|
09-22-2014, 07:14 PM
|
#1
|
Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
|
Marine Blind Rivets
A fella who repairs boats told me about marine blind rivets. I understand they are designed to seal under water.
marine blind rivets - Bing Images
Has anyone ever used these in Airstream applications? I consider the Olympic rivets more decorative than structural. Those little spider legs just don't look very strong. I suppose the Olympic rivets have a bigger grip range, but if a leg gets hung up, the mandrel breaks inside the rivet. Kind of a pain.
Maybe a marine blind rivet would work in applications that you don't see much, like roof vents? I don't understand how these rivets work.
David
|
|
|
09-23-2014, 09:46 AM
|
#2
|
Rivet Master
1973 21' Globetrotter
Houston
, Texas
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,314
|
The images, descriptions, etc., I got for marine blind rivets just makes them look and sound like a conventional "pop" rivet, except that they are stainless steel. I did find some that had what looked like a cup on the mandrel side of the un-popped rivet, and maybe they fill that cup with sealant of some kind to lend water proofness to them. They are crazy expensive, though.
I've heard plenty of discussion about the benefits of bucked rivets vs. Olympics, and I would say, that yes, in theory, I believe a bucked rivet will be stronger than a pop rivet of any kind. When I disassembled my trailer during a shell-off, I discovered that a rear corner segment had been replaced at one time using Olympics, and both wing windows in front had been replaced as well. All the rivets were fully intact (ie., no evidence of mechanical failure after who knows how many years going up and down the road), and no indication that these rivet had contributed to any more leaks than the rest of the structure.
So I am happy to use a bucked rivet anywhere that I can access the backside, an Olympic anywhere that the rivet head needs to match the bucked rivets, and a conventional blind rivet anywhere that strength and "matching" aesthetics are not that important (ie., interior panels, belly skin).
good luck!
|
|
|
09-23-2014, 10:45 AM
|
#3
|
Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
|
Thanks for your response Belegedhel. I appreciate your experience with Olympic rivet performance in your trailer. Did you see any Olympic rivets that had one or more of their legs hung up on a side wall? I had a heck of a time riveting a new furnace outer skin patch on my Trade Wind. Several of the rivets had mandrels that broke inside instead of protruding like they are supposed to. I assume it is due to one of the legs hitting an adjacent surface.
That's why I looked up marine blind rivets thinking they might work better because they take less backside room. But looking at the images, I couldn't see anything really special about them over the standard pop rivet.
David
|
|
|
09-23-2014, 11:02 AM
|
#4
|
Rivet Master
1973 21' Globetrotter
Houston
, Texas
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 3,314
|
Didn't notice that the wide legs of the Olympics caused any problems--and it looked like all of the mandrels were flush with the shaved surface. I did remove both of my wing windows that had been Olympic riveted into place so that I could rebuild them as single paned windows. When I went to buck them back into place, I found that the aluminum skin was quite swiss-cheesy with holes. From the way they were eaten up, those wing windows may have been replaced more than once. The Olympics had no trouble finding a grip with their wide legs, but I had to actually fab a fresh strip of aluminum for the backside so that the bucked rivets would have something to grab. If I had tried to rebuild those windows without access to the back side, and had tried to substitute a more conventional style of blind rivet instead of the Olympics, I could imagine the whole window frame just falling off the trailer when the job was done, as the blind rivets would have rarely caught hold of anything.
|
|
|
09-23-2014, 11:28 AM
|
#5
|
Rivet Master
2006 23' Safari SE
I'm In
, Kentucky
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 4,251
|
I used to have an aluminum boat, 15' with a 50 HP Johnson motor. Well into its life it started leaking around the rivets on the "ribs". I tried many different kinds of pop/marine/waterproof rivets. After a half season of rough water they all leaked or popped out. I got some stainless steel buck rivets and put them in with a hammer, drift and I forgot what I used to buck them with. But that was more than 20 years ago and the family that has that boat says it's still dry. So I wouldn't use a pop rivet in any area that has any kind of stress at all. If I did, I'd watch that area like a hawk. BTW, since that area was on the bottom I didn't really care about how it looked when I was done, but it didn't look too bad for a rank amateur with a hammer.
__________________
-Rich
Rich & Yvonne
2006 Safari SE -Dora-
2004 4Runner SE 4.7L V8
|
|
|
09-23-2014, 12:19 PM
|
#6
|
Rivet Master
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer
, Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
|
I can see how a bucked rivet is best. Compressed, tight, and solid. It doesn't sound like a marine blank rivet is anything I need to experiment with. It just seemed like the Olympic rivets act like wall anchors and don't seem to grip all that tight, even compared to a standard aluminum 5/32" pop rivet. And Olympics are expensive in comparison.
David
|
|
|
|
Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
|
|
Thread Tools |
Search this Thread |
|
|
Display Modes |
Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
|
Recent Discussions |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|