Aluminum boat rivets

[Matt Vanderpan]

I have an old 14 Aluminum boat that has a couple leaky rivets.... 6-7 are the bad ones. The rivets are not to the point where they are ready to fall out but they do leak. Is it feasible to pound on them a bit to tighten them up or would I be better off replacing them?

 

[Charlie S and Titan]

If you can access both sides, it is worth a try. I did that with an old starcraft I fixed up. All you need is a ball peen hammer and a chunk of steel to act as a bucking bar. That and a friend to help you if you can't reach both at the same time...

 

[Lou Tisch]

Sometimes you can re-set the rivets. I prefer using a pneumatic hammer gun/chisel gun (not that expensive at Harbor Freight) with the proper tool in it that fits the rivet head on the outside of the boat. Buck it inside with a solid piece of steel.
The problem can be that the rivet is work hardened when originally set and it might not re-set properly for you but it's worth a try.
If that doesn't work, use the chisel and cut the rivet off, redrill the hole to true it up and install a new rivet. You can find all the stuff at Jay-Cee Rivets
http://www.rivetsinstock.com/ They are about a half hour from us and I've used them for several years.
Holler with more questions.
Lou