In most industries you’ll see that there is something that must be placed together. Regardless of what action you’re performing whether it’s Welding, Brazing, Riveting, Coupling, Adhesive Bonding, etc (which we’ll talk about below a bit). Before you choose a joining method you should know a few things about the material you’re using such as:
- How do you want the finished product to look like?
- What materials are you using exactly?
- How durable is the material?
- What kind of stresses will the material encounter?
- What kind of environment will the product be in?
- What’s the frequency of repair/maintenance?
What is Riveting?
Yes, it is also compelling.
Riveting is the process of drilling, punching, or placing a rivet into another material. Rivets are kept in place by deforming (smashing or otherwise making the end of the material something that can’t move).
How do rivets work?
Installing a rivet
First, line up the rivet by making sure they are in place before you start doing anything else. When you have them where you need them you hold everything together with clamps.
Next, you want to mark the rivet holes using a marker (or some other non-erasable product) a few inches apart (it’s suggested that you do this to make sure the rivet holds).
After that, drill the rivet hole in the place you marked. You want to make sure the hole is the same diameter as the rivets when you do this. You should also go over the rivets with a coating of oil to make them rust-retardant.
Next, you place the rivets into the hole. Make sure to set them one at a time to make sure they’re securely fastened.
Next, you fasten the rivet using your air hammer. With a partner on the other end of the surface (assuming it’s a metal surface). Your partner will need to place the air hammer on the end of the metal to make sure the rivet has a strong hold. To make sure the rivet is set in place it’s suggested that you use some type of metal bar/bucking bar.
Once that’s finished, perform the fourth and fifth step with the rest of the rivets (if there are any). And once you do that, check the fit of each rivet to make sure they’re securely placed.
Here’s a video by Hotrod Hippie account going over how to perform a solid riveting project.
Advantages of Riveting
- Riveting is more reliable than welding
- You can use riveting non-ferrous materials
- It’s cheap (and relatively simple) to inspect the quality of riveting
- Riveted joints take on less damage when they are taken apart.
- There are no thermal after effects on riveted parts.
Disadvantages of riveting
- Near the rivet hole there is stress concentration
- There is more cost of a riveted joint
- Riveting is pretty noisy
- They are heavier than welds (at least, the joints are)
- The labor for riveting is more expensive than others
- The metal material used to place the rivets loses integrity
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Riveting helps riveters increase their production output. -
Depending on the material used to make the rivet it can be stronger than either a screw or a bolt. -
You can make a joint regardless of the position (overhead, flat, vertical, overhead. -
Riveting produces no fumes or gases
What is welding?
Welding goes back several millenia people such as Heroditus (an ancient greek historian) saying things such as “Glaucus of Chios single-handledly invented welding – this was in the 5th century B.C. It’s used for both fabrication and sculpting and is done by (typically) using high heat to melt materials such as metal or thermoplastics together.
Unlike brazing or soldering (other permanent joining processes) welding doesn’t melt the base of the material/metal that’s being welded.
How to perform a weld
There are a few welding processes so we won’t go over all of them in detail right here. Below are video go over each welding process.
TIG Welding
Stick Welding
Atomic Hydrogen Welding
Plasma Arc Welding
Electroslag Welding
Flux Cored-Arc Welding
MIG Welding
as well as these types:
Disadvantages of welding:
- Welded joints using weld symbols require the welder to be highly skilled.
- The uneven heating and cooling process in welding sometimes distorts the materials being welded.
- The possibility of cracks appearing in the weld is higher due to the lack of provisions being made for expansion and contraction.
- It is much more tedious to inspect welding defects than riveting work.
Advantages of welding:
- Structures that are welded are typically much lighter than those that are riveted.
- Welded materials are typically much more efficient than those that are riveted.
- It’s much easier to make alterations to welded joints than riveted ones.
- Welds tend to be more aesthetically pleasing than riveted ones.
- Welds also tend to be much stronger than riveted structures.
- Welding tends to take less time than riveted joints do.
- It’s easier to weld cylindrical shapes such as pipes but, not so for riveting.
- Welded joints tend to be much stronger than riveted ones.
Comparison of Advantages/Disadvantages of Welding and Riveting
Advantages of Welding and Riveting
Advantages of Riveting and Welding
| Advantages of Welding | Advantages of Riveting |
|---|---|
| Structures that are welded are typically much lighter than those that are riveted. | Riveting is very reliable. Rivets tend to be produced from tougher materials which helps them retain their structure. |
| Welded materials are typically much more efficient than those that are riveted. | You can use riveting non-ferrous materials |
| It’s much easier to make alterations to welded joints than riveted ones. | It's cheap (and relatively simple) to inspect the quality of riveting |
| Welds tend to be more aesthetically pleasing than riveted ones. | Riveted joints take on less damage when they are taken apart. |
| Welds also tend to be much stronger than riveted structures. | There are no thermal after effects on riveted parts. |
| Welding tends to be take less time than riveted joints do. | There are a few types of solid rivets which means that you get a bit of variety to do with as you please. |
| It’s easier to weld cylindrical shapes such as pipes but, not so for riveting. | Riveting helps riveters increase their production output. |
| Welded joints tend to be much stronger than riveted ones. | Depending on the material used to make the rivet it can be stronger than either a screw or a bolt. |
| You can make a joint regardless of the position (overhead, flat, vertical, overhead | |
| Riveting produces no fumes or gases | |
Disadvatages of Welding and Riveting
| Disadvantages of Welding | Disadvantages of Riveting |
|---|---|
| Welded joints using weld symbols require the welder to be highly skilled. | Near the rivet hole there is stress concentration |
| The uneven heating and cooling process in welding sometimes distorts the materials being welded. | There is more cost of a riveted joint |
| The possibility of cracks appearing in the weld is higher due to the lack of provisions being made for expansion and contraction. | Riveting is pretty noisy |
| It is much more tedious to inspect welding defects than riveting work. | They are heavier than welds (at least, the joints are) |
| The labor for riveting is more expensive than others | |
| The metal material used to place the rivets loses integrity |
