Sickle Rivet Length

[eye4iron]

I was installing some sickle section blades with the hammer/anvil method. My question is;
Is there a rule of thumb for the rivet length? How much of the rivet is supposed to be above the section before pounding it with a hammer?

 

[Bob]

WHY not just tell us what you are working with, or check it out yourself and see what the parts catalog for whatever you are working with calls for?

That's why those Injun Ears make the BIG bucks, "spec.ing" out what works best with what they've created!

 

[Squisher]

If it's the right rivet it should be inserted all the way through the bar and knife and then mushroomed out by pounding.

 

[SVcummins]

If they?re to long they are hard to clench usually the shorter the better you don?t need much sticking above the section

 

[showcrop]

When I used to use those I had long ones for the near end where the knife bar attached to the bar out of the wobble box. Then there were all the rest. They stuck out a little less than 1/4 inch if I remember correctly. I had a tool that squeezed them down that enables you to replace a section in the field.

 

[Dave51B]

The blacksmith rule of thumb is ......1 1/2 rivet diameter protrusion for a head. Example.....1/4" rivet = 3/8" protrusion to form a proper head.

 

[jCarroll]

I like Dave51B's rule.
Do you use a rivet set, or peen the rivet head, or just smash it?
All 3 ways work, the grass don't care.

It's my observation that modern rivets are a touch smaller in diameter
than those of 50 years ago. Takes more setting to get a tight rivet.

 

[Case Nutty 1660]

If you are still using rivets and have many to do a rivet vise is well worth the 50 bucks or so they cost,, and it makes a factory rivet but I have done hundreds of them with just a hammer also lol
cnt

 

[PJH]

I use 5/8" rivets on the regular sections on my NH 451 mower. Longer ones are obviously needed on the head sections, but I can't remember the exact length of them. The rivet should swell to fill the hole in addition to having enough meat to make a head.

 

[300guy]

You really should use a rivet set. They are not expensive and when you hammer on the rivet set, it causes the rivet to swell in the hole and then it forms a really good head. I tried to use the peen part of a ball peen hammer to set the rivet and the knives would come loose after just a few hours of using it. Rivets today are smaller than they were many years ago and hammering them does not cause the rivet to swell up. That's why the rivet set is so important. Better yet, use bolts which is way better then rivets. But you have to change the hold down clips to make room for the bolt heads.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

Also the newer rivets don't spread out as well as the older one.

 

[showcrop]

(quoted from post at 05:04:38 05/25/18) Also the newer rivets don't spread out as well as the older one.

Its not the rivets it the new Chinese hammers. You can't hit anything hard with them.