Tip: Show us your DIY Bucking Bars

[RudiGreyling]

Hi Guys,

Got a good tip of someone using an axe head for thin and tight spots.

Got me thinking to start a thread for all to showcase those Non Traditional & DIY bucking bars.

So go ahead and post pictures and description of your DIY Bucking Bars.

This might help us newbies find new ideas.

Thanks in advance

Kind Regards
Rudi

 

[rv8ch]

Bucking bars

Once I got my head around the simple fact that any adequate
mass can be used as a bucking bar, finding the right one for
the job became much easier. In reality, the bucking bars that
came with the Avery kit handled about 99.9% of all the bucking
needs of my QB.

 

[kcameron]

Eureka!

I've been fretting for weeks over how to set the rivets on the narrow ends of my rudder and elevators. I bought a "no hole" squeezer yoke from Avery which was good for a few of them. Then I got a relatively narrow tapered bucking bar from the Yard Store which took care of a few more. I was still left with a couple I couldn't reach at the very tip of each part. I've been advised to give up and use pulled rivets but, since I'm not going to close off the ends of the parts for awhile, I decided to sit tight and see if something comes up.

Today after seeing this thread I went to Home Depot and check out their axes. There was only one that looked like it might work. It was about the right size but it was a little bit on the narrow side and had a slightly concave shape to it. Still I figured it was worth a try since it only cost about $20: a little more than a bucking bar. Axe in hand, I headed toward the exit but stopped at the tool section as I often do. I checked out some various roofing hammers and the like hoping to find the perfect shape. I was about to give up when I noticed the chisels right next to the hammers. The shapes of the chisels seemed better than everything else including the axe. Not only that but I had several chisels at home to try. I put the axe back where I got it and left without buying anything (for once).

Sure enough, the chisels did the job! I just put the last three rivets in my right elevator. I covered the edges of the chisels with some masking tape to prevent scratching the ribs. Two of the rivets went in with no trouble. The one in the very narrowest part caused a bit of headache. The rivet bent and I had to drill it out. In fact I drilled it out three times before I got it right. I looks decent now and I think it's set ok. Better and stronger than a pulled rivet I wager.

 

[Rick6a]

Pop rivets? We don't need no stinking pop rivets!

I've been fretting for weeks over how to set the rivets on the narrow ends of my rudder and elevators.......snip.......The one in the very narrowest part caused a bit of headache. The rivet bent and I had to drill it out. In fact I drilled it out three times before I got it right. I looks decent now and I think it's set ok. Better and stronger than a pulled rivet I wager.

Congratulations Kevin! I know it wasn't easy, especially using a "bucking bar" but you've earned the right to sniff a bit when you review the random RV sporting common pulled rivets in those especially challenging areas to reach! I just finished up the sheet metal work on the empennage group and this is the tool I used to access the most problematic areas. I ground the slot off of a steel wood screw to serve as the set and was inserted into a hand squeezer fitted with a modified yoke.

Rick Galati RV-6A "Darla"
RV-8A empennage

 

[cobra]

I havn't tried them yet (still trying to decide which kit... ), buy why not auto body dollies if you have them lying around? They have many shaped, polished sides, they are heavy, they are cheap (i.e., harbor freight)- made specifically for hammering steel into smooth shapes.

 

[thallock]

Guys,

While I applaud your efforts to buck the hard to reach rivets, keep in mind, that there is no shame in using pop-rivets on a metal airplane.

Tracy.

 

[Don]

Homemade bucking bar

I park next to a train station every morning and from time to time I find a railroad spike by the tracks. This one ended up in my shop as a bucking bar. Its too light to have a lot of uses but I've ground the end to meet my needs and it bailed me out of one foolish mistake that had me trying to buck a rivet in an impossibly tight position.

Don 90702 Fuselage