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  #1  
Old 10-17-2016, 06:45 PM
dareha dareha is offline
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: White City, Oregon
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Default Rivet squeeze vs bucking bar and air hammer

Getting ready to pull the trigger on building a RV9 and was wondering the debate on which is the best way to rivet. If all things are the same which produces the best rivit?
Thank you,
Darrell
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  #2  
Old 10-17-2016, 06:52 PM
Kyle Boatright Kyle Boatright is offline
 
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Location: Atlanta, GA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dareha View Post
Getting ready to pull the trigger on building a RV9 and was wondering the debate on which is the best way to rivet. If all things are the same which produces the best rivit?
Thank you,
Darrell
A new guy will produce better rivets with a squeezer.

An experienced hand will produce great rivets with a gun and bucking bar.

You cannot build one of these airplanes (other than an RV-12) without extensive use of a rivet gun and bucking bar. There are thousands of rivets that are not accessible with a squeezer.
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  #3  
Old 10-17-2016, 07:13 PM
Captain Avgas Captain Avgas is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dareha View Post
Getting ready to pull the trigger on building a RV9 and was wondering the debate on which is the best way to rivet. If all things are the same which produces the best rivit?
Thank you,
Darrell
It's a moot point because as Kyle has pointed out you need both devices to build an RV9. So what other people think does not matter because you are going to find out for yourself.

However, given access, the best and most consistent rivets will come from a pneumatic squeezer. I highly recommend a pneumatic squeezer, particularly if you are building a slow-build kit.
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  #4  
Old 10-17-2016, 07:21 PM
dtw_rv6 dtw_rv6 is offline
 
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You cannot tell the difference between a bucked rivet and one set with a squeezer if done properly. Both methods can make a mess if you don't practice.
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  #5  
Old 10-17-2016, 07:22 PM
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wirejock wirejock is offline
 
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Location: Estes Park, CO
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Darrell
First welcome and thank you for your service.
As others have said, if you have the funds, a pneumatic will serve you well. It's my first choice.
However, good gun/bar skills are invaluable. Building a 7a, there are lots of rivets that have to be set with gun and bar.
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  #6  
Old 10-17-2016, 08:06 PM
rapid_ascent rapid_ascent is offline
 
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Location: Dublin, CA
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Darrell,

I started out with a Tatco hand squeezer and rivet gun and some bucking bars. I could do most rivets with those tools. For me I'm not strong enough to do a AD4 rivet with the Tatco squeezer. Some times I wish I had an Avery hand squeezer with longer handles for more leverage. Still I wouldn't give up the Tatco since I can squeeze AD3 rivets with one hand and still have great control. After a while I realized I wanted a pneumatic squeezer for the AD4 rivets primarily but it is useful for AD3 rivets as well. The control of these squeezers isn't as good as the hand squeezer and it's much heavier. So there are lots of tradeoffs with tool selection. You will want a hand squeezer of some sort and the rivet gun. There are a multitude of different rivet setting situations building these planes and there are better and worse tools for each rivet. While it is technically possible to do it all with a gun and bucking bar there is quite a bit of skill required to use the gun. I've bucked a lot of rivets during my build up to this point and I'm still not an expert by any means. Just this past weekend I was working on my mid fuselage bottom skin. In one section I had to use my left hand to run the gun and hold the bucking bar with my right (and I'm right handed). You too will get better with the gun over time but it takes a lot of rivets to become an expert who can do any rivet with a gun.
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Last edited by rapid_ascent : 10-19-2016 at 01:16 PM.
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  #7  
Old 10-17-2016, 08:16 PM
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wjb wjb is offline
 
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Pro tip: get tungsten bucking bars, even though they seem 2x the price of gold. Their high density and corresponding small size make riveting with a gun a much more pleasurable productive experience. (just make a hard swallow and click "buy" from your favorite vendor). You probably only need 2, a regular bar with one end cut at an angle, and "C" shaped one (bar with a slot milled in it)

Have fun. Once you get used to it, the gun is the most versatile tool.
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  #8  
Old 10-17-2016, 08:22 PM
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sirlegin sirlegin is offline
 
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Having built a 9 with no experience riveting, my suggestion is like Vans says, practice until you are confident, use the supplied rivet guides and practice some more. Then if and when you get into a spot that you are unsure of, get or fashion a bucking bar that fits the job. I even cut off part of a claw hammer for an exact fit tool. worked great. that's why they call it experimental?
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  #9  
Old 10-17-2016, 08:26 PM
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papamike papamike is offline
 
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Default Your post title scared me...

It's already been said that you need both to do the airplane. What stands out for me is your choice of the term "air hammer". Please don't go to a big box place or auto shop and buy an air hammer because they're cheap. They are different from rivet guns in that they are either on or off. Rivet guns should have a nice trigger where you can ease the trigger in and set the rivet more gradually.

My apologies if it was just a wording issue...

My $.02.
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  #10  
Old 10-18-2016, 05:14 AM
KatanaPilot KatanaPilot is offline
 
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Location: Locust Grove, GA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dareha View Post
Getting ready to pull the trigger on building a RV9 and was wondering the debate on which is the best way to rivet. If all things are the same which produces the best rivit?
Thank you,
Darrell
I strongly recommend you take a Fundamentals Class from Synergy - 3 hours up I-5 from you in Eugene.

http://synergyair.com/builder-classes/fundamentals/

You will get an opportunity to use a hand squeezer, a pneumatic squeezer and a rivet gun. You also get 8 hours of great instruction from a very knowledgeable A&P and RV builder, free lunch and a $50 off certificate from Van's.

For me, the class was much more valuable than the classes taught by EAA and it was half the price.

FYI, I've been back to Synergy to build my RV-10 empennage/tailcone, fuselage and will be back to build wings in January. So yes, I highly recommend them.
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