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What do you think of those rivets

M

Mohammed

Active Member
Patron
After I am done riveting two parts using the pneumatic squeezer I noticed that some of the rivets manufacture heads are a little bit bent and their bottoms are not flush with parts. I found out that was because the work was not clamped tightly and the squeezer flex moved the two parts so I fixed for the remaining rivers.

Do you think I should drill out those rivets although the shop heads look good?

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Apply moderate pressure on the manufactured head with the rivet gun, and just enough pressure with the bucking bar to hold it against the rivet. Let the mass of the bucking bar do the work
 
Practice

Practice holdi g pressure against the factory side and keeping the yoke perpendicular to the surface so the ram is perfectly aligned with the shank.
You'll get it.
 
Yes, practice, practice, practice. Learn to feather the ram to any position, the pneumatic riveter is heavy but still needs a delicate touch for the initial rivet setting. Good alignment, good seating of the rivet before starting, and slowly advance the ram until your skills allow fast setting.

Quickly pulling the trigger can upset the balance and give unsatisfactory results, until you are more skilled. Be steady.
 
I suggest doing as Brad said, snug them up a touch with a rivet gun. Drilling them out is an option that I'd save for rivets that really can't be rescued.
 
BillL said:
Yes, practice, practice, practice. Learn to feather the ram to any position, the pneumatic riveter is heavy but still needs a delicate touch for the initial rivet setting. Good alignment, good seating of the rivet before starting, and slowly advance the ram until your skills allow fast setting.

Quickly pulling the trigger can upset the balance and give unsatisfactory results, until you are more skilled. Be steady.
Click to expand...

I agree and will add a suggestion that when ever possible, position/orient the squeezer so that the rivet set in the movable plunger is acting to form the shop head and the fixed rivet set in the yoke is against the rivet manufactured head.

And even though I am very cautious when recommending builders (particularly new inexperienced ones) remove rivets, the ones with gaps under the manufactured head should be replaced.
 
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The Rivets should be replaced.

Check for reference:

MIL-R-47196A
MIL-STD-403C
MIL-STD-40007(1)

If the head(s) are not tight, the rivets will "rock" under load and wallow out the hole. Any looseness at all has virtually the same effect as if the rivet were missing.

If the rivets were really "fresh" like one day or less from the factory, I'd consider "drawing" the head tight with a rivet gun and appropriate set and re-shooting (not squeezing) the shop head but, by now, age hardening has removed that possibility.

BTW, I have been certified by the FAA to give Cont Ed courses for IA certificate holders in Aircraft Sheet Metal practices.
 
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rvbuilder2002 said:
And even though I am very cautious when recommending builders (particularly new inexperienced ones) remove rivets, the ones with gaps under the manufactured head should be replaced.
Click to expand...

Squeezing it further is not possible, or recommended, then? As some suggested before, I would've thought you could maybe try to just squeeze it some more until it's nice and tight ...

Although I've wondered about how the metallurgy works. If they harden somehow after setting, then the idea of squeezing further may not be sound?
 
kamikaze said:
Squeezing it further is not possible, or recommended, then? As some suggested before, I would've thought you could maybe try to just squeeze it some more until it's nice and tight ...
Although I've wondered about how the metallurgy works. If they harden somehow after setting, then the idea of squeezing further may not be sound?
Click to expand...

When you set a driven rivet, the shank expands in the hole. Trying to drive it further will not work. The rivets in question need to be removed and replaced.
 
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