[RV8A444DW]

Making the Ailerons and I'm at the point of riveting the top row of rivets. What is the best way to go about this. I'm trying to do this alone and am having some trouble setting the rivets and reaching way into the structure. Tips and advise greatly appreciated. Thanks reguards Tom Webber

 

[Craig23]

Long Sleeves

Tom,

I just finished my ailerons within the last year. As I remember, bucking the rivets required some compound bending of my wrist and hand. I used a small bucking bar that has the polished face angled so it is easier to fit into small areas. I left the end ribs out so I could reach my arm in from the side for many of the rivets, but I had to reach in past the bottom edge of the leading edge skin from many of the rivets in the middle. Since the bottom edge attaches with blind rivets you can leave that for last.

The other thing I would suggest is to wear long sleeves and gloves. I beveled the edges of my leading edge skin so they would look a little nicer where they join the main skin. It was something I saw done on a neighbor's quick-build, so I copied it. The joint came out great, but the beveled skin is also very sharp, and when I moved my hand to the side to get to the next rivet one time I sliced open the bottom of my hand. It didn't need stitches or anything, but I felt kind of stupid. I kept the ailerons in their jig for the riveting.

Good Luck,

 

[RV7ator]

Tom,

This is a particularly good seam to slightly brake downward 2 or 3 degrees the nose skin edge that lies on top of the skin/spar. Van's discusses this somewhere in the general instructions. The nose skin is rolled and residual curl will lift its edge aft of the rivets to leave a gap. I don't consider this the same as beveling an edge as in deburring.

You have to reach. Shift through your bucking bars to find one that can bear against the spar for reference and have its bucking surface normal to the rivet. Tape on spacers here and there to set it up for the purpose. Put duct tape over that part of the bar that might abraid the reference bearing surface(s). You'll get good at detecting bar position with your fingers by feeling for adjacent clecos and bucked rivets.

John Siebold