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Rivets - simple misunderstanding or misled by liars?

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rdj

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2009
Messages
387
Location
Northern California
So, most of the solid rivets we use are AN426 or AN470. Here's one carried by Aircraft Spruce: AN470AD-4-2, specified as 1/8" diameter x 1/8" length which seems to match the AN decoder ring.

Now, pretty much every experimental aircraft site I visit states that the 'exposed tail' of the rivet (ie the amount sticking out the backside of two sheets of aluminum) should be 1.5 times the rivet diameter, which my calculator tells me is 0.188" for a 1/8" diameter rivet. My calculator also tells me that getting 0.188" of 'exposed tail' from a rivet only 0.125" long requires magical aluminum sheets with a thickness less than zero (-0.063" to be exact). Even more trustworthy sources than the EAA and HomebuiltHELP such as Hanson Rivet specify a 'clinch allowance' (which seems to be the same as 'exposed tail') of 0.125". That at least drops the magical sheets down to zero width sheets.

Am I misunderstanding something (probably), or is this 1.5X number just a bald-faced lie pulled out of thin air, and the truth is far more complicated? Or is Aircraft Spruce stocking rivets that no one can ever possibly use?

Bob
 
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