Elevator tips - trailing edge rivet problem

The plans call for using CS4-4 rivets to attach the fiberglass tips to the elevator and rudder.

There is not enough clearance to use CS4-4 rivets on both sides of the trailing edge of the elevator. One will go in fine. However, once you set a rivet on one side of the trailing edge there is not enough clearance to use a CS4-4 rivet on the opposite side. It will sit proud in the hole.

How have others dealt with this? Is there an alternate rivet that works?

Tks,

Mike

Getting ready for the airport..

I installed the top one and filled the bottom rivet hole with micro balloons or proseal.

trailing edge rivets

I have the same situation but the tip has plenty of rivets holding it on other than that one so I was going to epoxy a regular solid rivet in the hole shortened as necessary for cosmetic purposes. If the rivet fit was somewhat loose I was going to "plump it up" slightly with a squeezer so the it has a good fit in the hole before setting it in the epoxy. That rivet is very near the trailing edge so even if it fell out it wouldn't make a difference so I can't see any harm in this method. On my RV6 I injected epoxy with a syringe into the holes of all the pop rivets to close the holes & I intend to do the same on the RV8 so the solid rivet will fit in just fine as far as appearance! I prefer to see all rivets and I do not try to hide any skin seams so this "fits" into my thinking.

Dick DeCramer
RV6 N500DD flying
RV8 Fuselage
Northfield, MN

I don't recall having this pproblem

When I built my RV-8 I don't really recall this being an issue, but I think that you will find that as you pull the blind rivet it shortens itself enough that it will pull down flush.

Skylor

Shorten the rivet!

Hello Mike

I took the mandrel out of both those rivets and shortened the rivet-tube by a small amount. Then rivet the first one, put the 2.nd one in, as far as possible ans start to pull it by a short amount, push the rivet in, pull it a bit more. It should end up as the rivet is fully in and enough lenght to pull it until the mandrell break.

For sure it is not the best connection, but even better than just a cosmetic rivet-head.

It would be very easy for vans to pay attention to these details and shift the rivet here and there just by a small amount, so that the live of the builder is easyer. In the end the structural integrity will also be better then weak or cosmetic rivets.

I'm not sure where, but by the flaps may be, trailing edge, its the same, the rivets are exactly oposit of each other


Regards, Dominik

Much thanks for sharing your experience in dealing with this issue. All great suggestions.

This thread is a keeper.


Mike