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are you holding the sliding guide with your other hand? I did this to keep it on the the rivet better.
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Good point Bret.
I think that goes for all sets, if you have that extra hand available via the use of a back rivet plate or a helper on the bucking bar. |
skin stiffeners
I used a backing plate with the back rivet set ground flat on one side to clear the flange.
I suspect that may be the issue. The back rivet set is pressing against the flange causing the shop head to go to one side. |
Did you use the recommended rivets (3-3's)?
A lot of builders use 3-3.5's because based on a rivet length gauge, the 3-3's look a little short.
The 3-3's are fine. There is a big difference in riveting difficulty if you switch to teh slightly longer rivet. |
I have all my stiffeners in place and riveted. Today I riveted in the trim tab back plate. I tried again with the back riveting on this part. I held it straight, plastic ring down flat on the piece, held it with my other hand, and -gently- tapped the rivets in with light squeezes.
I tried three times and they all sucked! Bucking bar in left hand, riveter with rubber "mushroom" in right hand. 20 minutes later they are all in nice and straight, none had to be removed either. The back plate just hates me I think. Tom |
You don't want to be too gentle with the gun, or you risk work-hardening the rivet before it's set. Maybe a long second or two, no more.
As others have said, most find back-riveting to be an easier way (than mushroom-bucking bar) to get satisfactory results. Take a good look at your back rivet set. Something just isn't right. |
Quote:
The only backrivet set I own that provides consistent, good results is the set from Avery. It gives me a perfect rivet every time. Borrow another set and give it a try. |
My back rivet set was from Cleveland tools. This one - http://www.cleavelandtool.com/Back-R.../#.UjDqHSJDvSw
![]() Like I mentioned, I did the whole rudder just fine, but the elevator absolutely refused to go straight. I tried several ways, straight, long/short burst, and it never went in right. I screwed up a few holes removing the bent rivet and enlarged them for the next size up to fit snugly and use that as a fix. Finally gave up and used the red rubber thing. I'm just hoping I didn't mess anything up doing it that way, but it would have been more screwed up if I kept going the way I was. :( Tom |
I looked at an RV6 down at the airport yesterday and examined his elevator. It looked very flat. Mine looks like cr@p compared to that one!
here is about the worst of the rivets. I did do the elevator trailing edge bend and that went well, but then staring at this, I'm just getting more disgusted with how it looks. Maybe I'll replace the skin and stiffeners before going farther. Grrrr...! Hey, the good thing is, I'll have plenty of scrap to practice backriveting on so I don't mess up the real thing! :rolleyes: ![]() |
Tom,
I had a problem just about like that on a previous project. As it turned out, my bench top wasn't stiff enough to react the blows of the gun, and the rivet heads ended up slightly proud, just enough to catch with your fingernail. I solved the problem by moving my backing plate and plywood with the cutout down to the concrete floor. You'll need knee pads or a cushion to kneel on but the results will be worth it. |
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