[WSBuilder]

How did you rivet the floor ribs to the firewall inside the footwells? It's too tight in there even with offset rivet sets. I'm considering bolts and Cherry Max as an alternate.

What is the shortest 2X rivet guns out there? I measured Avery's at 5 3/4" Anything more compact?

 

[WAM120RV]

Firewall

I am not sure why you are trying an offset rivet set as if I am reading where you are trying to rivet correctly, the rivets should be flush. Gun with flush rivet head on firewall side...... bucking bar behind the rib.

I just had a look at mine and all the firewall rivets are flush.

 

[WSBuilder]

Rivets are parallel to firewall

I installed the rib attachment angles to the firewall first because of the complexity of the prop govenor insert and using fire sealant. It just looked too hard to build the firewall onto the ribs. I assumed I would use blind rivets but thought surely someone has figured out a way to rivet in this sequence.

 

[nauga]

I build the ribs up then riveted them to the firewall (with sealant and the governor recess, FWIW). Here's the shortest gun I've ever seen:

https://www.ustool.com/store/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=2019

but with special sets and all I doubt it's cheap.

 

[WAM120RV]

Not sure

I am still not sure what your problem is can you post a photo.

 

[WSBuilder]

Set Up?

I build the ribs up then riveted them to the firewall (with sealant and the governor recess, FWIW). Here's the shortest gun I've ever seen:

https://www.ustool.com/store/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=2019

but with special sets and all I doubt it's cheap.

So, how did you accomplish the riveting? Did you use a compact gun like you showed?

 

[Bob Kuykendall]

How did you rivet the floor ribs to the firewall inside the footwells? It's too tight in there even with offset rivet sets. I'm considering bolts and Cherry Max as an alternate...

One technique I've used in the past is to back-rivet awkward stuff like that using a handheld bucking bar. I've always done it with two people, though.

For a flush rivet, your friend holds the bucking bar squarely against the rivet head while you use a back-riveting set in the gun against the rivet tail. For a universal head rivet, what I did is drill a 3/16" hole in a cheap bucking bar, insert a cheap squeezer set into the hole, and hold that firmly against the rivet head while my friend used the back rivet set against the tail. It wasn't the best looking line of rivets, but it was workmanlike and avoided the use of pop rivets.

The usual warnings apply; refine your technique on pieces of scrap before using it on actual fight article rivets.

Thanks, RK

 

[nauga]

So, how did you accomplish the riveting? Did you use a compact gun like you showed?

I assembled the ribs and the firewall (with governor cutout) separately, then sealed and riveted the rib assembly to the firewall using a 'normal' 2x gun and flush set from the outside and a conventional bucking bar inside.