Question on Metal for Riveting Adjuster to Frog

[Stew Denton]

Hi All,

I am at it again, working on some of my old planes. One of them needs to have the horizontal adjuster arm riveted back onto the frog.

On that auction site there are rods that I can file into the right diameter. There are ones of brass, copper, and aluminum. My experience is that a steel rod or steel wire is usually too hard to rivet very easily.

I obtained an old brazing rod a few years ago, and filed it to fit, but it was hard enough that it was very difficult to rivet. Also, riveting on the thin cast iron of the frog makes me pretty nervous about using hard metal for a rivet.

Thus, it is a balance of if the rivet is tough enough for the adjuster to pivot on versus ease of riveting.

Thoughts?

Thanks and regards,

Stew

[William Fretwell]

The rivet should be so well supported underneath that the frog suffers very little. Steel would be an appropriate material. If you can not support the rivet underneath properly an aluminium rivet may suffice for a while, easily replaced if needed.

[Stew Denton]

William,

I use a big flat point chisel clamped in my bigger vise to support the underside of the rivet when peening the top of the rivet. Even so, it still makes me nervous to peen the top of the rivet with a ball peen hammer. I have never broken that part of the frog when riveting in a new rivet......YET.......but it still makes me nervous.

Stew

[Jim Koepke]

I use a big flat point chisel clamped in my bigger vise to support the underside of the rivet when peening the top of the rivet. Even so, it still makes me nervous to peen the top of the rivet with a ball peen hammer.

This is a similar set up:

Peening Set Up.jpg

If you can set up to drill into the end of the rod being used it may make it easier to peen the ends. If the rod fits snug, it won't take a lot of peening.

jtk