Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

1941 - 1945, MB, GPW Technical questions and discussions, regarding anything related to the WWII jeep.
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pittsjock
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by pittsjock » Sat Aug 15, 2015 2:18 pm

Thank you. I designed the tool and had a friend with a full machine shop make it for me.

It is self-contained - no other clamps required. Insert rivet from inside the frame, place the tool into the c-channel and put the rivet head in the recess on the tool and hand tighten. Once the rivet head is in place, the tool will stay in place so you just tighten with a ratchet and allen driver. With everything tight on the inside, make sure the gusset/shackle is clamped to the frame tight. Heat rivet to welding temp (white hot & even sparking with neutral flame) and hit it with the rivet gun for 2-4 seconds. You will get a mushroom. Reheat and repeat. By the 4th heating, you should be very close. I used a piece of shim stock to make sure the rivet was formed all the way to the frame and called it a day. Just be careful as the bucking tool is a lot of steel and works as a great heat sink - it is extremely hot after bucking a rivet!

As I mentioned in the PM, I am talking to some local machine shops to get a few of these made for other sick souls. ;-) One other thing is I am going to get the Big Flats rivet set remade to match the Willys rivet. I may get ambitious enough to get a Ford style made as well.

Regards, Patrick
Last edited by pittsjock on Sat Aug 15, 2015 2:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Patrick
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Niblet
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Niblet » Sat Aug 15, 2015 2:24 pm

Awesome Sauce,,,pencil me in for one!
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by JAB » Sat Aug 15, 2015 7:02 pm

Nice work and nice results!!!!

I don't want to go too far off on a tangent here, but.......I was looking at my passenger seat frames and noticed that some are riveted at the hinge and others are bolted. I even have one seat frame where one hinge is bolted and the other has a rivet. I can only assume that rivets were original and when they wore out they were replaced with bolts, but I'm not sure. Is this another rivet application that many of us overlook?
-Jeff

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Niblet
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Niblet » Mon Nov 16, 2015 11:11 am

Patrick, did you ever get any of the bucking tools made? I am almost ready to rivet myself
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gentrysgarage
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by gentrysgarage » Sun Feb 21, 2016 7:38 am

I am also interested in one. Thanks Hinrik for an imformative thread!
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Old Pal » Wed Mar 09, 2016 8:32 pm

Commercial portable rivet press.

I wonder if this could be adapted. I don't know the dimensions or the capacity.

http://youtu.be/ojKPjMUohIM

http://www.car-o-liner.com/products/joi ... ivet-tool/

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Viking27 » Sun Mar 13, 2016 3:33 pm

Great to see guys sharing different ideas and coming up with solutions.
Wonder how much that Car-o-Liner rig costs? Cant be cheap....

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by 54WYLLYSJEEP » Fri May 04, 2018 9:29 pm

Viking27 wrote:
Wed Jul 16, 2014 6:24 pm
Old Pal,

In those 2 location you need to use 3/8 BOM rivets.

Reg

Hinrik
Hinrik

A question on the BOM rivets they are of course 3/8 but would they be these? BOM-R12-6 as the length is important since we aren't riveting thick material.

If you have any insight it would be greatly appreciated.

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Old Pal » Fri Jun 08, 2018 5:19 am

You'll need two different length BOM rivets; one for the frame rail and a different length for the spring mounts. I'll post BOM numbers later today.

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Old Pal » Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:02 pm

54WYLLYSJEEP wrote:
Fri May 04, 2018 9:29 pm
Viking27 wrote:
Wed Jul 16, 2014 6:24 pm
Old Pal,

In those 2 location you need to use 3/8 BOM rivets.

Reg

Hinrik
Hinrik

A question on the BOM rivets they are of course 3/8 but would they be these? BOM-R12-6 as the length is important since we aren't riveting thick material.

If you have any insight it would be greatly appreciated.
I used BOM-12-8 for the 3/8” and mostly BOM-10-4 for the 5/16 except where I had to rivet three layers together at the front spring mounts. There I used BOM-10-6. It’s good to get a little extra just in case because the tool is very expensive to rent. I don’t have enough to do a full frame but I do have extra if you run short.

