Riveting

Probably a totally stupid question, but here goes...!

When riveting in something like, for example, a smokebox tubeplate, is it normal practice to rivet all the way around the perimeter in one 'bash', or would you put in a rivet at say top, right, bottom and then left and then 'fill in the gaps'?

Just wondering whether doing it a particular way would result in stresses in particular areas of the tubeplate?

Many thanks.

 

It's an interesting question which I personally can't answer. However, I suspect that there isn't a right and a wrong way, just personal preference handed down over the years. It is the same with expanding tubes. There is supposedly an order in which these should be expanded to minimise/even out stresses. I have in front of me two BR diagrams showing the order of expanding tubes, both different. The HRA guidance notes on tubing (http://ukhrail.uel.ac.uk/hra/guidelines ... oilers.pdf) gives three different methods each having their own order of expansion and these are different from the two BR ones I have.
Having taken it off topic, back to riveting. if I was riveting up a tubeplate, I'd have every other hole bolted up tight and work my way round the tubeplate doing every other hole then remove the bolts and fill in the gaps. I've seen a tubeplate riveted up by a respected professional boilermaker where he has gone around the perimeter 'in one bash' removing the few bolts he had put in as he came to them.
I'm interested to read other peoples ideas and opinions.

 

For riveting smokeboxes and alike I assume it will be

bolt - hole for rivet - bolt -hole for rivet - bolt - hole for rivet -...........

Once the rivets are in place, the bolts will be removed and the remaining holes are riveted.

Take a look at SHM fotopic and look for 6513 in "more collections" In the collection from 2006 & 2007 you wil find pictures of the building of the riveted frame.

 

Here you can see the nuts/bolts placed "on and off"



Here the first set of rivets is in place and the origanal nuts and bolts are removed



Putting in the second set of rivets







The pictures will be in the "NS 6513" item later on. The building of the frame was mainly done in 2007



This was the state of the rebuild on 15-11-2008, with on the left the new frame and on the right the old frame (but with a new boiler)



Here the new frame and boiler together later that day

 

Thank you for your responses gents, most helpful. That's quite some overhaul you've got going on there Paul...!

 

Not looked in here for a while, but maybe this will help if not too late.


Four bolts to hold it in place, ream to final size bolting every other hole as you go. Rivet round once. Remove bolts, and rivet round again.
We put the bolts in really tight, (I mean flogged up tight) but you could still hear the plates creaking up even tighter as the rivets cooled!!