Common Metal Shop Tools: Riveting

00:23:15
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M0RsmR5d6M

Summary

TLDRThis instructional video covers the basics of operating equipment in a metal shop with a focus on rivets. It stresses that watching the video does not replace hands-on training and mandates safety precautions like proper attire and eye protection. Rivets are essentially metal pins that secure multiple layers by being squished through aligned holes. The video illustrates different rivet types such as standard, pop, and tubular rivets and explains the usage of a rivet press. It emphasizes that rivet material should be softer than the material it binds and provides a demonstration of creating a rivet, ensuring readers understand the advantages and limitations of each type. With examples and tools like rod cutters, handheld cutters, and jeweler saws, it navigates both commercial and DIY rivet creation, underscoring that elegance in rivet finishing is easily achievable.

Takeaways

  • ⚙️ Always prioritize safety with equipment, wear protective gear and understand your tools.
  • 👨‍🏫 Watching videos can't replace hands-on training and professional guidance.
  • 🔩 Different rivet types suit different projects; choose wisely between pop, tubular, and standard rivets.
  • 🛠️ Rivets should always be softer than the material they're bonding to ensure proper fastening.
  • 📚 Understanding tools like rivet presses enhances precision in metalworking.
  • 🔨 Riveting involves planning; proper measurement and choice of materials are key.
  • 🧠 Use DIY rivets for custom projects for flexibility with material choices and lengths.
  • 🔍 Identify material compatibility, such as using copper, brass or aluminum, for ideal outcomes.
  • 🧩 Tubular rivets offer elegance and functionality, suitable for projects needing movement.
  • 🛡️ Proper use of tools like handheld cutters and jeweler saws make metallic work efficient and professional.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The video introduces the operation of machinery in a metal shop, emphasizing safety. Viewers are reminded that a video cannot replace hands-on experience and emphasizes wearing protective gear and seeking help if unsure about equipment use. The video continues by discussing riveting, highlighting the process, different types of rivets, and their materials, such as copper and aluminum. The presenter emphasizes understanding rivet labels, using anodized finishes, and properly using a rivet press for elegant finishes.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The video emphasizes the importance of selecting the right material and tools for riveting. It details common mistakes, emphasizing that softer metals should be used for rivets. Demonstrations include making rivets from wire, planning riveting, using hand punches, and adjusting rivet lengths. It emphasizes the importance of aligning components and using the correct tools to secure the rivet, ensuring elegant and secure metalwork. The use of applicable hammers and techniques for both pragmatic and aesthetic riveting is discussed extensively.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    Using copper rivets, viewers learn about the annealing process to soften hard metal for better riveting. The segment shows adjustments for achieving elegant outcomes, advocating for contrast in materials. Demonstrations include loosening tightened rivets to preserve movement and showcasing finished examples of riveting results. The video progresses to reveal methods for intentional design outcomes using visible rivets and elegant spacing techniques, enhancing assembly strength while maintaining aesthetics.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:23:15

    The final section discusses different rivet types, focusing on pop and semi-tubular rivets. It includes explanations on using pop rivet guns for inaccessible metalwork and semi-tubular rivets for elegant finishes. The final demonstration critiques poor quality rivet examples, urging learners to aim for aesthetically pleasing outcomes. Advice on experimenting with and understanding equipment for the best results end the session, highlighting the balance between functionality and design in metalwork assembly.

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Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • Is this video a substitute for in-person training?

    This video introduces basic equipment operation but emphasizes the need for in-person instruction.

  • Do you need access to both sides of the metal when using a rivet press?

    You need to access both sides of the workpiece for rivet presses, contrary to pop rivets which require access to only one side.

  • What is the basic function of a rivet?

    Rivets join layers of sheet metal by passing through holes and being squished to secure the metals together.

  • How do pop rivets function differently?

    Pop rivets allow for single-sided access and use steel shafts to expand aluminum or other materials to secure the metal.

  • Why should rivet metal be softer than the metals being joined?

    It's crucial to use a softer metal for rivets to avoid damaging the material you're joining.

  • What are tubular rivets?

