Riveter

[Lonsdale73]

Hate to use the dreaded "C"-word but there's no escaping it's coming up fast and I must have been a good boy this year as I've been asked what I'd like from Santa. I know full well there's a world of difference between what I would like and what I'm likely to receive so I was thinking of maybe asking for a riveter. Never used one before so what should I be looking for? There are two variants from Stanley that have caught my eye - the MR77 and MR100; one is fixed head, t'other swivels. Are there any drawbacks to having one that swivels? Are they both naff? Thoughts please.

 

[Dibs-h]

I've got an el-cheapo (Silverline I think) fixed head version and for the few times I've used it - zero issues with it. I suppose it might boil down to how often you might use it.

HIH

Dibs

 

[Trevanion]

I have an old long arm Eclipse Spiralux that you'll have to pry from my cold dead hands...

If you're going to be using a lot of rivets have you considered a pneumatic rivet gun off an airline? They're fairly inexpensive and work fantastically.

 

[Dibs-h]

I have an old long arm Eclipse Spiralux that you'll have to pry from my cold dead hands...

Actually now that you mention it - the one I have is not a Silverline but an Eclipse (a modern one). LOL

 

[NickM]

If you're going to be using a lot of rivets have you considered a pneumatic rivet gun off an airline? They're fairly inexpensive and work fantastically.

I built a kit car and pneumatic riveter was the best tool I bought. If you're doing a lot of riveting they're a god send.

 

[Lonsdale73]

I don't imagine having enough use for one to justify buying a compressor too. Only occasion when I've wondered if one might have been a better option than the smallest screws I had was when I was building a childs toy that involved some tiny hinges going into very thin wood. In the end I used 3mm c/s bolts, trimmed off the excess and secured with ball end nuts. Another potential application is to join acrylic sheets and lengths of aluminium angle together. Might be one of those tools one finds a thousand uses for once one has one.

 

[sunnybob]

You cant have been very good, or else you have every tool anyone could ever want if thats you xmas wish list :shock:

I've had the same one for something like 30 years, and doubt if its been used more than 5 times even working with metal and machinery for most of those. I have a box of some mixed rivets that could now be sold on ebay as antique :roll: :roll:

Broaden your horizons man, think big(ger) =D> =D> =D>

 

[Lonsdale73]

You cant have been very good, or else you have every tool anyone could ever want if thats you xmas wish list :shock:

I've had the same one for something like 30 years, and doubt if its been used more than 5 times even working with metal and machinery for most of those. I have a box of some mixed rivets that could now be sold on ebay as antique :roll: :roll:

Broaden your horizons man, think big(ger) =D> =D> =D>

I could make Mother Theresa look like the devil incarnate and still be restricted to beer money pressies. Oddly enough, found one on facebook, literally round the corner for £5 including a selection of rivets! Picking up in the morning. By the sounds of the xperience shared so far on here, perhaps be as much as I'll ever need.

 

[novocaine]

I have 4. I built and raced hovercraft for a while. They were held together by the damn things.

An standard eclipse
A rolson copy of it
A scissor action
And a pnumatic

For the one time in 100 you need it its the best tool in the world. For everything else its a paper weight. These days i use it maybe once a year, for bike vin plates, ocasional random repairs and the like.

Personally, get a rivnut tool instead. So much more use.

 

[Hornbeam]

The type of riveter depends abit on the type and size of rivets youre using. A small plier type is fine for small aluminium rivets but anything over 4.8mm or stainless rivets you really need a scissor / lazy tong type . We use both for cladding but I find the scissors much easier and also easier to pull back as the mandrel brakes so you dont scratch the painted cladding sheet