Thursday, October 20, 2022

Rivet Review

 21 Oct 22:

Our Sunfish WAVE needed a rivet to hold the deck edge trim in place, the old rivet had torn loose from the deck edge at the end of the aluminum trim piece, a common problem. The deck edge could be repaired with thickened epoxy or redrilled, but at the end of a trim piece we don't mind adding a second rivet. 

We use 1/8th inch diameter aluminum rivets with a 1/6ht - 1/4 inch grip range.Drill the old rivet out with a 1/8th inch diameter metal bit, being careful to not go through the bottom of the trim piece, or in this case, drill a fresh hole net to the old rivet. 


Test the fit to see what grip range will work best.


Pull the rivet with a rivet gun.


Check that there are no burrs on the top of the rivet. If there are, use a metal file to smooth the top of the rivet. Check the bottom of the trim also for sharp edges.



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