    They are pieces of tubing put through holes and flared at the ends to create joints.

  • Why use rivets instead of welding or screws?

    It's used to squish two or more pieces of metal together, ensuring stability and potential for movement.

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  • 00:00:05
    this video was produced to introduce
  • 00:00:06
    basic information about the operation of
  • 00:00:08
    standard equipment machinery and tools
  • 00:00:09
    found in a metal shop
  • 00:00:10
    a video cannot replace in-person
  • 00:00:12
    instruction watching a video does not
  • 00:00:13
    replace experience and this video does
  • 00:00:15
    not introduce every possible situation
  • 00:00:16
    or circumstance involved in using
  • 00:00:17
    equipment successfully and safely
  • 00:00:19
    i do not assume liability for damage or
  • 00:00:21
    injury resulting from the information
  • 00:00:22
    this video provides
  • 00:00:23
    continuing to watch this video affirms
  • 00:00:24
    your agreement to wave any claim of
  • 00:00:26
    liability you may have against me by
  • 00:00:27
    implementing any procedure or
  • 00:00:28
    recommendation contained here
  • 00:00:29
    shops are inherently dangerous places
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    full of equipment that can cause injury
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    if not used correctly
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    you must use care and pay attention when
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    using equipment for your own safety and
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    for the safety of those around you
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    dress appropriately to work with
  • 00:00:38
    equipment wear shoes that protect your
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    feet and clothes that cover your skin
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    remove all loose clothing and jewelry
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    wear eye protection at all times if you
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    do not feel confident using a piece of
  • 00:00:45
    equipment
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    don't ask for help or guidance from
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    someone with more experience
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    okay the next thing we're going to talk
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    about are rivets
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    i love riveting don't laugh
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    a million years ago i made
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    these like really a million years ago
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    stainless steel
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    i don't know what they're for cooking
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    maybe
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    didn't matter that's what they are laser
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    cut
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    rivets so i clean up the metal this
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    one's not cleaned up
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    rivet them together and bend them at its
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    most basic
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    a rivet is some metal through
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    holes in multiple layers of sheet metal
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    that is then squished
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    to keep that metal together there are a
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    lot
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    of versions
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    you can buy rivets you can buy pre-made
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    rivets
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    here are some copper ones they have a
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    domed head
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    flat shoulder and a shaft
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    you can get them in all different
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    lengths it should go through your metal
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    and have enough to dome over on the
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    other side so this is for very thick
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    metal
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    but you can also cut it shorter with a
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    jeweler saw if you wanted to put this
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    through some
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    thinner metal you can buy them in all
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    different metals these are copper
