How do you remove rivets? looking for suggestions

[thebanjoman]

Whats the easiest way you've found to remove body rivets?

I have some panels to replace and so far Ive tried grinding the head down with a flap disk and punching them through, which worked OK where the piece is being replaced but won't work everywhere.

How do you do it?

 

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Centerpunch the head, drill the rivet with the proper size stubby drill bit and remove the rivet. Then 'X' the hole and weld it up for re-drilling if there is damage (many times there is). Using a grinder to remove the head often times damages the panel AND trying to punch the rivet out just distorts one or both of the panels where alignment or matching issues are present.

 

[Wick]

I use a Spring-centerpunch on the rivet head. Leaves a nice mark for the drill.
Its a great tool to have in your box.

 

[wrndln]

I have removed a lot of body rivets. I also center punch the rivet head to allow for the drill to be close to the center of the head. I next use a small drill (easier to align to the very center) and drill through the head into the body of the rivet, but not all the way through. Next I take a drill bit that is the size of the rivet body and enlarge the hole. Most of the time the head will start spinning on the drill bit as you drill through it. Once the head is off, you can see if you are truly in the center of the rivet before you drill any farther. If it is off slight, tilt the drill to realign the hole and drill through the body of the rivet (not all the way however) until you can tap the rivet out. This procedure takes some time, but most of us are retired, so it probably doesn't make a lot of difference.

 

[Roadster62]

All of the above info is good. I like to use a center drill, the stubby ones you use to drill a centering hole when turning things in a lathe.

 

[Mike V. Florida]

I have removed a lot of body rivets. I also center punch the rivet head to allow for the drill to be close to the center of the head. I next use a small drill (easier to align to the very center) and drill through the head into the body of the rivet, but not all the way through. Next I take a drill bit that is the size of the rivet body and enlarge the hole. Most of the time the head will start spinning on the drill bit as you drill through it. Once the head is off, you can see if you are truly in the center of the rivet before you drill any farther. If it is off slight, tilt the drill to realign the hole and drill through the body of the rivet (not all the way however) until you can tap the rivet out. This procedure takes some time, but most of use are retired, so it probably doesn't make a lot of difference.

I did the same thing except once the head is off I used a punch and drove the rivet out.

 

[rotorwrench]

In aircraft sheet metal training they instruct to drill down in the center of the head or bucktail, if that's all you have access to, but only go a little below the turface level of the base metal structure. Take a pin punch the size of the rivet and insert it into the head or tail and try to break it off with a prying motion. Usually they will break right off. You can then drill a little farther and either punch it though or drill it through as long as you stay close to the center of the original rivet hole. Some times I have to use a little chisel I ground specifically to cut the heads off if they won't break. This will allow you to see if you are straight with the rivet hole before you proceed. On soft stuff like canopy transparencies you have to drill the rivets through to keep from teariing up the thin sheetmetal structure underneath.

Now days they even make guide tools that will fit the heads of the different size rivets and keep your drill centered during drilling but I don't think they make them for anything bigger than 3/16 inch.