Question about riveting wing skins

[AX-O]

My buddy Mike (Gforce) is coming to pay me a visit this weekend. I have the following questions. Is it ok to rivet the skins to the wing structure if the fuel tanks are not completed? Do I need the tanks to make sure all the skins line up or will I have enough play with the tanks when I decide to install them later? Is it standard to close the wings up once you have the wire conduit installed on the wing (no wires or pitot lines in yet)?

Oh. As a newbie we all make mistakes, I guess as an oldie too. I dimpled my skins prior to bending the edges. I tried to do it after wards with very unsatisfactory results. The edges now are wavy (stretched), Can I fix the skins or will I just have to install them as they are? BTW, don't want to buy new ones.

If you have any hints for me on riveting the skins, send them !!!

 

[briand]

I bent my edges after dimpling and they turned out great. The wavy-ness will most likely not show up after riveting but I can't see just how wavy your talking, so I can't say for sure.

 

[gbrasch]

Axel, back rivet the top skin first using a flat bucking bar as the plate. Your top skin will come out smooth as silk.

 

[Rick6a]

Actually, as the photo illustrates, I left the fuel tanks off so that it was possible for me to reach around and buck all the rivets on the inboard skins. Since I shot mostly 5/32" and 3/16" rivets for a living, I feel very comfortable with a rivet gun. Obviously, there are many locations where you cannot see the rivet to buck it and so you have to feel around for it. I have a favorite bucking bar and I use cleco locations for reference.....when my bucking bar bumps up against a cleco protruding through a hole, I know it is centered over the adjacent rivet I mean to buck. Of course, it is almost always easier to have a helper and I recommend you and your helper understand each other clearly working as a team to avoid denting the structure. That said, just for my own personal satisfaction, I found I could buck all but 44 rivets by myself on both upper skins (at the cleco locations in the picture) and all the rivets on the 2 lower skins. It is hard but doable.

With matched hole technology, it is unlikely you will build in a warp but just to be sure, follow Van's suggested method to insure the wings are indeed straight. I forget what drawing it is on but basically you drop a string taped or clecoed to the main spar and note the distance the string is from the rear spar. Do this measurement at the most inboard and outboard wing locations. If the distance is the same at both locations, you are building a straight wing.

I too have forgotten to bend skin edges before dimpling and the edge rolling tool becomes useless. I find that using my hand seamer placed just beyond the dimples and then slightly bending the skin downward taking care not to leave any marks and overlapping each area as I move along the edge works fairly well.

 

[treeez]

Have you finished drilling all the bolt holes for the z bracketsfor the fuel tanks and test fit the tank rear baffel to the spar? Also be sure that all of the nutplates for the fuel tank installation are installed on the spar flange before you cover that area. Triple QA all areas that you may seal up before riveting.
Mike
RV8 S/B
Fusalage

 

[AX-O]

Have you finished drilling all the bolt holes for the z bracketsfor the fuel tanks and test fit the tank rear baffel to the spar?

yes

Also be sure that all of the nutplates for the fuel tank installation are installed on the spar flange before you cover that area.

Done