removing stainless rivets

[mccool]

I remember, in the dim recesses of time. the horrors of removing those furshlugginer stainless rivets. I was hoping that since then, better, more effective ways had been invented to get them out w/o damaging the the hole or the surrounding structure. I'm looking at disassembling some parts and would appreciate any suggestions/recommendations. Youtube has let me down on this one.

[Bryan Cotton]

[mccool]

Stainless rivets are a whole different animal. They work harden at the slightest excuse. You can't often get a grip on the back side. They laugh at HSS drill bits, and if I remember correctly, titanium bits didn't fare much better.. To be fair, sometimes I got it right and got the head off with no problems.

[Lionel Smead]

Use a 115 deg tip #30 bit,do not dril'l at high speed,or push to hard. Try not to spin the rivet,let the drill do the work. Jay Smead

[sonex892.]

Use a 115 deg tip #30 bit,do not dril'l at high speed,or push to hard. Try not to spin the rivet,let the drill do the work. Jay Smead

l agree definitely cant get it hot or it will instantly harden the rivet and dull the bit. For the dome head ccp's I have had a higher success rate with sharp a larger diameter drillbit. Big enough so the head comes off before the outer cutting edge of the drill is or corner starts cutting. That is what I think tends to grab and spin the rivet. Also make sure the mandrel is punched down sufficiently.
Steve

[Bryan Cotton]

An old thread on the topic:
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=2041

Pretty basic stuff but may be helpful for the new folks. Just remember to punch out the mandrel first. You should back up the part with a bucking bar or some heavy solid metal thing when you punch out the mandrel.

I buy cobalt drill bits 20 at a time. Some of them last 3 rivets and some seem to last forever. The one I am using now is from a Spruce order and it is still sharp after drilling a bunch of rivets.