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    you can buy them in brass you can buy
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    them in aluminum
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    our supply store has a bunch of rivets
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    ready for you
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    from hanson rivet and you should learn
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    what these labels mean
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    there's lots of information on here but
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    the tiny little code
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    means something it's an aluminum rivet
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    with a gold finish
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    and the other numbers refer to the
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    dimensions
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    this is an aluminum rivet with a gold
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    finish so people who don't know better
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    see this and assume it's brass
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    or gold but it's just an anodized
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    gold surface over aluminum so these are
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    very soft
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    which is great for riveting they have a
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    pan head a flat shoulder
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    a shaft
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    so this is a rivet press it's mounted to
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    the table
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    it has an arm that pulls down we've got
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    two rivet sets here
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    the bottom is concave and polished and
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    the top is flat and polished
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    so i can put my rivet dome side down
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    and it will maintain that beautiful
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    finish
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    and then i can just squeeze this side
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    this requires a little bit of care
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    i can squeeze a little bit and still
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    maintain movement
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    i can squeeze more and lock that up and
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    make it tighter
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    so there is no release there's no spring
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    load you just press
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    instead of hammering and you get a
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    smoother finish
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    slightly more elegant this has
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    limitations in depth
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    and in height so you need to be able to
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    access both sides and fit your work in
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    here but this is a really
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    nice way to make a fast neat rivet
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    right now this press is set up with a
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    concave polished surface on the bottom
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    and a concave polished surface on the
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    top so i can put
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    a rivet that has a domed head in there
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    and compress
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    it and i will end up with a dome surface
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    on both sides
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    which is super elegant so you can buy
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    rivets but you can also make
  • 00:04:14
    your own just out of wire it's really
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    good to have an assortment of wires
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    lying around if you're going to do a lot
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    of riveting
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    so this is brass wire this is copper
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    wire
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    this is aluminum wire they're all
