# Forum Home Renovation Tools & Products  Pop rivet gun help

## jimc

Hi all...hope some kind person might be able to help with my issue. 
I am building a gate, had steel frame hot dip galvanized, having spotted gum thicknessed to 10mm, bought 250 6-10 stainless rivets and all is looking good ready to go and now my issue.... 
the bloody rivets are too big for my industrial family heirloom lazy tong rivet gun! 
The only nose piece is 1/8 and I need 3/16. 
I cannot come to buying a cheapy industrial pop rivet gun and cannot warrant spending up on quality riviter for 250 rivets. 
Are there any rivet guns that will do the 250 6-10 rivets and survive the experience that will not cost too much?

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## chrisp

There seem to be rivet guns and rivet guns.  I have tried many to see which would pop a large steel rivet (they all seem to handle aluminium ones okay). 
What I did was go to a large Bunnings with several rivets in my pocket.  When asking about a good riveter, they would pick out a model to show me.  I'd then hand them a rivet and ask them to pop it.  The lazy tongs didn't work.  We tried lots and only one pair they had seemed truly capable of popping the bigger steel rivets. 
The best one was a "bolt cutter" like ones (they look like a big pair of pliers) that happily popped the biggest, hardest rivets.  From memory, they weren't that expensive either.

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## Bloss

:What he said:  Although many come with the assorted heads for different sizes some are not up to it with steel rivets. But for a small job you can simply use two pieces of pipe to extend the handles as often it is simply insufficient leverage. At a pinch I have used two shifting spanners (with the holes in the handle end) placed over the end of the gun to add leverage. Would be fiddly for 250 rivets though!

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## Ashore

run a 3/16" drill through the 1/8" nose piece  :Rolleyes:

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## jimc

I did think is drilling out the nose piece to 3/16, but the 3/16 nose piece would be longer to push the jaws back enough to accept the 3/16 mandrel. 
bugger...anyone happy to rent their long handled riveter for beer? word of caution though..the 6-10 rivets might wear out the jaws.

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## Bloss

> I did think is drilling out the nose piece to 3/16, but the 3/16 nose piece would be longer to push the jaws back enough to accept the 3/16 mandrel. 
> bugger...anyone happy to rent their long handled riveter for beer? word of caution though..the 6-10 rivets might wear out the jaws.

  I know he's a former Naval engineer and giving an engineering solution, but I think Ashore might have been joking?  :Biggrin:  (My Dah was in the Navy in WWII and his engineer mate was called 'Sludge' and sometimes 'Blackie' from days on end in the engine room!) 
I have to say my latest rivet gun which cost under $20 a couple of years ago and bought when I needed one quickly and is a chinese knock-off with multiple noses does 3/16 steel rivets no problems. Often need to use two-hands just to do that last tight 'pop', but that's not too hard.  :2thumbsup:

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## Compleat Amateu

Most marine shops will rent/lend proper concertina pop riveters in my experience (under 'Ship Chandler' in Yellow Pages), but if you aren't known to them .... 
Are there SS Tek screws?  They would be much easier than drill/pop, drill/pop, drill/pop ... 250 times.

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