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Tail fairing nut plates

sblack

Well Known Member
What are most of u folks doing for the tail fairing nut plates? There is very poor access to the inside of the vertical and horizontal stabs to buck rivets or to even dimple the skins. I tried gluing them with a fancy rubberized CA glue but it failed. So rivnuts? I have a 30yr old very slow build RV4 kit and I had to make my own custom fairing. Any great ideas appreciated.
 
pull rivets

I've been working on mine the last week or so (RV-6). I'm using pull rivets 100* CS for the tip caps, not removable except by drilling out the rivets. Obviously I don't plan on removing them on any regular basis. Removable parts are the large empennage fairing and rudder bottom. I've got those set up with #6 screws and nut plates. I used OPPS rivets where I could with small CS for nut plate attach, and where I couldn't I used 3/32 pull rivets 100* CS with a dimple. Used the Cleveland "Vice Grip" type dimpling tool for locations with limited access.
 
Use some cherrymax rivets---Van's part number RIVET CCR-264SS-3-2. These are 3/32" flush rivets. They seem kinda wimpy, but I've not had issues with the ones I used in some hard to get to places. Van's advised me some years back that these were acceptable for attaching nutplates. You can lightly countersink the skins with a deburr tool. Good luck with your build!
 
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I used nut plates and had no major difficulty. I have been wrenching on things for decades, so have no issues "seeing" with my fingers. It seems I have bucked a LOT of rivets without visual help. I had no real helpers, so had to rivet 95% of the plane solo. With practice, it is not hard. I would NOT use rivnuts on .026 skins. Especially something that comes off every year for CI.

Larry
 
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I used nut plates and had no major difficulty. I have been wrenching on things for decades, so have no issues "seeing" with my fingers. It seems I have bucked a LOT of rivets without visual help. I had no real helpers, so had to rivet 95% of the plane solo. With practice, it is not hard. I would NOT use rivnuts on .026 skins. Especially something that comes off every year for CI.

Larry

Did you countersink or dimple the skins? I think I could buck a rivet but certainly can't dimple. On both the vertical and horizontal the plates are on the blind side of the end ribs and naturally not aligned with the lightening holes. Bad planning...
 
I used nut plates and had no major difficulty. I have been wrenching on things for decades, so have no issues "seeing" with my fingers. It seems I have bucked a LOT of rivets without visual help. I had no real helpers, so had to rivet 95% of the plane solo. With practice, it is not hard. I would NOT use rivnuts on .026 skins. Especially something that comes off every year for CI.

Larry
Thanks for the rivnut warning. I have no experience with them.
 
Did you countersink or dimple the skins? I think I could buck a rivet but certainly can't dimple. On both the vertical and horizontal the plates are on the blind side of the end ribs and naturally not aligned with the lightening holes. Bad planning...

I use Oops rivets (NAS1097-3-4) for most nutplates. The head is so small it only takes a couple turns of the deburring tool to get an adequate countersink.
 
IIRC this was something I used a few Clik-Bond nutplates for...I'd have to double-check to be sure, but that's my recollection.
 
CS4-4

I prepared the fiberglass part completely except paint and left part off during the painting so that it would be painted separately. Then during final assembly I attached it with the CS4-4 countersunk pop rivets as shown in the plans. I doubt I'll need to remove it, and it can be easily inspected when I remove the tail light or from the front. If I do need to remove it, it takes a few seconds to drill out those rivets.

My paint is silver there so it looks fine with the rivets, so YMMV.

RV-8 DWG-7 R-411 attach.png
 
Did you countersink or dimple the skins? I think I could buck a rivet but certainly can't dimple. On both the vertical and horizontal the plates are on the blind side of the end ribs and naturally not aligned with the lightening holes. Bad planning...

From what I remember, the countersinks were in the fiberglass fairing. The angle of the flat head is fully consumed in the F/G part, so no need for dimpled skins.

I have done a few dimples with the rivet gun/bucking bar. The piece from the C shaped dimpling tool fits into the rivet gun. I made a small version of that from a 5/8" bolt shank to hold the female die.

Larry
 
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From what I remember, the countersinks were in the fiberglass fairing. The angle of the flat head is fully consumed in the F/G part, so no need for dimpled skins.

I have done a few dimples with the rivet gun/bucking bar. The piece from the C shaped dimpling tool fits into the rivet gun. I made a small version of that from a 5/8" bolt shank to hold the female die.

Larry

The dimples are for the rivets to hold the nutplate.
 
I’ve used 3/32” blind flush rivets to hold platenuts in tight locations. The machine countersink on these small blind rivets is shallower than a standard flush 3/32 AN rivet, and even if you leave it a little proud, it will be hidden under a fiberglass fairing - which you can touch with a little 80 grit on the underside to make sure it lays flat. The platenut is loaded in shear, so this type rivet is adequate for the job. Once the machine screw is torqued in place, there is no shear at all.
 
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