The first rivets.

Well, among the other 9,483 things I’m doing for the first time on this model, rivets are one of them. With the wing drying from the latest primer coats, and the stab curing, I decided to experiment on rivets.

Our neighborhood literally full of housewives who are also nurses. I talked with one of them at the bus-stop the other morning and explained what I was trying to do, showing her a few pictures. I wasn’t sure what size needle I needed and she offered to bring me a few samples.

Well, I’ve been experimenting with different techniques and found that using a thicker craft clue (like Wellbond) or carpenter’s glue (like Tightbond) works very well. I originally tried regular Elmer’s, but the rivets looked like dried prunes instead of nice, rounded rivets.

So, using the tiniest of the needles (a 29 gauge), I found the combination I liked. Here you see the result of the first rivets. I used Tightbond and it works pretty well. Also, I can wash it out of the needle with a little work, so I can re-use it for the next application.