Richie's Mk1 Restoration

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by ajmac

Lets face it Rivets are so 19th century! Welding rules, british industry just wasn't forward thinking, the T16 showed the way and in the end the UC was welded too. From a restoration point of view rivets do offer an easier route, putting new armour on a welded carrier and having the welds look factory would be more difficult I imagine.

Rivets are superior to bolts, because they swell in the holes and stop any movement between the two parts, if bolted, to get the same rigidity, the holes would have to be reamed to fit the bolts. This was why chassis repairs on lorries, where a riveted spring hanger had to be changed, had to have the holes reamed for special bolts if hot riveting was not possible (I know, been there years ago).