Fastening & Joining

Doing Rivets Right

March 8, 2016

If engineers choose the wrong rivets or install them improperly, the advantages of low-cost and rapid assembly go right out the window. Factors that influence rivet performance include shank length and diameter, location and hole, and workpiece preparation.

Shank length and diameter: 1.1

River shank diameter is often determined by the joint’s required strength. But with sheet-metal components (on which most riveting is used), the diameter of the shank should be proportioned to the thicknesses of the workpieces.

Rivets with diameters that are too small can buckle. If the diameter is too large, the rivets are difficult to head. For most applications, it’s recommended that the diameter be 1.4 times the square root of t, where it is the thickest workpiece when t ≥1mm.

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Rivets are a simple, inexpensive way to permanently attach parts. They are well suited to automated assembly and their cost is low because they are made on automated high-speed heading machines in large quantities and there is little scrap. But some engineers believe that if you simply install them, they will work. But if engineers choose the wrong rivets or install them improperly, the advantages of low cost and rapid assembly go right out the window.

Here’s a look at three factors that influence rivet performance: shank length and diameter, location and hole, and workpiece preparation.