Aluminum boat rivets

[BentRod]

Does anyone here have any experience replacing aluminum boat rivets?

I have a 12' aluminum Starcraft that's had a number of rivet heads shear off over the years. Nothing major, but noticed a few leaks around the ribs on the last trip. A google search shows that a lot of people just seal these leaks with epoxy or something similar, but there are enough rivets with the heads sheared off of that makes me want to replace them if I can. A search on that brings up a debate between blind rivets and solid rivets. Sounds like either work, but since I periodically take my boat into salt or brackish water I'd rather replace with a solid aluminum rivet if possible. I'd like to find a supplier locally if I can, but have not found any possibilities besides maybe Grainger (which I'm not sure are suitable for boat repair). Any input would be welcome.

[scraig1962]

I replaced a bunch in my old 12' boat. You want solid aluminum rivets for sure. If the heads are sheared off, theres nothing really holding the rivet in the hole, so I wouldn't even try to use silicone, or epoxy. I used 1/4" dia dome head solid rivets I got from work. We order them from Mcmaster Carr. It takes two people to buck without a rivet gun. If the heads are already sheared off, you can probably just take a punch and pound them out, otherwise i use a wood chisel to shear the heads off then pound them out with a punch. To install, I squirt some silicone under the head, push it into the hole then from the inside I cut the rivet shank with dikes about 1/4" past the surface. Then I just have someone on the outside hold a hammer to the dome of the head while I hammer the shank of the rivet from the inside until it mushrooms out a little bit. Pretty fast and easy. They will look more professional with a rivet gun, but they're not cheap. I think the one we have at work was about $500.

[Idstud]

Have you tried Harbor Marine in Everett? They might know what direction to point you in.

[BentRod]

Scraig, that fits exactly with all the research I've done. I was hoping someone here had some experience, so thanks for the detailed write up. That helps solidify my decision to go with the solid rivets. Glad to hear it's not too difficult. I figured I should be able to buck them by hand with the aid of an assistant. Now I just need to figure out where and what size to get. Was hoping to find a local supplier, but may be more cost effective to just order online.
Idstud, thanks for the suggestion.

[scraig1962]

To get the exact length of rivet you need just add up the material stack up thickness, then add .375 for a 1/4" dia. rivet or add .28 for a 3/16 dia rivet. So if your boat hull is .080 thk, and the boat rib is .080 thk, you need a .53 long 1/4" dia rivet, or a .44 long 3/16 dia rivet. Like I said, I just used a 1.0" long rivet, put it through the hole then cut it down with dikes. Besides Mcmaster-Carr, we have ordered some from Western Trailers in Seattle http://www.westerntrailer.com.

[BentRod]

To get the exact length of rivet you need just add up the material stack up thickness, then add .375 for a 1/4" dia. rivet or add .28 for a 3/16 dia rivet. So if your boat hull is .080 thk, and the boat rib is .080 thk, you need a .53 long 1/4" dia rivet, or a .44 long 3/16 dia rivet. Like I said, I just used a 1.0" long rivet, put it through the hole then cut it down with dikes. Besides Mcmaster-Carr, we have ordered some from Western Trailers in Seattle http://www.westerntrailer.com.

Great info. Thanks.

[Bodofish]

Does anyone here have any experience replacing aluminum boat rivets?

I have a 12' aluminum Starcraft that's had a number of rivet heads shear off over the years. Nothing major, but noticed a few leaks around the ribs on the last trip. A google search shows that a lot of people just seal these leaks with epoxy or something similar, but there are enough rivets with the heads sheared off of that makes me want to replace them if I can. A search on that brings up a debate between blind rivets and solid rivets. Sounds like either work, but since I periodically take my boat into salt or brackish water I'd rather replace with a solid aluminum rivet if possible. I'd like to find a supplier locally if I can, but have not found any possibilities besides maybe Grainger (which I'm not sure are suitable for boat repair). Any input would be welcome.

You should be able to get just about any rivet you need for Tacoma Screw. Probably the setting tools too. If you're worried about pop rivets, you could always SS rivets and seal them with epoxy after setting them. They can always be drilled out and replaced. Go slow and just take off the head.

[fishinChristian]

After the good advice above, I'd add some of that spray super sealant over the rivets in about a 4" band. It seems to help with stress or something, but a friend had reoccurring similar problems, and we added that step, and he hasn't had to do it since. It also deadens noise a bit. It's the same stuff you line truck beds with. Cheapest is at Wal-mart, but if you want other than black, online. What you read above from others is what we've done several times with great success on Starcraft, Hewes, and Lund.