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    different sizes
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    they fit in different size holes and i
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    can cut it to any length i want
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    what you need to know about making your
  • 00:04:39
    own rivets or even buying them
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    is the metal you're using must be softer
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    than the metal you're riveting together
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    if you make the mistake which many many
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    people do
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    of taking a piece of welding rod which
  • 00:04:52
    looks like copper on the outside
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    put it next to my copper rod looks the
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    same
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    but if you look at the end it's shiny
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    silver steel
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    if you hold a magnet up to it it's
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    magnetic also it's incredibly straight
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    copper wire is never that straight
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    because it's softer so what most
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    students do is go buy this really
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    inexpensive rod
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    they cut a piece off and then they
  • 00:05:13
    mangle it because it's so much denser
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    and harder
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    than the thin steel they're trying to
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    rivet together so
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    i would never use that for a rivet
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    let's do a basic rivet
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    okay riveting takes some
  • 00:05:31
    planning i'm going to use a hand punch
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    what you want to do is match the punch
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    size to
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    your wire let's use the eighth inch
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    punch
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    i'm going to punch holes in two pieces
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    of metal i'm not measuring
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    i'm not being careful i'm not making
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    anything nice
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    i'm just showing you riveting so i have
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    holes
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    i should try and match those holes to my
  • 00:05:59
    wire size
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    which sometimes can happen and sometimes
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    can't this wire is quite a bit smaller
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    than that so if i try and
  • 00:06:06
    make that rivet the metal is going to
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    squish over in ways that i don't like
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    that fits about the same this is much
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    too thick
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    so what i can do is either change the
  • 00:06:17
    punch and get the right punch size
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    or take a handy reamer
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    and just open that hole up enough that
  • 00:06:24
    it fits my my wire really nicely
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    should be snug
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    so i've got my metal that goes nicely
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    through there
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    in my dream world i've pre-made my
  • 00:06:40
    rivets with a nice square edge
  • 00:06:43
    i would use a jeweler saw i would take a
  • 00:06:45
    file and clean that up beautifully but
  • 00:06:49
    i know that the dream world doesn't
  • 00:06:51
    exist much
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    so i'm going to show you a cheat i want
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    to put it through
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    the metal if you're trying to make a
  • 00:06:59
    statement rivet you might leave it
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    longer if you're trying to just make an
  • 00:07:02
