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use rivets to attach skid??

O

outlander

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Columbus,Ohio
I'm fabbing up a gas tank skid and trying to figure out a way to secure it to the frame rails.I do not have nut serts inside the frame rails and I dont want to remove my rear bumper to install them.

I was going to drill holes and weld nuts to the frame but am worried about going boom:flame:

So I'm thinking about using rivets to attach the skid to the frame rails but I question the strength of doing this....

fighter planes are riveted so why wouldn't it be good enough for my skid that see's at the most 5 g's:roflmao:

will rivets do the job fine?Any recommendations on size/type?
 
I used steel aircraft rated pop rivets to attach the brackets of my rock rails to the sheet metal, but you rarely ever need to take them off. A skid is another matter. In my application the force of impact and use is not applied against the rivets. They simply hold it up and snug to the sheetmetal. A skid plate can have tremendous shear loads. Steel nutserts properly installed would be fine, but pop rivets don't have the diameter needed.
 
I would just drill holes, grind the edges off a bolt head to make it round to fit inside the hole. Weld the head of the bolt into the hole.
Use short 1" bolts.
Now you have threaded studs below the frame rails. Use nuts to secure the skid onto the studs.

Its hard to weld nuts into the frame, because spatter gets in the threads and the nut is often crooked.

You can weld near the tank, just be carefult and put a protective shield between the arc and the tank. A wet towel or something.
 
barillms said:
I would just drill holes, grind the edges off a bolt head to make it round to fit inside the hole. Weld the head of the bolt into the hole.
Use short 1" bolts.
Now you have threaded studs below the frame rails. Use nuts to secure the skid onto the studs.

Its hard to weld nuts into the frame, because spatter gets in the threads and the nut is often crooked.
Click to expand...

Or just weld nuts to washers and then weld the washers to the frame (with the nut on top/inside the frame). That is what I did for my tcase skidplate when the nutsert stripped out.
 
thanks,guys...appreciate it.
looks like rivets are not a viable option....
looks like I need to put my purse down and grab the welder!!! it scares the shit out of me welding near the tank...I've done it before but I was in full pucker mode!!!
 
Get some flat stock. Drill holes in it to match the holes in the frame rail, weld nuts over the holes you just drilled in the flat stock. Remove your bumper (it's not hard-only 8 bolts) and insert your new home made nut strips inside the frame rail and line the bolts up with the holes in the frame rail. Securely attach your skid plate. No welding near the gas tank required.
 
Ralph said:
Get some flat stock. Drill holes in it to match the holes in the frame rail, weld nuts over the holes you just drilled in the flat stock. Remove your bumper (it's not hard-only 8 bolts) and insert your new home made nut strips inside the frame rail and line the bolts up with the holes in the frame rail. Securely attach your skid plate. No welding near the gas tank required.
Click to expand...

You can do the same as Ralph described but instead of nuts on the flat stock weld the 1" bolts mentioned earlier. That way you end up with "boltserts" and it is easier to control while bolting the skid in place. Just my 2 cents worth.
 
I'm all for building before buying, but I just don't see homemade nutstrips, or boltstrips, as worth the time...

I'd just go drop the dime on a nice, square set that fits the rails and factory holes perfectly.

In fact, I did...

Robert
 
Pull the bumper and install the "boltserts". In the future, you will be glad you did it.
 
Fastenal has all different sizes of nutserts. They are the crush type that insert into the drilled hole, and you hold them flush while tightening the bolt so the backside crushes flat. Then, SHAZAM!, you got a threaded hole. I used em to mount my Hanson rocker skids. You do have to be extra careful while drilling the hole. Any wobble or angle with the drill bit and the nutsert will spin when you try to tighten the bolt while mounting your skid. Jer
 
See, that seems to me like it would concentrate a lot of force on that small point. Sandwiching the "framerail" between the skid and the nutstrip seems like a better idea to me...

But what do I know?

Robert
 
I'd pull the bumper but Its a heavy duty 3/16" bumper with tire swing that I fabbed up and weighs over 100lbs and is attached to the rear in the stock mounting location(8 bolts) aswell as strips that run from the bottom of the bumper to the bottom of the frame rails using above mentioned self fabbed nutserts(6 bolts) inserted into frame sandwiched bettween tow hooks....pita to remove..thats why I dont want to drop it.Not to mention the wires for my backup floods,liscense plate light and cb antenna coax....

 
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