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Mechanical joining, soldering and fasteners · Lesson 3 of 4

Mechanical joining, soldering and fasteners: methods and worked application

A sequence from the sources for a riveted and soldered lap: clean, flux, tin, lap, rivet and solder from the wet side. Four worked examples size rivets by grip and lay out a seam.

You will be able to: Follow a documented sequence for a riveted and soldered lap, size a blind rivet from the stack thickness and its listed grip, set out a rivet row, and record every assumption, unit and inspection point.

14 min · 12 slides · 12 questions

All lessons in this module
Slide 1 of 12

A documented method

The flow below gathers the steps the sources in this module give for a riveted and soldered lap. It branches first: Galvalume and aluminum are not soldered.

Write down every assumption and unit on the job packet: metal, thickness and its source, solder, flux, rivet and grip, and the checks.

Riveted and soldered lap: sequence from the sourcesA vertical flow of eleven numbered steps with one decision. Read the spec; check metal and weight; then a decision: Galvalume or aluminum? If yes, do not solder: fasten and seal per the spec. If no: clean to bright metal, apply flux, pre-tin both faces, lap and screw it tight from its low end to its high end (Jenkins, writing for roof work), swap each screw for a rivet, solder from the wet side, an optional stitch pass, wash off the flux residue, and inspect the joint.1234567891011Read the specCheck metal and weightClean to bright metalApply fluxPre-tin both facesScrew lap, low end upSwap screws for rivetsSolder from wet sideStitch pass, optionalWash off flux residueInspect the jointGalvalumeor aluminum?noyesDo notsolder.Fasten, sealper specSequence from the sources, one seam

Eleven numbered steps from reading the spec to inspecting the joint, with a branch after checking the metal: Galvalume or aluminum is not soldered but fastened and sealed per the spec. Steps 6 and 7: screw the lap from its low end up, as Jenkins writes for roof work, then swap the screws for rivets.

1
Read the spec: joint type, metal and fastener. AFS holds no default fastener or splice (fabrication limits); owner standards can forbid methods (Duke)
2
Check the metal and weight: copper over 20 oz is outside the CDA soldered lap and soldered flat lock
3
Clean to bright metal mechanically; no sandpaper (Agans), no steel wool on copper (CDA)
4
Apply the flux the solder and sheet makers name; zinc chloride fluxes are corrosive (safety data sheet)
5
Pre-tin the soldering copper and both faces (Agans, Revere)
6
Lap tight and drive temporary self-drilling screws along it, low end to high end (Jenkins, writing for roof work: "from the bottom to the top")
7
Replace each screw with a rivet (#30 hole for a 1/8 in POP rivet, per the listing); the clamped sheets keep shavings out of the lap (Jenkins)
8
Solder from the wet side in one liquid pass, iron sized to the metal (Agans, Jenkins)
9
Optional stitch, or bridge, pass with the iron turned down (CDA and Stortz videos)
10
Wash off or neutralize the flux residue (Jenkins, Superior, Stortz)
11
Inspect the joint against the inspection card
A sequence gathered from the sources in this module, not an AFS procedure on record. Each step names its source in the legend.

Sources

Videos for this lesson

What this video shows: CDA shows tinning the soldering copper and the sheet: cleaning, marking, flux and solder.

Video: Tinning: Soldering Coppers and Sheet Copper by Copper Development Association, on YouTube. Chosen from the video's published description.

What this video shows: CDA, narrated by Larry Peters, shows soldering sheet copper lap seams that run vertically or on slopes over 3:12.

Video: How-To: Vertical Soldering, Lap Seam (Part 1, Tacking and Soldering) by Copper Development Association, on YouTube. Chosen from the video's published description.

Glossary

Soldering copper
A heavy copper-headed soldering tool heated by flame or electricity, sized by weight in pounds.
Sal ammoniac
A block the hot soldering copper is rubbed on while it is tinned.
Wet side
The weather side of a seam; Agans solders from it so solder flows into the joint and around the rivets.
Stitch (bridge)
A second bead of solder laid over a soldered seam with the iron turned down.