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by 54WYLLYSJEEP » Thu Jul 26, 2018 5:51 pm

Old Pal wrote:
Sun Jun 17, 2018 2:02 pm
54WYLLYSJEEP wrote:
Fri May 04, 2018 9:29 pm
Viking27 wrote:
Wed Jul 16, 2014 6:24 pm
Old Pal,

In those 2 location you need to use 3/8 BOM rivets.

Reg

Hinrik
Hinrik

A question on the BOM rivets they are of course 3/8 but would they be these? BOM-R12-6 as the length is important since we aren't riveting thick material.

If you have any insight it would be greatly appreciated.
I used BOM-12-8 for the 3/8” and mostly BOM-10-4 for the 5/16 except where I had to rivet three layers together at the front spring mounts. There I used BOM-10-6. It’s good to get a little extra just in case because the tool is very expensive to rent. I don’t have enough to do a full frame but I do have extra if you run short.

I was able to get it done. I did get some rivets that did work great. I tested it before I did it to the frame.
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Old Pal
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Old Pal » Fri Jul 27, 2018 5:28 am

Looks great!

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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by vajeepin » Sun May 19, 2019 1:11 pm

pittsjock wrote:
Sat Aug 15, 2015 1:30 pm
Niblet wrote:Pittsjock,
so you used a traditional rivet gun ? how did you squeeze the shackle rivets?
could you post a picture of the gun and rivet set you used please?
Niblet:

Here are the tools: 15x rivet gun purchased off of Ebay for a little less than $200, homemade bucking tool, rivet set for gun from Big Flats Rivet Co. (in rivet gun). I already owned an air compressor & oxy-acetylene torch.
Tools.jpg

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but I'm at the research stage for riveting my frame. I browsed eBay but couldn't find that particular rivet gun. Lots of 3x and 4x guns. Do you by chance have a make or model of your gun that I can chase down?
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by Niblet » Sun May 19, 2019 1:48 pm

I have everything and more to rivet your frame
I spent hrs, days and weeks and 500 dollars of my own money to fabricate a suitable bucking bar
I got rivets, dies, you name it
but a 4x gun will work
I had this massive 15× I was using and was bending metal
email me and give me your number I can text/call with some info
1945 Willys MB
DOD 3-10-45
HN 20691353
SN 424804
My Restoration thread <a href=http://g503.com/forums/viewtopi ... >Here</a>

minniethejeep
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Re: Ford GPW frame riveting instructions

Post by minniethejeep » Fri May 15, 2020 6:13 am

Another option if you don't have access to the various engineering equipment, facilities, limited space, cash, etc or if you only need to replace a couple of rivets is to take a 3/8-24 x 1" or 1 1/8" long. Grind the head into the right shape (most bolt heads are the same depth). Grind flats on the last 1/4" of thread just removing the threads. This leaves the bolt end 1/4" thick to get a 1/4" open end spanner on.
Coat the bolt in thread lock also a full nut. Wind the nut up as much as you can with your fingers, then put a ring spanner (swan necks are best) on the nut and then your 1/4" open end spanner on the flats you ground and tighten. Once painted they look fine. Obviously if someone wants to crawl under and look inside the frame it doesn't look right but it's a solution.
For the blind rivets, if I remember rightly, the holes are 5/16". Whatever it is, measure the thickness of the materials you're going through, remembering the gaps will close up. Add on the thickness of a nut plus about another 1/4". Cut the bolt you're using to this length. I used the fine threads again. Put the bolt through from the inside of the frame, wind the nut on and tighten. Use a magic marker or something similar to see where the top of the nut comes level with the thread. Take the bolt back out and grind or file the threads off down to the level of the nut. Grind/ file the nut so it's round. Coat the bolt and nut with thread lock and put them in. Put your spanner or socket on the nut and use a pair vice grips on the rounded nut. Don't worry about marks on the nut, many of the blind rivets are nicked. Use a hacksaw to cut the excess bolt off just above the level of the nut. Again, once painted, they look good.
I looked at the blind rivets on my GPW and very few were the same, so don't worry about slight differences in excess bolt.
Eric Corfield, England.
GPW #239370
Body mid series Willys
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