Rivetting with a hydraulic press

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

If the rivets are only for show, a simple method is to shorten them so they just protrude thru to the rear (unseen) side, rest the head on a suitable formed anvil and peen it over with a hammer.

This is a photo of the rivets on my traction engine. The LH side is the tender/water tank and the RH side the horn plates.

None of the rivets have been fitted with a press. Most are only aesthetics and for show and have been welded on the rear side. The rivets that are joining the tender and horn plates are threaded like a bolt and have a nut on the rear side, allowing the tender to be removed.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

If you are heating small rivits they are best done by heating the end in situe then you don’t loose much time getting the snap into place. Best a 2 man job so as the heat source is removed the other person can get in quickly to form the rivit.

https://web.archive.org/web/20180831185932im_/http://fowlermodels.nl/index_bestanden/image2733.jpg

Flypress would be the way to go. Do they really need to be iron rivits, would copper do as used for traction engine wheels with aluminium rims.

SDS+ Hammer and a modified chisel will also make short work of 1/8″ iron rivits

[noel shelleyParticipant @noelshelley55608]

Having just bought 6BA slotless screws I find that the heads are screw size, slightly bigger than the 3/32″ rivets that are also part of the assembly.

Jason has brought us into the modern world, WHY didn’t I think of an SDS drill ? The bigger and better ones have rotary stop ! Take an old drill bit and machine the dimple in the end to form the rivet head. I will have to try it, I have a 4Kg SDS. Thanks Jason. Noel

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

You can leave the rotary on and use it like a rivit spinner.

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

Full size engines also use a pneumatic impact tool like a small jack hammer with a snap to form the rivet head.  If you have an air compressor,  a small version could be made from an air chisel, available from hardware and car accessory stores.   For little rivets you could also use a nail punch and hammer. (Nail punches are similar to a centre punch but have a recessed hole in the end that goes over the nail head)

 

       

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

If you are going to use a nail punch you might as well just use a proper snap and hammer

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

Paul,  I tried an air chisel, but unlike the proper rivet guns, the distance of travel of the piston can’t be regulated and the snap jumps all over the place. As an apprentice we used plenty of rivet guns setting aluminium and Monel rivets – those guns didn’t jump away from the rivet unless you were very soft handed.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

I think that is why the SDS method is better, they tend to have more weight behind them so are less likely to be pushed off the rivit.

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

Speedy, I agree, they do jump around a bit. Just an idea. What I have used them for is to roll the end of the tubes in the boiler. (this is one of the requirements in the Australian code for model boilers. It helps to prevent corrosion of the ends of the tubes)

[MacolmParticipant @macolm]

The usual SDS and other hammer drills have a piston driven hammer weight that is wafted back then forward to deliver the hit to the (loosely held) drill bit. That is why the user does not feel much reaction – it is concentrated predominately on the drill. So yes, very suitable for this purpose if there is provision to disconnect the rotary drive.

[Bob Worsley]

On Bob Worsley Said:

I did start looking at 2″ and 3″ traction engine wheels, lots of rivets. I did wonder if using a spot welder to get the rivet red hot and then using a simple mechanical press to close would work, but never got to try it.

 

An alternative could be the PSUs from computers/servers etc. They will supply dozens of amps at 2V/3V etc and might do the same job? Yet to work out how to fool the PSU into working, they are all now ‘inteligent’.

To turn on a power supply unit (PSU) without a motherboard, you need to “jump” the green power-on wire to any black ground wire on the 24-pin ATX connector using a paperclip or short piece of wire. It can either be switched or left permanently connected.

 

 

 

[Paul Lousick]

On Paul Lousick Said:

If you have an air compressor,  a small version could be made from an air chisel, available from hardware and car accessory stores.

There is also something called a ‘palm nailer’ which might be suitable for the real small stuff. Milwaukee does a 18v battery operated one if you did not want air-powered.

[Martin Johnson 1Participant @martinjohnson1]

Thanks for the input.  Just to clarify, the loco frames will be a model of something I worked on 50+ years ago so I know the subject intimately and am aiming for a close scale replica.  So the rivets will be working at holding the frames together and slotless screws just won’t be acceptable.

I do have an SDS drill, much used for concrete breaking.  What I am not so sure on is:-

How to produce a snap form on an SDS shank of very hard & tough steel of unknown spec.  I have a couple of broken shanks and they are TOUGH.  I doubt silver steel would be up to it.

How to align bottom snap, unwieldly work plus top snap in SDS drill then pull the trigger without the whole lot ending up on the floor or leaving a huge scar from the SDS all over the part made frames.  Probably some sort of alignment jig needed.

Which I guess leads me back to the press option.

Martin

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Easiest option would be to put a 6mm or 8mm hole up thge end of a chised with a carbide end cutting milling bit. Then make your snap from Silver steel of 6 or 8mm dia and Loctite it into the hole. I have several snaps made from SS that have done all the rivits in my traction engines and no sign of wear after use with a proper hammer.

Loco frames would be easier to balance than a TE rear wheel or tender so not too hard  to sort a couple of suppprts either side of a bench vice.

[Martin Johnson 1]

On Martin Johnson 1 Said:

How to align bottom snap, unwieldly work plus top snap in SDS drill then pull the trigger

Buy an SDS drill with a standard 43mm collar and mount in a drill press/stand arrangement (an older version of Draper 54488, made of metal, not chocolate). That does the snap alignment for you.

Sellotape the trigger on and use a foot switch.

That leaves one hand free to operate the quill and one to steady the work.

Variations on this could be a weight or pulley on the quill handle so it either self-feeds or is foot operated, leaving both hands free.

Buy an SDS threaded Jacobs chuck adaptor with a 1/2″ UNF thread on it. Screw the snap on. No machining of tough steel needed. SDS diamond bit adaptors are also available with a 1/2″ BSP thread.

[Author]

Posts