Elevator Spar Riveting

[Robert M]

....did a search - found nothing.....

Has anyone got any good ideas how an individual can rivet on the top skin of the right elevator? I got a lot of the riveting done from the ends and hinge openings with the hand squeeze. I also used the gun and bar method as far as I could reach from the ends and still watch what I was doing. Back riveting just doesn't seem possible.

 

[Paul Eastham]

Hi Robert,
Maybe this arrangement will provide better visibility:
http://eastham-lee.com/rv/blog/20031211.html
Those boards are clamped to the table on the other end.

I suspect it will still be pretty hard to see, though. You will need to learn how to buck without seeing -- might as well learn now. It takes a bit of practice but you'll get it eventually. Things that help me at times like this include:

- drape your fingers over the bucking bar so that they contact the work (the spar in this case), allowing you to keep it square
- when getting set up, use the bar to push the rivet all the way out, allowing you to square the bar with the surface and calibrate your grip
- use short bursts of rivet gun until you get a feel for it
- try to sense the rivet squishing down so you can adjust the drive time if needed
- listen for changes in noise or feel that might indicate you've slipped off the rivet, are off-target on the gun, have overdriven the rivet, etc.

Good luck,
Paul

 

[JohnR]

I just did them by feel. The first few I was checking each one with a mirror, but once the confidence got built up a little just went ahead and did them andthen checked them afterward. They came out fine. Just count the strokes of the rivet gun and make sure your on the rivet good with the bar. It isn't as hard as it sounds.

 

[N674P]

Paul's got it exactly right.
I used bags of lead shot instead of the boards, however, which worked well. The toughest part actually was clamping/taping the spar/top skin in the upright position!

 

[vlittle]

I don't know if this helps. I had a long bucking bar from a local metal shop, plus this 'jig' setup.

Vern Little

 

[rv9aviator]

I did all of them by myself and after the first few rivets it was no problem. I just checked them with a small mirror. I used duct tape to pull the skins open. You can see how I did it on my website listed in my signature below.
Hope this helps.

 

[csrvniner]

Riveting spar

I hope this picture helps. Note the clamps and bucking bar used. One person can do this without any problem. The bucking bar fits the hand nicely and I can control the rivet gun without any problems. I use alot of lead shot to hold everything still and brace the work with angle aluminum along the trailing edge.
http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/3043/71900a1ql4.jpg

 

[Robert M]

Thanks all! I know what must be done! I like the backriveting idea best - I prefer backriveting over the gun and bar method.

Thanks again.

 

[IowaRV9Dreamer]

Riveted Elevator Spar solo yesterday

Hi Robert - I don't know if you've passed this point or not, but I too was worried about riveting the elevator spar without help. I got lots of good advice (thanks Smitty) and first squeezed as many as possible from the edges and holes. With a 4" no-hole yoke, I got a lot of them.

After that, I built a cheesy fixture out of scraps to hold the skin open. I duct taped the top of the skin to the fixture and attached the bottom to the bench. I first used the angle that you see in the picture, but ended up by just putting a cleco through the last stiffener hole into the bench. I found that pulling the skin out a bit made everything easier. The bend in the skin was pretty dramatic, but no problem.



Then it was rivet gun and blind bucking. I stood on the outside of the skin, reached around / over, and used a bucking bar. The key things were
1) my new swivel set with the rubber guard - doesn't move around
2) finding a bucking bar that was right. Mine was long and had a offset, so it was easy to get flat parallel shop heads.
3) Use rivet tape
4) By feel, you can tell if you're on the rivet, and how well it is set.

It came out great - no dents or smileys!

By the way, on the next elevator I'm changing the assembly order somewhat. I think the Vans instructions force you into some harder or blind rivets in the counterbalance area.

Good Luck!

 

[Robert M]

By the way, on the next elevator I'm changing the assembly order somewhat. I think the Vans instructions force you into some harder or blind rivets in the counterbalance area.

Good Luck!

I agree. After following their instructions there were two rivets that I could not get to with a "gun and bar" or a hand squeeze. I used the same pop-rivets that were used for the bottom of the spar. I'm gonna re-think the building as well - maybe there's an alternative....

Thanks again to all.

 

[alpinelakespilot2000]

I agree. After following their instructions there were two rivets that I could not get to with a "gun and bar" or a hand squeeze. I used the same pop-rivets that were used for the bottom of the spar. I'm gonna re-think the building as well - maybe there's an alternative....

Thanks again to all.

Definitely rivet the counterbalance ribs to the spar before the skin to the spar! This topic has been covered before and there is absolutely no downside to doing it in this order. Why Van's has it ordered the other way I have no idea! Good luck.