madmaveric
Well Known Member
Tip for new builders, check your holes before riveting
Hi Guys,
I just wanted to pass on a tip for new builders as it could be overlooked when first starting out. This tip is to always look into the holes before putting a rivet in to check the pieces are lined up correctly.
The reason for mentioning it is that it isn’t something I hear suggested to new builders often (I guess most people automatically do it without thinking about it).
This weekend I had an issue with a bent tab inside the Horizontal Stabilizer which I only noticed by looking through the hole just before inserting the rivet (I always check them as I go).
As my build process involves full priming and Duralac (joining compound) I have to clean most holes out using the wrong end of a #30 drill bit, this will scrape excess paint off the hole and help line up the pieces without opening out the hole. During this process I managed to bend one of the tabs inside the structure without realising it at the time (I was probably getting tired as it was near the end of the day), when I came to rivet that hole I could see the inner piece was not packed together as normal, I had no way to get to it as it was inside the spar and the skin was on.
Luckily I managed to check that it was seated correctly using a borescope (a £20 usb webcam type off amazon). I have no idea what I would have done if it hadn’t pulled the tab in so suggestions are welcome if it hadn’t worked.
If I hadn’t noticed I would have just inserted and pulled the rivet as normal, this would probably have made the rivet expand in between the pieces. With the scope I was able to wiggle the rivet further into the bent tab and then pull/wiggle the rivet slowly with the hand puller to help it set.
Sadly I didn’t photograph from the hole at the time (to show what to initially look for) but I did record the borescope and security camera footage if you want to see what it looks like from inside the stabilizer
https://www.youtube.com/embed/q2bVcs
Not sure if I’m ‘teaching granny to suck eggs’ but if it gets one extra person checking the holes before setting rivets it will be worth it.
Hi Guys,
I just wanted to pass on a tip for new builders as it could be overlooked when first starting out. This tip is to always look into the holes before putting a rivet in to check the pieces are lined up correctly.
The reason for mentioning it is that it isn’t something I hear suggested to new builders often (I guess most people automatically do it without thinking about it).
This weekend I had an issue with a bent tab inside the Horizontal Stabilizer which I only noticed by looking through the hole just before inserting the rivet (I always check them as I go).
As my build process involves full priming and Duralac (joining compound) I have to clean most holes out using the wrong end of a #30 drill bit, this will scrape excess paint off the hole and help line up the pieces without opening out the hole. During this process I managed to bend one of the tabs inside the structure without realising it at the time (I was probably getting tired as it was near the end of the day), when I came to rivet that hole I could see the inner piece was not packed together as normal, I had no way to get to it as it was inside the spar and the skin was on.
Luckily I managed to check that it was seated correctly using a borescope (a £20 usb webcam type off amazon). I have no idea what I would have done if it hadn’t pulled the tab in so suggestions are welcome if it hadn’t worked.
If I hadn’t noticed I would have just inserted and pulled the rivet as normal, this would probably have made the rivet expand in between the pieces. With the scope I was able to wiggle the rivet further into the bent tab and then pull/wiggle the rivet slowly with the hand puller to help it set.
Sadly I didn’t photograph from the hole at the time (to show what to initially look for) but I did record the borescope and security camera footage if you want to see what it looks like from inside the stabilizer
https://www.youtube.com/embed/q2bVcs
Not sure if I’m ‘teaching granny to suck eggs’ but if it gets one extra person checking the holes before setting rivets it will be worth it.
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