Re: Purchasing a rivit gun and rivits

In Reply to: Purchasing a rivit gun and rivits posted by Glenn on January 11, 2006 at 15:41:38:

You need a "pop rivet" gun, which installs what are sometimes called blind rivets. You can find them at any home improvement store and many auto parts stores. They use aluminum rivets of various sizes, they're inexpensive, and are very easy to use.

When you install the rivet you drill the correct size hole in both layers of metal to be joined. The size is determined by the size of the rivet you select. Most guns can shoot a variety of rivet sizes and they can be bought where the guns are sold.

The rivet is basically a hollow aluminum tube with a flange on one end. Inside the tube is a nail-like rod which has a ball on one end. After you insert the rivet into the hole you squeeze the handle which pulls the ball end of the nail toward the flange end causing the tube to expand. It does so until it cinches up against the inside of the inner layer of metal. When this happens it can't move anymore and the nail breaks off flush with the flange.

It's important to hold both layers of metal being joined together tight to one another so that the rivet cinches them tightly. This is much harder to explain than do. After you do a few you'll see how easy they are to work with. If the rivet doesn't work out just drill it out and install another one.

You don't have to reach the back side of the rivet to install it. My boat, a 1983 Lund, was constructed from the larger style heavy duty rivets for the most part but some parts were installed using these same kind of rivets right from the factory. They're not nearly as strong as the larger rivets, but I have no doubt you'll find them suitable for what you're doing.

As an added benefit, the rivets are aluminum and will not cause electrolysis like most other fasteners can. You could use sheet metal screws, which thread into the metal and hold without a nut on the back, but rivets would be the way to go in your application.

I'm repainting my boat with some modifications that have made it necessary to remove several brackets riveted through the hull but well above the water line. I installed pop rivets in the resulting holes and after the boat is repainted they'll blend right in. One trick I learned is that after installing this type of rivet where the back side is visible use a hammer and body dolly to flatten the back side of the rivet down. When you do so they look like the other rivets. For my project they'll look factory original. This method won't work where they need to be water-tight though.

Good luck with it.

	The Ez-Coil Spring Rewinding Tool