TD1043 Posted July 29, 2006 Share Posted July 29, 2006 I don't own a rivet gun, but I am seriously thinking about buying one. Which one would be best to use with FX armor? Where do you buy one of these along with the rivets? Do they have white rivets or do you have to paint those? And, any suggestions and/or tutorials about utilizing these to their fullest? Thanks troopers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tk-4224 Posted July 29, 2006 Share Posted July 29, 2006 cool topic so i´m not the only idiot in this world same questions here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daetrin Posted July 29, 2006 Share Posted July 29, 2006 I just got the basic manual rivet gun at Home Depot (or Lowes). You can get 1/8" short white aluminum rivets there too, along with aluminum washers. The brand I used was Arrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida_Phil Posted July 29, 2006 Share Posted July 29, 2006 I don't own a rivet gun, but I am seriously thinking about buying one. Which one would be best to use with FX armor? Where do you buy one of these along with the rivets? Do they have white rivets or do you have to paint those? And, any suggestions and/or tutorials about utilizing these to their fullest? Thanks troopers! I'll take a stab, but keep in mind, I'm a newbie, so fact check everything I tell ya. The 'gun' is more of a clamp/pliars for the size of rivets we are dealing with. I paid about $16-$19 for it at Lowe's or Home Depot (and it was probably too much, but what do ya do?). You want Aluminum rivets, not steel ones, since the steel ones will take so much force to crimp that it will tear through the plastic. They make Aluminum white 1/8" rivets, seen in the picture, and I didn't even have to order them. You might also back the rivet with a 1/8" washer, also shown, so that you distrubute the force over a larger area, and help insure that the rivet doesn't pull through under stress. That's about all I got. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daetrin Posted July 29, 2006 Share Posted July 29, 2006 Yup, that's exactly what I was referring to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD5422 Posted July 30, 2006 Share Posted July 30, 2006 I have the one that the head rotates, it has come in handy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clutch Posted July 30, 2006 Share Posted July 30, 2006 I got one from Harbor Freight for beans. It came with 3-4 bags of different sized rivets. I used a total of two on my TK leg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freakengine Posted August 2, 2006 Share Posted August 2, 2006 It's also important to pick up a variety of rivet sizes...not in diameter (1/8" dia. is usually good for most anything), but in length. It's terribly disheartening to get close to finishing a project only to realize the rivets aren't quite long enough to grip, or they're too long and poke you when you're wearing the armor. Also, there are washers/backing plates for rivets that are slightly different from run of the mill washers. They're usually heavier and have the exact right size of opening. Regular washers can be good too, but don't get flimsy ones or they'll bend when you use them to back your rivets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freakengine Posted August 2, 2006 Share Posted August 2, 2006 Oops..almost forgot. I usually put a dab of hot glue on any exposed rivets and the like just to keep them from snagging my undersuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crashmann Posted August 4, 2006 Share Posted August 4, 2006 You can also cover the rivets with the fuzzy side of velcro. Charlie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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