    elegant short rivet you could make it
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    shorter i'm sure there's some math
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    that people do to get these the right
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    length so it
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    i would jeweler saw this if i were doing
  • 00:07:11
    it and i would measure this
  • 00:07:13
    but i know my constituents who don't
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    want to spend the time jeweler sawing
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    this
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    so i want to show you that if i just nip
  • 00:07:20
    it with these nippers
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    it has a terrible pointed tip so
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    many people decide to just use that as a
  • 00:07:26
    rivet and there's metal unevenly
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    distributed there
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    and it will wind up squishing unevenly
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    but you could
  • 00:07:33
    go back on the other axis with these
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    nippers
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    and at least smoosh the tip of this
  • 00:07:40
    into more of a point you could also take
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    your file
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    and file it and that would be the best
  • 00:07:46
    thing to do
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    if you're going to do a lot of riveting
  • 00:07:49
    holding them to file them is quite a
  • 00:07:51
    challenge
  • 00:07:52
    there are all sorts of tools for holding
  • 00:07:54
    things i don't know what they're called
  • 00:07:56
    they're made for jewelers who hold lots
  • 00:07:57
    of small things it has leather
  • 00:08:00
    jaws and it holds this nicely it's made
  • 00:08:02
    to put a ring on this side
  • 00:08:04
    while you work on it but that's a really
  • 00:08:06
    nice way and then you file against the
  • 00:08:08
    grip not with it or it'll wiggle
  • 00:08:10
    that's a really nice way to give you
  • 00:08:11
    better grip especially when those of you
  • 00:08:14
    who are young now with strong hands get
  • 00:08:16
    old and your hands don't work so well
  • 00:08:19
    you will like having some tools so i've
  • 00:08:21
    just
  • 00:08:22
    made that a better edge so now i've got
  • 00:08:25
    all the components
  • 00:08:26
    i need i have metal with a hole two
  • 00:08:29
    layers
  • 00:08:30
    i have a piece of aluminum wire that
  • 00:08:32
    fits nicely through
  • 00:08:34
    i'm gonna put that in and i'm ready to
  • 00:08:36
    go you must never
  • 00:08:38
    hammer on something that wasn't meant to
  • 00:08:39
    be hammered on some of our vices have an
  • 00:08:42
    anvil in the back you can hammer on but
  • 00:08:43
    don't hammer on any of the moving parts
  • 00:08:45
    i brought with me a metal block from
  • 00:08:47
    home this probably has a name too i
  • 00:08:49
    don't know what it's called
  • 00:08:51
    a portable anvil we have anvils we have
  • 00:08:54
    lots of things you can hammer on but
  • 00:08:55
    don't hammer on something that you
  • 00:08:56
    shouldn't
  • 00:08:58
    and then all i'm gonna do
  • 00:09:02
    is hammer it a little bit on this side a
  • 00:09:04
    little bit on this side
  • 00:09:06
    while i can still move it i want to
  • 00:09:08
    adjust that so it's evenly spaced
  • 00:09:09
    because i want it pretty
  • 00:09:12
    and i'm going to keep working from both
  • 00:09:14
    sides and i want to try and bring the
  • 00:09:17
    sides
  • 00:09:17
    in flat if you hammer off and you get
  • 00:09:20
    one side on an angle
  • 00:09:21
    the whole thing will then angle and
  • 00:09:23
    smush
  • 00:09:25
    on on a diagonal so the trick is just to
  • 00:09:28
    work from both sides
  • 00:09:31
    that's it i have made a rivet a lot of
  • 00:09:33
    people would argue that i have made an
  • 00:09:35
    inelegant rivet i would argue that
  • 00:09:38
    i could also find a hammer with a curved
  • 00:09:40
    surface
  • 00:09:41
    and go back
  • 00:09:46
    and make it intentionally messy
  • 00:09:50
    i happen to think that's a really
  • 00:09:51
    elegant look it says i'm handmade but
  • 00:09:53
    i'm careful
  • 00:09:55
    if you're ever assembling something out
  • 00:09:57
    of sheet metal where you want
  • 00:09:59
    movement a rivet is a really elegant way
  • 00:10:01
    to secure things
  • 00:10:02
    but allow movement let's do one so you
  • 00:10:05
    can see that in action
  • 00:10:08
    i'm going to do a copper rivet i happen
  • 00:10:09
    to know that this copper is not annealed
  • 00:10:11
    it's very hard
  • 00:10:13
    if i were actually seriously making a
  • 00:10:15
    lot of rivets with this i would anneal
  • 00:10:16
    it which is the process of heating the
  • 00:10:18
