[TheForge] Rivets

[theforge@mailman.qth.net]

It must be 3 - 4 years ago now when I made a fairly long post to theforge about 
riveting on structural steel.  I worked as an ironworker in the early mid 50's around 
the southern end of Lake Michigan.

For a while I worked in a riveting gang which consisted of four people--the heater, a 
catcher, a bucker, and a driver.  All the rivets I worked on at the time were .75 dia  
by whatever length needed.  The heater would keep a half dozen or more rivets in 
his forge being heated and the catcher would hit his catch can with his pickup tongs 
indicating he wanted a rivet.  The heater would pitch the rivet up and the catcher 
would catch it in a funnel and put it in the hole with his pick up tongs.  The bucker 
would put the head of his bucking tool ( which was called a horse cock and usually 
had an offset head) on the rivet and the driver would drive a head on the rivet 
before it cooled too much.  

The riveting gang was set up on a "point"--a place where a beam is attached to a 
column.  There would be two "floats" (pieces of 3/4" plywood with 2 x 4 framing 
underneath that sticks out from the plywood and ropes are attached to the four 
corners.  These pieces of rope are lashed around the beam and the "float" is made 
horizontal and tied off.  The driver stands or kneels on one float and the bucker and 
catcher are on the other float.  Sometimes you just sit on the beams and work off of 
them.  Usually not though since this "point" might require maybe from 8 to 20 or 
more rivets and all the holes must be "good" before  any rivets are driven.  Barrel 
pins are driven into some of the holes to line the iron up and the point is bolted tight 
in some of the holes usually with an impact wrench.  As rivets go in bolts and pins 
come out until the "point" is all rivets.

The catcher's job is easiest since all he has to do it catch the rivets and put them in 
the hole.  The heater's job is also easy and no doubt the most skilled job in the 
gang.  The bucker and driver are earning their money.  Normally, the catcher, 
bucker, and driver change off during the day to split up the work.  Everyone gets 
paid the same.

When bolts came it seemed like it changed overnight where I was at.  Rivets one 
day and bolts the next with rivets never to be seen again. Riveting takes four guys 
in a gang and bolting up only takes two and you can stick more bolts in a day by far 
than rivets.  I'm sure that the change didn't take place the same way in all parts of 
the country and that rivets were probably used in the boilermaking and other trades 
for a lot longer than on structural steel.

If I remember, we had riveting guns that were called numbers 60, 70, 80, or 90--
getting larger as the numbers go up.  You don't want to use a number 90 since it will 
wear your ass out.  The riveting head (called a "snap") was actually loose but was 
held on with a piece of wire.  But it was possible to pull the trigger and shoot it off.  
Also inside the gun was a plunger that was loose and could also shoot off if not 
careful.  

I'd be in the market for a riveting gun of the smaller sizes if anyone knows where 
there might be any.  If fact I'm interested in any original riveting equipment (except 
a forge) as it used to be used.

Sorry for rambling on for so long.

Norm Larson