Clecos, pliers, and other tools

[Jazzman]

I'm prepping for the arrival of my kit and have been perusing Aircraft Spruce for clecos, pliers and pneumatic rivet guns. Several questions:

1. Is 100 copper 1/8" Clecos an adequate supply? Do I need any other sizes?
2. They offer two Cleco pliers and one pneumatic Cleco tool. Any reason to waste $88 on a pneumatic Cleco tool? Of the pliers, one is a steel tool that looks kind of cheap ($19), the other a nice looking aluminum pair for $29. I'm leaning toward the better pair, because I hate buying the same tool twice. I want to buy it once and have it outlast me! Thoughts?
3. I haven't found a good quality pneumatic rivet gun. Harbor freight is out of the question because I have found thir stuff to be . . . Inferior. (That's the nicest word I could come up with!). Sears didn't carry one locally. Suggestions of where to buy a good quality tool that I will not have to replace?

Thanks!

Kevin

[BEAR-AvHistory]

100 is way more than you really need. IIRC had 40 or so 1/8 & 15 @ 3/16. They are pretty much a commodity item.

Don't know if they will meet your standards but I built my car with these:

Cleco's from JEGS in a set with the tool. About 25 pieces. Added a few extra packs of 1/8 & 3/16. Tool is very basic & will last forever.

Got the rivet gun from Amazon. Astro Pneumatic PR14 Air Riveter.

No issues with either the pins, the Cleco tool or the rivet gun. You will also need a hand riveter for tight spaces & optionally a rivet nut tool with various rivet nuts for anything you might want to be able to take apart..

[Jeff Kleiner]

As BEAR said 100 is more than really necessary but some guys like to make 'em look like a porcupine while building by filling every hole! Nothing wrong with it if that's your preference; I've done multiple cars with about 50 and usually put one in every 3rd or 4th hole just to keep panels in place. A set of $8 Cleco pliers have served me well for about a decade. I purchased both the Clecos and tool from Brown Aviation:

http://www.browntool.com/Default.aspx?tabid=343

Personally I'm not a fan of pneumatic riverers. I bought one when I built my first car and used it about halfway through then switched to hand riveting. Second build I used it for a few dozen rivets and then switched. I haven't even taken it out of the tool box for subsequent cars and just do them all by hand. To me it's not worth the hassle of dragging around the hose and I prefer to feel the rivet pull tight rather than assume that the pneumatic sunk it. Again, personal preference.

Good luck with your build!

Jeff

[edwardb]

Agreed 100 clecos is probably more than you will need. I have probably 60-70 of the 1/8 inch size, and find myself near the bottom of the box sometimes when working on a number of panels, like a whole footbox, the whole trunk, etc. But generally that's plenty. Kind of depends on how you work. But they're not expensive and for our purposes hard to wear out. Get however many you think you need. You may want to get a handful of the 3/16 inch size as well. Not too common during the build, but handy to have when needed. The cheaper pliers are fine. That's what I have too, and I can't imagine how it could be broken. I've used Aircraft Spruce for this stuff as well. Excellent supplier. While you're there, get a handful of their #30 (for 1/8 rivet) and #10 drill bits (3/16 rivet). They are excellent quality and a decent price. I find that a build takes 8-10 of the smaller size, and maybe a couple of the larger. Sometimes they will just break. Or they just get dull. Someday I guess I should think about a drill bit sharpener.

Pneumatic riveters are interesting. I did my first build by hand, and bought one for my second. The riveter is out for the third (and already used a bit) so guess what my personal preference is? I too saw the mixed reviews on the HF gun, so bought a Campbell Hausfeld branded gun on Amazon. They're about $75, and it works great. A couple of other forum members have bought this gun and also reported good results. I find it sets the rivets more consistently than I can by hand. Plus saves my not so iron grip. But that's me.

[russelljones48]

It is alluded to in some of these posts but I started my build in March and have had a couple of experienced builders suggest that many panels should be installed with clecos so they can be removed while installing brake and fuel lines - obviously access is easier without installed panels. I had one experienced builder/vendor tell me that his go-karts look like a porcupine because he doesn't install most panels until he's completed his go-kart and tested his build. That made sense to me so I've purchased a few more clecos and I'm not permanently installing some panels during my build. It also makes some sense because I'm going to remove my firewall and replace it with a thicker .090 FW. So, I have to drill out my rivets. The thicker FW is one of those things I didn't think about until recently. I now have about 60 clecos.

[stevenburgess]

I'm using the HF neumatic rivit gun and have not had an issue. $29

[insurance guy]

It is alluded to in some of these posts but I started my build in March and have had a couple of experienced builders suggest that many panels should be installed with clecos so they can be removed while installing brake and fuel lines - obviously access is easier without installed panels. I had one experienced builder/vendor tell me that his go-karts look like a porcupine because he doesn't install most panels until he's completed his go-kart and tested his build. That made sense to me so I've purchased a few more clecos and I'm not permanently installing some panels during my build. It also makes some sense because I'm going to remove my firewall and replace it with a thicker .090 FW. So, I have to drill out my rivets. The thicker FW is one of those things I didn't think about until recently. I now have about 60 clecos.

I purchased a rivnut gun
Its great
http://www.blindrivetsupply.com/RN1.html

[Avalanche325]

I wouldn't worry about a pneumatic rivet gun myself. I would get a manual one with a swivel head.
The cheap cleco tool is fine. I did mine with 50 1/8" clecos. A couple 3/16" would be nice, but not really needed. You don't need to put a cleco in every single hole. They are just for alignment and mock-ups.

I drilled well over half of my holes with ONE 1/8 drill bit. Then somehow used a good dozen for the 2nd half. I don't know if it had anything to do with it, but that one drill bit (and clecos and tool) came from here. http://www.cokid.com/ The rest were from Home Depot. The cokid prices were better them aircraftspruce when I did mine three years ago.

Also, get a 90* drill adapter. Especially if you put the rear cockpit wall in before the trunk floor like the manual says.

You may want a Rivnut tool. The Harbor Freight tool is fine. Rivnuts are available a Mcmaster-Carr. I used quite a few in my build.

http://i1061.photobucket.com/albums/t474/Avalanche325/DSCN1955_zps62def88c.jpg (http://s1061.photobucket.com/user/Avalanche325/media/DSCN1955_zps62def88c.jpg.html)

Gearing up for the fun is part of the fun!

[pcww]

I have a mixed response on the rivet tool. Took the advice of Paul, "Edward B" and bought the Campbell Hausfield unit and it works great. Lost a little part and on advice of a known builder bought a cheap Harbor Freight gun and used the part to put in the Campbelll gun. Apparently absolutely interchangeable. Bottom line the pneumatic , in my opinion , makes a better and more predictable rivet. Would not consider any rivets on already powder coated panels without using pneumatic. Get one.
anything from Aircraft Spruce is quality. P. S. Do not buy thier rivnuts. Made for planes not cars.

[pcww]

another thought. Make sure you get at least one preferably two of the magnetic cups or trays from Harbor Freight to put the clecos in. Must have.

[bmcglone]

+1 on the Harbor Freight pneumatic rivet gun. I found 3/16" nearly impossible by hand and 1/8" in tight spaces can be tough as well.