    metal up to relax it
  • 00:10:20
    and that's something that that we can do
  • 00:10:22
    in the shop if you
  • 00:10:23
    ask for some help so this time i cut a
  • 00:10:26
    copper rivet
  • 00:10:29
    and i use the jeweler saw and i want to
  • 00:10:32
    also go around and just file
  • 00:10:34
    a very slight chamfer on that because
  • 00:10:36
    when i hit this
  • 00:10:37
    that outer edge flares out
  • 00:10:41
    and if i really want this to be an
  • 00:10:42
    elegant rivet i have to remove some of
  • 00:10:45
    that material just around the edge
  • 00:10:48
    so that it compresses outwards a little
  • 00:10:50
    more elegantly
  • 00:10:52
    i really like using a contrasting tone a
  • 00:10:54
    contrasting metal for my rivets
  • 00:10:56
    aluminum on aluminum is fine
  • 00:11:00
    i'm fussy about metal color i really
  • 00:11:02
    like copper and aluminum or bronze and
  • 00:11:04
    aluminum
  • 00:11:05
    so for me that's the best rivet
  • 00:11:07
    situation
  • 00:11:11
    oh that's hard
  • 00:11:20
    so i've just i've just condensed the
  • 00:11:22
    metal enough to keep this together
  • 00:11:23
    but it's really loose and can move quite
  • 00:11:25
    easily now
  • 00:11:28
    if that's too loose i could hammer more
  • 00:11:30
    one of the nice things about riveting is
  • 00:11:32
    you can
  • 00:11:32
    keep testing it you can hammer a little
  • 00:11:34
    move it around a little bit
  • 00:11:36
    so i have a really nice looking detail i
  • 00:11:39
    have really nice
  • 00:11:40
    containment and i have really amazing
  • 00:11:43
    movement
  • 00:11:45
    think of all the things you could do
  • 00:11:46
    with that
  • 00:11:49
    here are some samples in really terrible
  • 00:11:51
    thin steel
  • 00:11:53
    of different rivets this is a copper
  • 00:11:55
    rivet that's domed
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    this is the this is how it started its
  • 00:11:58
    life so i trimmed it shorter
  • 00:12:00
    and then i just hammered this side a
  • 00:12:02
    little bit
  • 00:12:03
    that's a super ridiculously over scaled
  • 00:12:07
    rivet for this for what it's doing but
  • 00:12:09
    if you're making something where the
  • 00:12:10
    rivets are really visible
  • 00:12:12
    you could turn that into a really
  • 00:12:14
    exciting intentional detail
  • 00:12:17
    this is just a piece of copper wire
  • 00:12:20
    that's been hammered in
  • 00:12:26
    and then this is that same copper rivet
  • 00:12:29
    but with a piece of tubing in between so
  • 00:12:32
    this is also a really elegant method
  • 00:12:34
    of getting two layers spaced apart
  • 00:12:39
    but contained together i want to
  • 00:12:42
    tell you a little bit about my hammer
  • 00:12:44
    which is fancy the hammers we have in
  • 00:12:46
    the shop
  • 00:12:47
    ball peen hammers are just fine for
  • 00:12:49
    riveting
  • 00:12:50
    there's nothing wrong with this end
  • 00:12:54
    and you can also use the peen hat side
  • 00:12:59
    if you want to texture something i do a
  • 00:13:02
    lot of
  • 00:13:03
    riveting and i have a hammer that's
  • 00:13:04
    polished or at least was
  • 00:13:06
    once so it will transfer the smoother
  • 00:13:08
    surface onto the copper and i can get a
  • 00:13:10
    shinier rivet
  • 00:13:11
    i also have a flat side and a dome side
  • 00:13:15
    that's just a basic idea of rivet
  • 00:13:19
    piece of metal squishing metal together
  • 00:13:21
    but there are many
  • 00:13:22
    many other options you can make
  • 00:13:26
    a rivet out of a piece of tubing there
  • 00:13:28
    is it even says
  • 00:13:29
    pretty tube rivet so this is a piece of
  • 00:13:32
    tubing that was put through the hole and
  • 00:13:33
    then the ends are flared over
  • 00:13:35
    on both sides this is a really beautiful
  • 00:13:38
    detail
  • 00:13:38
    especially if you are making something
  • 00:13:40
    where you want to pass wire through what
  • 00:13:41
    you're doing
  • 00:13:43
    just like on clothing with a grommet
  • 00:13:47
    that's a beautiful edging detail you can
  • 00:13:49
    also make it so that you have rotation
  • 00:13:53
    let's look at how to do that so i just
  • 00:13:57
    have a piece of brass tubing from the 3d
  • 00:13:59
    store
  • 00:13:59
    you can get lots of different tubing
  • 00:14:03
    you can get different sizes you can get
  • 00:14:04
    different materials here's some tiny
  • 00:14:06
    aluminum tubing
  • 00:14:08
    here's some larger aluminum tubing this
  • 00:14:10
    has very thin wall
  • 00:14:11
    so it's a little bit fussy to work with
  • 00:14:14
    that's what this is made out of which is
  • 00:14:16
    why it's a little squished there
  • 00:14:18
    i mean if you really want you could take
  • 00:14:20
    this tubing
  • 00:14:21
    and do something with it with a tubing
  • 00:14:25
    rivet getting the length correct is
  • 00:14:27
    really important
  • 00:14:29
    i don't know a formula for that i'm sure
  • 00:14:32
    there is one
  • 00:14:33
    i would experiment and then figure out
  • 00:14:35
    what the right length was
  • 00:14:38
