rivet sizes

[hrosenthal]

When do I use the 1/8 x 1/2 inch rivets, rather than the 1/2 x 1/4 rivets?
Thanks

[skullandbones]

I used the longer shaft rivets almost all the time. There were a few places where alum to alum interfaces was OK for the shorter shaft but not many. I like that more material is being compressed on the backside to strengthen the "grip". So I bought a lot of extra rivets for the extra grip in 1/8 and 3/16 sizes. I was also liberal with the silicone to help strenghten the bond of the aluminum to the steel tubes. Don't take any shortcuts in this part of your build. It's a PITA process but it's part of the hazing to get into the fraternity of builders (ha). Not really but it goes along with the saying, "no pain, no gain". Happy build! WEK.

[68GT500MAN]

I use the shorter rivets when joining two pieces of aluminum together, the longer ones when joining aluminum to steel tube.
Doug