Not cheap, not used that often. But would not want to be without them.
Agree.. you only need a dozen or so Clecos.
Geoff
I'm hoping to attach my floor soon, Ali sheet to be riveted and bonded on. I * think* it would be a good idea for me to use clecos when
drilling the many holes for the River's but given I'm expecting to use upwards of 50 rivets to do the floor it seems expensive, the
fasteners look like they are about a quid each?!
Have I missed the point somewhere?
Maybe you have missed the point.
For 50 holes you don't need 50 clecos. You only need to hold the piece in place. A dozen should be enough.
A very useful tool. I have used mine several times since building the Viento.
Not cheap, not used that often. But would not want to be without them.
Agree.. you only need a dozen or so Clecos.
Geoff
WE are not building aircraft, 10-15 should be all you need to hold the floor in place while you drill the rest of the holes.
When drilling the holes work from the centre out and use clamps in the corners.
Check if there are any aircraft spares shops around, clecos last almost forever, I walked around De Havilland Canada years ago and they just threw
them on the floor when removed from the work and swept them up later with a broom.
I thought the same recently as I was about to start a build. 2 rivets pushed in place and a bit of masking tap pulling them towards each other has worked quite well holding the panels in place.
They are widely used in the aircraft industry, this means manufacturers can double or if not treble the price. You do get what you pay for though as they are very good.
Clecos are worth every penny.
Nope clecos are actually cheap as chips if you buy them from the right place !!!!!!
search for a link by ashg ...ash g ...he posted up a link to a uk aircraft supplie/builders and they was cheap as chips !!
sorry but i dont have the link
les g
sorry it has just come back to me ...Google ....LAS AEROSPACE LTD pliers are about £3.52 and pins are about 38 p each
cheers les g
I have about 40 and it seems like a good number. It seems like half of them are always tied up holding something in place temporarily.
Keep shopping around - used aircraft tool places are also a good source.
I don't know if they'll ship to the UK or if shipping will be an arm and a leg but I use these guys for new ones:
https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/sheetholder.php?clickkey=3620
As Les says, mine came from LAS Aerospace.
Pliers here
Pins here
I think I ended up buying about 40 of these and have been really useful all the way along my build
quote:
Originally posted by sdh2903
They are widely used in the aircraft industry, this means manufacturers can double or if not treble the price. You do get what you pay for though as they are very good.
Is there a common size or do us builders use a range of sizes?
The 1/8 ones in my link are what I used. 3.2mm in new money.
Most kits restrict themselves to 3.2mm and 4.8mm both are really imperial sizes (1/8" and 3/16" ) written in metric.
[Edited on 31/12/13 by iank]
Thanks peeps - I've just ordered a set of pliers and 40 clecos.
I've been wanting some of these for ages.
LCBs does it again
Many many years ago there was a group buy, I bought 20 3.2 and 20 4mm. very handy.
If you need a really tight hold with something these are good too as you can wind them up nice and tight.
http://www.lasaero.com/site/products/article?id=X01A0QWGL
quote:
Originally posted by sdh2903
If you need a really tight hold with something these are good too as you can wind them up nice and tight.
http://www.lasaero.com/site/products/article?id=X01A0QWGL
quote:
Originally posted by iank
Most kits restrict themselves to 3.2mm and 4.8mm both are really imperial sizes (1/8" and 3/16" ) written in metric.
[Edited on 31/12/13 by iank]
I bought 3.2mm and 4.8mm drill bits when I did mine (got them from screwfix back then, but they only do 0.5 mm steps now).
Toolstation do 3.2mm cobalt bits for not many pennies http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Power+Tool+Accessories/Cobalt+Drill+Bits/d80/sd1230
and 4.8mm in packs of 10 cheap bits suitable for steel. http://www.toolstation.com/shop/HSS+Jobber+Metric+Drill+Bit/p14451
Yep - either get a number of 1/8" drill bits, or get a bunch of 3.2mm drill bits from an on-line supplier such as Tracy Tools (who can also sell you 1/8" bits, if you really want them).
Its nit picking but ideally you should be using a #30 bit (0.129") for a 1/8" hole and #10 (0.194") for a 3/16" hole. The extra
clearance allows the rivet to swell to fill the hole and creates a tighter fit.
[Edited on 1/1/14 by atm92484]
[Edited on 1/1/14 by atm92484]
quote:
Originally posted by atm92484
Its nit picking but ideally you should be using a #30 bit (0.129"for a 1/8" hole and #10 (0.194"
[Edited on 1/1/14 by atm92484]
[Edited on 1/1/14 by atm92484]