set steel tubular rivets

[esantoro]

What's the best way to set steel tubular rivets and caps? Hit the cap onto the tubular post, or hit the tubular post into the cap. All the presses seem to be set up so that you are pressing the post down into the cap, or if you are peening, you are pressing the post down onto the peening die?

Ed

[esantoro]

Do any of you think a tool like the following would work well in setting tubular and solid rivets in my briefcases?

http://www.hansonrivet.com/w82b.htm

ed

[Don101]

i hardly use them but looking at the picture of the setter it looks like a good tool, another way you could probbably set them is if you have a sturdy drill stand and just use it to conpress the rivets by putting a bar in the drill bit and lowering as if you were going to drill,

dont turn it on ...just kidding

[Hoyden]

I put them on my anvil and hit the cap into the post with a rivet setter and my mallet. That seems to work the best and they don't come undone either.

[MikeG]

I've set rivets & snaps with the ol' mallet & anvil, but I have been looking for a better way (I tend to either not get them tight enough or I bend them). I also don't like the way the finished top of the snaps I install show the mark from the stem, deforming the nice round head. I asked a fellow from Tandy, and he told me this was normal, and had no solution to prevent that.

Does anyone have any experience with the Standard setter or the Tandy model? Or is the mallet in fact the best way & I should forget the cost of a machine?

My thoughts so far:

Standard is expensive

Tandy is expensive and you have to buy a different head for everything

There is another machine called American Tag; don't know if it's a good tool or junk.

http://cgi.ebay.com/SETTER-TOOL-GROMMET-EY...1QQcmdZViewItem

Thanks for your comments.

[Beaverslayer]

Mike,

What I've done, is depending on the thickness of the leather I'm putting the snap into, I will cut a bit of the stud off. This keeps it from causing that deformation of the button.

Ken

[MikeG]

Thanks - I've been doing that with a Dremel cutoff tool, but perhaps I've just been a little too cautious about cutting too much off. I guess you also recommend using the mallet & anvil.

[pete]

I just use a pipe wrench with a piece of leather on each jaw and crimp it.I know that there are places where you can't do this but on places that are close to the edge it works fine and doesn't leave any marks.

[Beaverslayer]

Mike, yep I use a mallet and anvil. Also, I'll trial and error a few before I get the right length of cutting.

Ken

[esantoro]

Can you also snip the ends of the thicker (not Tandy) Jiffy rivets made in Belgium and sold by OTB, among others?

[Beaverslayer]

Ed, I'm not familiar with that rivet, but I have never had a problem with any of the rivets or snaps that I have used. My belief is, if it has a stud that has to be expanded to create the securing of the rivet or snap, the length is in most cases the length of the stud is made to accomodate more than one thickness of material. Thus, cutting it down to a shorter length will not harm or take away from the strength. Just be careful you don't cut off to much.

I will always do a few "Test" ones just to be sure.

Ken

[esantoro]

I just tried two. It seemed to work marvelously. I cut a 12 mm post down to either 11 or 10 with my edge cutters and didn't have to use a leather washer, and I didn't get a resulting crooked set.

Thanks, guys. Now I can use my 12mm posts for more applications and don't have to go out and buy the 10mm ones.

do these posts actually flare out into the cap head , or do they simply expand inside of the cap post, but not the head?