    and write that down and make more that
  • 00:14:39
    length but for now i'm just going to
  • 00:14:41
    guess
  • 00:14:42
    you could use a tubing cutter to cut
  • 00:14:44
    this but it compresses the end
  • 00:14:47
    and then it's very difficult to flare
  • 00:14:48
    that out and make it into a rivet
  • 00:14:50
    if you use handheld cutters you'll just
  • 00:14:52
    squish the tubing completely
  • 00:14:54
    so unfortunately for anyone who doesn't
  • 00:14:56
    like the jeweler saw
  • 00:14:58
    it really is the best tool for cutting
  • 00:14:59
    tubing
  • 00:15:04
    it's also a little frustrating to cut
  • 00:15:05
    tubing it tends to pinch the blade
  • 00:15:08
    and then just like with a wire rivet i
  • 00:15:10
    want to clean up that edge a little bit
  • 00:15:13
    i'm going to just file the burr off
  • 00:15:27
    i got my piece of tubing through my hole
  • 00:15:29
    with extra on either side
  • 00:15:32
    probably more than i need and what i
  • 00:15:34
    want to do is flare that tubing over on
  • 00:15:36
    both sides and then condense it around
  • 00:15:38
    i've found that a really nice tool for
  • 00:15:40
    that is the very wide center punch
  • 00:15:42
    that has almost no point that lives in
  • 00:15:45
    the cupboard here
  • 00:15:46
    because i can use it and i'm not using
  • 00:15:49
    my nice hammer i'm using this hammer
  • 00:15:54
    i can use it to flare that metal out
  • 00:15:58
    and just like with a normal rivet i'm
  • 00:16:00
    going to work from both sides
  • 00:16:08
    once that metal is flared out a little
  • 00:16:09
    bit i can switch to using the pin
  • 00:16:12
    on the hammer
  • 00:16:17
    and work on turning that metal around
  • 00:16:21
    what you're all going to want to do
  • 00:16:24
    is the lowest form of riveting possible
  • 00:16:26
    which is called a blind rivet or a pop
  • 00:16:28
    rivet
  • 00:16:29
    blind rivets arrived with the aviation
  • 00:16:31
    industry
  • 00:16:32
    because the kind of rivets i've been
  • 00:16:34
    showing you you need access to the front
  • 00:16:36
    and back of the piece
  • 00:16:37
    and that will be a problem for a lot of
  • 00:16:39
    the things that people want to do with
  • 00:16:41
    sheet metal
  • 00:16:42
    a blind rivet allows you to go in from
  • 00:16:44
    the outside only
  • 00:16:46
    and create a rivet pop rivets come in
  • 00:16:50
    all different kinds and sizes the
  • 00:16:52
    packages will tell you
  • 00:16:54
    about all the dimensions
  • 00:16:57
    i have lots of these i have copper ones
  • 00:17:01
    the shaft is steel and copper plated
  • 00:17:04
    aluminum ones the shaft is steel and the
  • 00:17:07
    rivet is aluminum
  • 00:17:08
    the aluminum ones can be anodized so
  • 00:17:10
    there's some white ones
  • 00:17:12
    they come very very short for thin metal
  • 00:17:14
    and they come
  • 00:17:15
    ridiculously long i don't have any
  • 00:17:18
    ridiculously long ones here oh yes i do
  • 00:17:20
    there ridiculously long this is designed
  • 00:17:22
    to put through something very very thick
  • 00:17:24
    so just the end flares over and that's a
  • 00:17:26
    long shaft
  • 00:17:29
    so i've got the rivet through the holes
  • 00:17:33
    it has enough sticking out that it will
  • 00:17:35
    make a mush on that side but not too
  • 00:17:37
    much
  • 00:17:38
    and i'm going to put it in the rivet gun
  • 00:17:41
    and i'm going to squeeze
  • 00:17:42
    i would make sure your metal is up
  • 00:17:44
    against the shoulder because once you
  • 00:17:46
    squeeze
  • 00:17:46
    let's do one with no metal on it so you
  • 00:17:48
    can see what happens each time i squeeze
  • 00:17:50
    it's
  • 00:17:50
    pulling the steel shaft up and
  • 00:17:52
    condensing that aluminum
  • 00:17:55
    one squeeze two squeeze
  • 00:17:58
    and each time i release i'm going to
  • 00:18:01
    push it back down on
  • 00:18:02
    because the amount that it has pulled up
  • 00:18:05
    needs to be
  • 00:18:06
    shoved back in and you can see this is
  • 00:18:08
    it's just getting uglier and uglier
  • 00:18:10
    but as that steel shaft pulls in it's
  • 00:18:11
    expanding the aluminum to hold your
  • 00:18:13
    metal together
  • 00:18:14
    and then when it gets too much pressure
  • 00:18:18
    so when that's all as tight as it can be
  • 00:18:21
    it will break off
  • 00:18:23
    and this is why we also call this a pop
  • 00:18:26
    rivet because it does that
  • 00:18:30
    then the steel shaft is inside here and
  • 00:18:32
    you have to make sure you open the
  • 00:18:33
    handle and get it out
  • 00:18:35
    they tend to bind up in there if you
  • 00:18:37
    don't here's the one that i'm set up to
  • 00:18:39
    do with a better size rivet
  • 00:18:41
    it takes some hand strength to do this
  • 00:18:42
    and remember if you hold it at the end
  • 00:18:44
    of the handle you'll get better
  • 00:18:46
    better action but if you have small
  • 00:18:48
    hands this is going to be really
  • 00:18:49
    difficult
  • 00:18:50
    and when it gets tight you can feel all
  • 00:18:52
    the resistance i usually
