Main gear leg & intersection fairings

[dbhill916]

Originally Posted by RFSchaller

You can buy the tool at Harbor Freight, but be sure to use Aircraft grade rivnuts. The ones that come with the HF tool are junk.

I couldn't find the Thread Setter on HF's web site. Do you have any part numbers or search terms for the tool and/or aircraft grade rivnuts?

thx,
-dbh

[John-G]

Originally Posted by dbhill916

I couldn't find the Thread Setter on HF's web site. Do you have any part numbers or search terms for the tool and/or aircraft grade rivnuts?

David,

Aircraft Spruce has an inexpensive rivet nut setting tool and also sells the rivet nuts keyed and unkeyed.

Here is a link to the tool: https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal...ickkey=3755027

Here is a link to the rivet nuts: https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal.../rivetnuts.php

Happy building,

[rvbuilder2002]

Originally Posted by John-G

Aircraft Spruce has an inexpensive rivet nut setting tool and also sells the rivet nuts keyed and unkeyed.

Experienced aircraft techs consider rivnuts the poorest fastener choice you could put on an airplane.

They consider un-keyed rivnuts to be an instrument of the devil.

[Phantom30]

Originally Posted by rvbuilder2002

Experienced aircraft techs consider rivnuts the poorest fastener choice you could put on an airplane.

They consider un-keyed rivnuts to be an instrument of the devil.

Ditto...they are easy to install; but the price you will pay in your after life...will not be worth it🤓

[rv7charlie]

+3 on the rivnut issue. 'Aircraft quality' is one of my least favorite terms.

Yeah, they're easy to install. And at about the 5 or 6th attempt to remove the fairing, you'll have aircraft quality problems getting the screws out without a drill or a dremel tool.

[John-G]

+4 regarding the use of rivnuts on an aircraft. For the record there are no rivnuts on my RV-12 because of the previously mentioned long term issues with them .... was just providing an answer to the question of where to find the tool.

[rv7charlie]

I'll throw this out, in case you've got an already 'blind' situation & want other options.

My purchased -4 had/has a bunch of rivnuts in blind locations, especially for intersection fairings. Now, this isn't a show plane, and the fairings only 'kinda' fit to start with. As each rivnut has failed/spun, I've removed it, and replaced with a nutplate mounted on the *outside* of the skin. Find some 3/32" pop rivets & use them to mount the nutplates. For near-zero load situations like intersection fairings, you can get rid of your aircraft quality rivnut issues.

I know; it sounds horrible. But if your fairing is thick enough, or the mount point is in from the edge far enough, it can work. Once it's done, only you and the airshow judge will notice.

Charlie

[RFSchaller]

hF part #1210

https://t.harborfreight.com/45-piece...-kit-1210.html