SB 14-12-06 completed

Complying with this SB involved drilling out ten pulled rivets, six of which are through relatively thick aluminum plate.  The accepted method of removing this size pulled rivets (LP 4-3) is to drive out the center mandrel with a 1/16th punch, then drill out the rest with a 1/8th bit.  Problem is, in order to drill out the rivet without enlarging the original hole requires that the drill be exactly perpendicular to the plate containing the hole.  Even with my trusty Tight Fit Drill Kit I couldn't make this work.  Not enough distance from the rivet centerline to nearby structure.

I've always used a different procedure, when possible, for removing pulled rivets, one which eliminates the possibility of enlarging the original hole.  I carefully drill off the manufactured head with a 1/8th or #30 bit, then either pull the rest out by grasping the shop head with needle-nose pliers or drive it out with a 1/8th punch.  In this case, the metal was too thick for this method to work without modification.  I drilled off the manufactured heads, drove out the mandrels (lacking a 1/16th punch I used the shank of a 1/16 bit, worked great), then drilled out the remainder of the rivets with the right-angle attachment (shown next to the drill in the pic).  For the two which were too close to adjacent structure, I used an old drill chuck (shown between the right-angle attachment the drill) and turned it by hand.  The chuck was still a bit too fat for perfect alignment, so I used a smaller bit and went through at a slight angle.  This loosened the rivet enough to be pulled out with pliers.

Free advice for other people building airplanes.  Don't lose momentum in the build by going for long periods with no work.  Getting back up to speed is a huge waste of time.  Example:  yesterday I had to reacquaint myself with the tool and procedure for properly crimping Molex connectors.  Had to go to EweTube (they're a bunch of sheep politically) and watch a couple of instructional videos, then destroyed the first connector I tried.  I'm taking a solemn vow to never again take a break from the project.

The completed part for the SB is shown at left.