard (link below) has them at reasonable prices. The aircraft stuff will work for the smaller steel rivets.

Some not-so-obvious things:

When driving a rivet with a rivet gun, you drive the head with the gun and form the shop head with a bucking bar (piece of steel) on the tail.

When riveting two pieces of metal of different thickness, you will get best results if the rivet is driven from the side with the thinner metal, as this will force the thinner metal tight with the thicker metal.

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ntmcj

12-13-2006 22:18:47




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
The 1.5 times rivet diameter is correct. If you have access to a true rivet gun, use one. The cheap air hammers are ususally on full blast or off. A rivet gun will have a smooth trigger like a good quality battery drill. Up to about a 3/16 rivet a 3X rivet gun should be fine. Use a good heavy bucking bar and it will also be easier. If you are shooting button head rivets, hold the rivet set tight and keep it tight while you shoot. If not, it will bounce and leave little smiley faces on your rivet and the piece you are attaching. If you are using countersunk rivets, be sure to set the micro-stop on some holes you drill in a scrap piece. For a good flush countersunk rivet, make sure to countersink the piece just a bit deep so you can see a slight ring around the head of the rivet when you first place it in the hole. As you shoot it, the head will also swell up a little. Just make sure you practice on a few scrap pieces to get the hang of it. I work aircraft sheet metal and have shot all kinds of rivets. I have yet to meet the knotthead that I cannot teach to shoot rivets reasonably adequate in about 15 minutes.

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CalJim

12-13-2006 22:08:20




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
I made a nice "power" rivet setter last week.
Took an old air chisel bit, cut the end off. It was round shank, about 1/2" diameter.
Then took a round die grinder bit and dished
out a concave on the end. Air chisel did a
nice job of drawing up rivets....with a little
practice. Happy Holidays All CalJim



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jeffcat

12-13-2006 21:55:06




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
What everone is saying. Practice. Try a few alumminum rivits first. They work very easily and you can just drill them out to try over. The 1.5 x length works very well. You don't need a lot of metal to make the head. Too much will bow out and make a mess. Another thing is to not hit it too much. Just till it gets tight. You can bend or deform the work. It can also make cracks that will split your work. With a little patiance you will make some nice rivits with out too much trouble. Steel you might want to heat them till they get red and let them cool. They will be soft and as you hit them they will harden. I just did a small rivit job on a machine at work with a small stainless plate onto a pannel. The chain had lossened and ground its whay through the pannel. Looks like a nice old time repair with six little rivits in it.Jeffcat

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TimV

12-13-2006 14:48:53




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
34gp: A few tips--these may be obvious, but I'll throw them out anyway. First, if possible, put the pre-formed head of the rivet toward the side that will be seen. Second, for a full, round head you need 1.5 x the rivet diameter sticking out past the joined area. Third, start by several direct blows on the rivet to "upset" it--making it swell to fit the hole. Finally, use a rivet set to make the final round head. You can do it with a ball-peen hammer, but a rivet set will give a more consistent appearance.

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Slowpoke

12-13-2006 12:02:13




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 Re: setting rivets in reply to 34gp, 12-13-2006 11:44:24  
I made a rivet setter from a 1/2" x 6' shaft by drilling the end in a drill press. Just a shallow hole will do it, maybe 1/16 deep, depending on the size of the rivet. Make the outside diameter of the hole about the size of the expanded rivet. It will make a decent dome. Experiment with defferent drill bits and depths. You could also check where mower knives are sold. Or McMaster-Carr



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