Bucking bars
 

I found a good source online for tungsten bucking bars. The company is called Tungsten Heavy Powder and Parts, www.tungstenheavypowder.com. Compated to other sources, their tungsten bucking bars cost less.

Custom Bucking Bar
 

I just sent THPP a RFQ for a couple of custom tungsten bars. It will be interesting to see their response. I've been using Midwest Tungsten Service, but they are so much farther away I thought I'd try these guys who are just down the road.

David

Which one ?
 

I wonder which backing bar is the most used in building RVs. There are so many shapes and weights and I can't buy them all. Which one did you get for your project? Thanks

I've had the ETBB13 from THPP for a few years. Just the right size and weight, and pretty much the only one I used to build my 9A once I got it. There were very few places I couldn't reach with one surface or another.

So just simple shape would do it.

This company recently announced it is moving production from China to Wyoming.

(I don't really have a point, but many people do care about these things.)

I bought the ETBB03 and 43, 03 is about half the size of a hershey bar, 43 is 1"x.8" on the end by 1.5" long. The 03 was $75 and the 43 was $49. If I've been good this year maybe Santa will put a 43 in my stocking :-P

I have one from Midwest Tungsten. It's the same size as the ETBB01, but has one end cut at an angle - maybe 15 degrees or so. It works for about 95% of the riveting I do.

Does weight of the backing bar is relevant in any way? Some are 400g and the more expensive can get over 1000 grams.

Weight is very relevant. It's the weight that does the work, and the size (higher density = smaller size) that makes it more useful/easier to use. My little 4" long tungsten bar weighs as much as the much larger steel one that came with my rivet gun kit, and will fit in much tighter spaces. A chunk of tungsten will weigh roughly 2.4 times what a chunk of steel the same size weighs.

As a point of reference, my little bar is about 750 g, give or take a little. That seems about right to me, but everyone has their own preference. To me it was a good compromise of weight, size and cost.