Quote:
Originally Posted by CabrioletDon
Hi, Tim...I recently set 14 1/4" rivets putting in a new front cross member, and I don't know how those relate to your rivets. I did get the rivets from Big Flats. After some trial and error, I found that heating up the rivet cherry red once it was held in place with a buck, peening with a hammer to start the head, and finishing with a 3X gun was what ultimately worked best for me. If I used the rivet gun too early, the rivet shaft tended to bend over, leading to a mis-set, drill out, and new rivet. Using the hammer in one hand and a torch in the other made alternating back and forth easier and I ended up with a better finished rivet. Don't know whether any of this will work for you, but it's what I found to do the job and make them look like original. Hope this helps! --Don
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Hi Don:
Thank you. It does makes sense. Some of the "test" rivets did exactly what you described.
All my tests were set cold. I do think some of the rivets were a tad too long as well.
I do like the idea of a rivet gun and being able to feather the trigger vs. an air hammer that tends to come on full blast; even with a regulator.
Hope to get to it soon and I'll report back afterward.
Tim