Professional Documents
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Category A/B1
MODULE 7
Sub Module 7.8
RIVETING
Contents
RIVET ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1
TYPES OF SOLID RIVET ----------------------------------------------- 1
RIVET MATERIALS ------------------------------------------------------- 2
RIVETED JOINTS --------------------------------------------------------- 3
RIVET SPACING AND PITCH------------------------------------------ 6
TOOLS USED FOR RIVETING AND DIMPLING ------------------ 8
INSPECTION OF RIVETED JOINTS --------------------------------22
RIVET REMOVAL PROCEDURE ------------------------------------24
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RIVET
Rivets, however, have the disadvantage that they are not really
suitable for tensile loads. A riveted assembly cannot be readily
dismantled. Rivets basically fall into two classes, which are:
In the USA the common heads are the universal (similar to the
mushroom head) and the countersunk head. Countersunk
heads are available in a variety of different head angles, usually
60, 90, 100 and 120, with the most common being the 100.
Solid rivets
Hollow or tubular rivets
Rivets are supplied with one head already formed, the tail being
formed by hand-operated or machine tools.
Snap Head
Mushroom
(or Universal) Head
Countersunk Head
Rivet Types
Fig.1
RIVET MATERIALS
Unless otherwise stated, the rivets must be of the same material
as the work being riveted. The rivet material may be identified
by markings, color, anti-corrosion treatment or magnetic
properties.
Solid rivet markings are usually situated on the head or tail of
the rivet. Tubular rivets are not marked. When in doubt as to the
identification of rivets, reference should be made to the
packaging label.
Solid rivets can be made from a variety of materials with
aluminum alloy being the most common. The material and
specifications of British and American rivets are not the same.
The type of rivet used for repair is dictated by an aircrafts
maintenance manual. Permission from the aircraft manufacturer
is required before any changes, to rivet specification, are
allowed.
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RIVETED JOINTS
The location of the riveting dictates the type of joint (refer to Fig.
3) that is made. An ordinary lap joint is used on lightly loaded
members and, to provide a flush surface on one side, the joint
may be joggled. Where one flush surface and greater strength
is required, the single butt joint is used. The strongest joint is
the double strap butt joint.
Lap Joint
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Bearing strength
Bearing strength can be characterized by a sheet of metal being
able to withstand being torn away from the rivets in a joint. The
bearing strength of a material is affected by both its thickness
and by the size of the rivet in the sheet.
Shear versus bearing strength
Most aircraft structures are held together by the clamping action
of either rivets or bolts. When fabricating a riveted joint,
consider both the shear strength of the rivet (the amount of
force that is needed to cut it in two) and the bearing strength of
the sheet metal (the amount of force that will cause the rivet to
tear out from the metal). In a properly designed joint the bearing
strength and shear strength should be as near the same as
possible with the shear strength being slightly less. When this is
provided the joint will support the maximum load but if it does
fail the rivet will shear. It is much less costly to replace a rivet
than it is to repair a hole torn in the metal. (Figure B).
Figure B
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Transverse pitch
When two or more rows of rivets are used in a repair job, the
rivets should be staggered to obtain maximum strength. The
distance between the rows of rivets is called "transverse
pitch." Transverse pitch is normally 75% of existing rivet pitch,
but should never be less than 21/2 times the diameter. If the
rivets are not staggered, then the pitch will be the same
between rows as it is between rivets in a single row. For most
layout patterns, it is most practical to stagger the placement of
rivets to reduce the amount of sheet metal that has to be
overlapped. In addition, multiple rivet rows are often used to
prevent rivets in a single row from becoming too close together,
or to improve the cosmetics of a repair.
Sample layout pattern / rules
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A General rule
Drill size
In general the harder and longer the rivet the smaller the
clearance, but close tolerance holes and interference fits (also
called snug fit) are often a requirement. As a result of
laboratory tests and engineering development at the design
stage, carefully controlled hole sizes and rivet fits are used in
critical fatigue-prone locations. Should it be necessary to disturb
structure of this type it is imperative that reassembly be carried
out in accordance with the original drawings or repair schemes,
or as advised by the aircraft manufacturer.
The twist drills used for aircraft sheet metal work are most
generally of the number and letter sizes, rather than the
fractional sizes commonly used in other forms of mechanical
work. Most of the rivets used in sheet metal work are between
3-3/32 inch, which is the smallest rivet generally allowed in
aircraft structure, and 3/8-inch diameter. Rather than using
rivets larger than 3/8 inch, some other form of fastener is
normally used.
Drills
Assembly work
In order to allow for slight misalignment during assembly work, it
is usual to drill pilot holes at positions where rivets are to be
fitted. When the assembled structure is ready for riveting, the
holes should then be opened out to the required size.
Clearance
The number drill size for each diameter rivet is slightly larger
than the rivet diameter. As previously mentioned, the holes
made by these drills are usually three- or four-thousandths of an
inch larger than the diameter of the rivet. This allows the rivet to
be slipped in place without forcing it and scraping any protective
oxide coating off the rivet shank. The clearance is small enough
that, during driving, the shank will swell to take up any excess
clearance.