  • 00:18:53
    then get both hands break that off
  • 00:18:58
    so there's the back it's not hideous
  • 00:19:02
    but it's not as elegant as a handmade
  • 00:19:04
    rivet also
  • 00:19:06
    it still has the end of the steel shaft
  • 00:19:07
    in there it has broken the steel shaft
  • 00:19:09
    off
  • 00:19:10
    on this side so a pop rivet has a pretty
  • 00:19:13
    shoulder but it always has a sharp piece
  • 00:19:14
    of steel in the middle
  • 00:19:16
    and it always has a smush on the back so
  • 00:19:18
    these are really really useful
  • 00:19:19
    for assembling things i think they're
  • 00:19:21
    great for sketching if you want to
  • 00:19:23
    attach a bunch of stuff
  • 00:19:24
    fast hold it together there's
  • 00:19:27
    nothing faster than this and if you've
  • 00:19:30
    made something where you can only access
  • 00:19:32
    the outside
  • 00:19:32
    you'll have to use something like a pop
  • 00:19:34
    rivet but you'll never get a really nice
  • 00:19:37
    detail out of it
  • 00:19:40
    the other kind of rivet i want to talk
  • 00:19:42
    about
  • 00:19:43
    is called not a solid rivet and not a
  • 00:19:46
    tubular rivet
  • 00:19:47
    but a semi-tubular rivet semi-tubular
  • 00:19:50
    rivets have a head a solid head
  • 00:19:53
    and then a piece of tubing and you put
  • 00:19:55
    it in and flare that tubing over so you
  • 00:19:57
    get all of the
  • 00:19:59
    elegance of a perfect little finished
  • 00:20:01
    domed head
  • 00:20:02
    and all of the sort of neat finish of a
  • 00:20:04
    rolled tubular
  • 00:20:06
    rivet and these are designed to be set
  • 00:20:09
    with
  • 00:20:10
    a rivet set
  • 00:20:14
    for years i made pins thousands of
  • 00:20:17
    little pins that said amusing things
  • 00:20:20
    this one says i need this like i need a
  • 00:20:23
    hole in the head
  • 00:20:25
    i was planning for this year
  • 00:20:28
    decades ago and so i
  • 00:20:32
    have a press that i would do this on but
  • 00:20:34
    just to show you
  • 00:20:36
    here we'll do it by hand this was the
  • 00:20:39
    fastest way to assemble things where the
  • 00:20:40
    metal
  • 00:20:41
    had a a coating on it and couldn't be
  • 00:20:43
    heated
  • 00:20:45
    and then if i take my set
  • 00:20:55
    there are handsets available i
  • 00:20:58
    have never found this very useful
  • 00:21:00
    because it has such a shallow throat
  • 00:21:02
    and because it's quite hard to hold you
  • 00:21:05
    could put it in a vise while you're
  • 00:21:06
    using it but i found this to be a
  • 00:21:08
    struggle so
  • 00:21:09
    i used it three times and put it away we
  • 00:21:12
    have a
  • 00:21:12
    deeper throated press here that's about
  • 00:21:14
    eight inches
  • 00:21:16
    and you can also set them by hand
  • 00:21:20
    so here are two pieces of aluminum and a
  • 00:21:22
    semi-tubular rivet
  • 00:21:26
    i've got the domed head up and
  • 00:21:29
    the flare side down
  • 00:21:34
    you just have to be sensitive about how
  • 00:21:35
    much pressure it needs
  • 00:21:37
    a bit more
  • 00:21:41
    and there very quickly i've given myself
  • 00:21:43
    one of the most elegant rivet situations
  • 00:21:45
    a domed head on one side
  • 00:21:46
    and a perfectly flared semi-tubular
  • 00:21:50
    inside
  • 00:21:51
    i've also done it loose enough that i
  • 00:21:52
    can rotate
  • 00:21:55
    and i know you're going to laugh but i
  • 00:21:57
    used to have students put five rivets in
  • 00:22:00
    two squares of metal to practice a solid
  • 00:22:03
    store-bought rivet
  • 00:22:04
    a handmade rivet a pop rivet a
  • 00:22:07
    semi-tubular rivet
  • 00:22:08
    and a tubular rivet and this is
  • 00:22:10
    generally what they look like which is
  • 00:22:11
    so discouraging i hope you see how wrong
  • 00:22:13
    this is
  • 00:22:14
    the goal was to practice riveting until
  • 00:22:16
    you could do all of these nicely
  • 00:22:18
    and turn in a beautiful little sample of
  • 00:22:20
    your beautiful rivets
  • 00:22:21
    um this is my idea of a nightmare
  • 00:22:27
    and all of these have gone wrong these
  • 00:22:28
    are just pop rivets because the student
  • 00:22:30
    didn't even want to bother
  • 00:22:31
    this is a solid rivet that's not even
  • 00:22:33
    tight
  • 00:22:35
    once this metal wrinkled it could never
  • 00:22:37
    be pulled together again
  • 00:22:39
    this is a supposed to be a tubular rivet
  • 00:22:41
    but it's missing the whole point of a
  • 00:22:42
    tubular rivet
  • 00:22:44
    this is a semi-tubular rivet that even
  • 00:22:45
    with a machine to do it
  • 00:22:47
    is a mess so you can use rivets to make
  • 00:22:50
    horrible ugly things
  • 00:22:51
    but you can also with almost no extra
  • 00:22:54
    effort have
  • 00:22:55
    a whole range of really beautiful
  • 00:22:57
    options
  • 00:22:58
    for attaching metal elegantly and
  • 00:23:06
    usefully
  • 00:23:14
    woohoo
Tags
  • metal shop
  • equipment operation
  • safety
  • rivets
  • DIY
  • rivet press
  • pop rivets
  • tubular rivets
  • metalworking
  • fabrication