aarvig

aarvig

Well Known Member
Has anyone ever shaved the thicker end of a socket flat and used it as a bucking bar? I am riveting my rudder horn brace to the rudder horn and I don't have anything laying around that can get in there. My squeezer doesn't fit and my bucking bars are to big. I have a bunch of old sockets laying around. I thought I would take one of them to the grinder and flatten the thick end of it and stick it over my finger and onto the rivet and hammer away. Thoughts...ideas?
 
Its worth a shot to try, but practice on a scrap piece first. Post pictures if successful or not, we can all learn what to or what not to do.
 
aarvig said:
Has anyone ever shaved the thicker end of a socket flat and used it as a bucking bar? I am riveting my rudder horn brace to the rudder horn and I don't have anything laying around that can get in there. My squeezer doesn't fit and my bucking bars are to big. I have a bunch of old sockets laying around. I thought I would take one of them to the grinder and flatten the thick end of it and stick it over my finger and onto the rivet and hammer away. Thoughts...ideas?
Click to expand...

I did something similar with a the polished side of a crescent wrench in a few places. It worked ok for AD3 rivets but I wouldn't try it with anything bigger.
 
According to legend, every A&P has bucked a rivet with a dime. Also, every texan has drunk water from a hoofprint (True Grit).
 
Ouch

I don't think I'd like to stick my finger in there...
If it's a deep enough socket, fill it half with molten lead to give it added mass, then fit in a wooden dowel to hold on to.

I used my squeezer yoke to buck the rivets on the horizontal stabilizer nose ribs.
 
OUCH!!! *%$)!# $%%! $#%^$!!!!

Man that's going to hurt. Try it and let us know!

I actually back riveted mine...
- Put the rivet in the hole.
- Put the rudder/rivet/hole on a back riveting plate.
- Grabbed a really big crow bar.
- Laid the crow bar on the backside of the rivet.
- Cranked the gun up to ~90 lbs.
- Shot the back side of the crowbar in bursts.

It's not the prettiest rivet in the airplane, but it isn't bad.
 
It's been a while, and it was an RV-4, not a -9 but I remember being able to reach through the lightening hole with an Avery longeron yoke to squeeze all of those rivets.
 
You're talking about this piece, correct? I used a tungsten bucking bar, no problem. If you don't have one yet, this is a good reason to get one.

1000802oo.jpg
 
airguy said:
You're talking about this piece, correct? I used a tungsten bucking bar, no problem. If you don't have one yet, this is a good reason to get one.

1000802oo.jpg
Click to expand...

That is the son of a gun. What size tungsten bar did you use? The small one or the big one? I have the big one and I can't see to get it in there. Maybe I don't have the angle of the dangle correct??
 
I don't recall the exact size, maybe 1/2" x 1" by about 4"? Here's a picture of it, I'll put a tape on mine later today and let you know.

1000931h.jpg
 
Opted not to use the socket...

I called a place in Wichita called THE YARD. I think it is http://www.yardstore.com
I told them the space I had to work with and they sold me a used bucking bar that would fit in there and do the job. It cost me 10 bucks for the bar and 8 bucks for the shipping. Not bad.
 
BUCKING BARS

I bucked a lot of rivets. Small and large. The special bars I made were from used Semi-trailer leaf springs. You can grind any angle on the face and any hand hold on the other end. Good mass and tempered surface.
 
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