An electric drill motor is often used for sheet metal repair work
when a supply of compressed air is not readily available.
Rechargeable battery-powered drills are also commonly used
for small sheet metal repairs because of the convenience of
use, but should not be used around compartments containing
flammable fluids such as fuel cells.
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Cleco fasteners
Before an aircraft sheet metal structure is riveted, it should be
temporarily assembled to be sure that all of the parts fit together
properly. To provide the closest tolerance fit for rivets, it is
standard practice in many operations to drill all of the rivet holes
in the individual parts with a pilot drill. The pilot drill is typically
smaller than the nominal size of the rivet shank. Eventually,
when the parts are mated together, another drill is passed
through the pilot holes to open them up to the proper
dimensions of the rivet shank. To help prevent the parts from
shifting during the final drilling and assembly process, it is
common to use clamping fasteners to hold the parts together
until the rivets are installed. This helps ensure alignment of the
holes so the rivets seat properly.
One of the most widely used clamping devices is the Cleco
fastener, a patented product developed by the Cleveland
Pneumatic Tool Company. Although there are other
manufacturers of similarly designed clamping devices, the name
Cleco is generally associated with these types of tools.
a steel body,
a spring-loaded plunger,
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Clecos selection
Clecos are available in sizes for all the commonly used rivets
and even in one larger size. To help identify the designed hole
size of Clecos, the body is colour coded in one of the following
colours:
Wing nut fasteners are used for temporarily holding sheet metal
parts together with more pressure than a Cleco fastener can
provide. These fasteners also have the same color coded
bodies as Clecos to identify the diameter hole they are designed
for.
For Training Purpose Only
Rev. 00
Mar 2014
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C-clamps
The C-clamp is a tool primarily used by machinists, but has
been adapted by technicians working with sheet metal for
holding work together on aircraft. It is useful for holding sheet
metal in place before beginning the drilling operation. C-clamps
are available in many sizes. However, smaller sizes are
generally preferred for sheet metal applications to prevent
damage to the metal.
The C-clamp looks like the letter "C"; hence, its name. The C
frame has a fixed rest on its lower end and a threaded end at
the top. The threaded end has a shaft that runs through it with a
tee handle running through the shaft, and a floating pad on the
end.
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Dimpling
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Coin dimpling
Disadvantage
In coin dimpling a male die fits through the rivet hole, and a
coining ram in a female die exerts pressure on the underside of
the hole. By forcing the male die into the female die, the metal
contours to the shape of the coin. The pressure on the dies
forges the edges of the hole to exactly fit the shape of the dies.
Coin dimpling gives the hole sharply defined edges that almost
resemble machine countersinking. Both the top and the bottom
of the dimple are formed to a 100-degree angle; so multiple
sheets can be dimpled and stacked, or nested.
Radius dimpling
Radius dimpling is a form of cold dimpling in thin sheet metal in
which a cone-shaped male die is forced into the recess of a
female die, with either a hammer blow or a pneumatic rivet gun.
In some instances, a flush rivet is used as the male die. The
male die is forced into the female die. In this form of dimpling, a
rivet gun is fitted with a special female dimpling die, and the
rivet head is set into the sheet metal by rapid impact blows of
the rivet gun. The dimple formed in this way does not have
parallel sides, as the lower side has an angle greater than 100
degrees. For this reason, radius dimpling is not usually
considered acceptable to stack or nest multiple sheets.
Radius dimpling does not allow the sheets to be nested unless
the bottom sheet is radius dimpled. Radius dimpling is done
because its equipment is smaller than that needed for coin
dimpling, and can be used in locations where access with coin
dimpling tools is not practical.
Hot dimpling
Magnesium and some of the harder aluminium alloys, such as
7075, cannot be successfully cold dimpled; because the
material is so brittle it will crack when the dimple is formed. To
prevent cracking, these materials are heated before dimpling is
accomplished. The equipment for hot dimpling is similar to that
used for coin dimpling, except that an electrical current heats
the dies.
To perform hot dimpling, the dies are preheated and then the
metal is positioned between the dies. When the technician
presses a pedal, the dies are pneumatically pressed together
until they both just make contact with the metal. Once the dies
make contact, a dwell time allows sufficient heat to soften the
metal before the dies are fully squeezed together to form the
dimple. The dwell time for heating is automatically controlled by
a timer to prevent destroying the temper condition of the metal.
The operator of the machine must be familiar with how to adjust
the machine for the various time limits and temperatures for the
types of metal being formed.
The 2024-T aluminium alloy can be satisfactorily coin dimpled
either hot or cold. However, cracking in the vicinity of the dimple
may result from cold dimpling because of hard spots in the
metal. Hot dimpling will prevent such cracking.
The 7075-T6 and 2024-T81 aluminium alloys are always hot
dimpled. Magnesium alloys also must be hot dimpled because,
like 7075-T6, they have low formability qualities. Titanium is
another metal that must be hot dimpled because it is tough and
resists forming. The same temperature and dwell time used to
hot dimple 7075-T6 is used for titanium.
ISO 9001:2008 Certified
PTC/CM/B1.1 Basic/M7/03
7.8 - 21
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Clinched Head
Cocked Head
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