hevansrv7a
Well Known Member
I needed a way to mount the upper intersection main gear fairings and regular nutplates looked like a POTA. I used Nutserts from Aircraft Spruce and got their inexpensive tool with them. They take a 1/4" hole for a #8 screw sized Nutsert. I drilled undersize and reamed to 1/4" for precision. The factory sent me a .pdf which I will share on request. The .pdf has much more information than in the Spruce catalog.
Pro: They work as advertised; they are small and light; inexpensive, sufficiently strong for the application; can take all the torque they need to take. Blind hole and closed end types also available. Can be a terrific work-around where there is insufficient room or access to install a nutplate. I suppose one could use a thread locking compound to make up for the lack of nutplate type locking. I wonder how they'd be where a tapped hole was stripped, like on the tip-up roll bar? I hope I never need to find out.
Con: Don't use them if you need the locking behavior of the nutplate or the extra strength. They are a little hard to get started when installing with the supplied allen wrench. Need about 1/2" clearance behind. There is a little flange on the front side about .020 or a hair less in thickness. The directions say to have the top material ride on the flange to prevent pull-out, so except in an application like these fairings, that could be an issue. A true nutplate is only on one side and the top material sits flush. You have to be careful to keep it parallel when compressing it.
I can't compare to rivnuts because I've never used rivnuts. The Nutsert has little teeth and grips the inside of the hole quite well when it swells up as you compress it. It can be used in material as thin as .030" and can go much thicker, all with the same size Nutsert. As thickness of material increases, you go to a slightly larger hole.
Pro: They work as advertised; they are small and light; inexpensive, sufficiently strong for the application; can take all the torque they need to take. Blind hole and closed end types also available. Can be a terrific work-around where there is insufficient room or access to install a nutplate. I suppose one could use a thread locking compound to make up for the lack of nutplate type locking. I wonder how they'd be where a tapped hole was stripped, like on the tip-up roll bar? I hope I never need to find out.
Con: Don't use them if you need the locking behavior of the nutplate or the extra strength. They are a little hard to get started when installing with the supplied allen wrench. Need about 1/2" clearance behind. There is a little flange on the front side about .020 or a hair less in thickness. The directions say to have the top material ride on the flange to prevent pull-out, so except in an application like these fairings, that could be an issue. A true nutplate is only on one side and the top material sits flush. You have to be careful to keep it parallel when compressing it.
I can't compare to rivnuts because I've never used rivnuts. The Nutsert has little teeth and grips the inside of the hole quite well when it swells up as you compress it. It can be used in material as thin as .030" and can go much thicker, all with the same size Nutsert. As thickness of material increases, you go to a slightly larger hole.
, (nor would I consider them to be of much use in metal sheets less than .090" or so). We used them extensively on fire engines for mounting accessories.