frager14

I am building a sig extra kit and I installed blind nuts for the engine mount that came with it but I was drilling the holes in it and it broke. I thought I'd use another mount I had lying around but it need new holes drilled in the firewall and new blind nuts. Any ideas on what to do?

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

This comes up a lot with ARFs that have blindnuts pre-installed. I just thread the appropriate screw/bolt into the nut, knock it a few times with a small hammer, and the nut pops out with no damage anywhere. If you want to shift your engine mounting holes, I plug the wrong holes with a short length of dowel and CA it in place. Usually later on I will epoxy the surface of the firewall anyway. Drill your new holes, install your blindnuts in the right place, and move on.

BTW, if you have not installed blindnuts before, you drill a hole same size as the barrel of the blindnut. If your fuselage interior is too small to reach into, you can slip the blindnut onto a length of steel pushrod with a small ell at one end to hold the blindnut. Slip the pushrod into your firewall hole, pull the blindnut up to the hole, wiggle it around to coax the barrel of the blindnut into the hole. Slip out the pushrod, and get a piece of dowel or whatever to help hold the blindnut in place. Gently, thread the screw in from the front, engage the thread, turn it all the way tight and the screw will pull the blindnut into the hole, seating the teeth on the inside surface. Once it's well seated, I drip a little CA between the barrel and the firewall hole to help it stay put.

sbd-5

My Feedback: (4)

using a washer under the head of the screw while seating the blind nut ensures that the blind nut is being pulled into the wood and not the screw head

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

If the blind nuts have been epoxied in behind the firewall, heat up a soldering iron and insert it into each blind nut from the front of the firewall. After a few seconds, the blind nut will fall right out. I discovered this trick by accident one day.

frager14

I used CA to glue them in. Would the soldering trick still work?

majortom-RCU

My Feedback: (40)

CA cures to a fairly brittle bond, as opposed to epoxy which will stretch a bit before it pops. Heat will soften the epoxy, but not have that much effect on CA. Sharp knocks on a screw threaded into the blind nut should pop them out with no problem.

cwrr5

My Feedback: (32)

How in the world would you discover that by accident!?!?
(good idea! filed for future reference) [sm=thumbup.gif]

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

My bad. I take it back. I didn't discover this one by accident. However, I didn't think it would work the first time I tried it, but it worked like a charm.

Blue_Moon_

when he was sleep walking one night, and thought he was playing with his wife. he pluged the soldering iron into "the hole", and by accident the nuts came loose

Richard L.

My Feedback: (24)

You got me, hehe

rcamp

Give the blind nuts a white tipped cane and they'll find their own way out.

horace315

My Feedback: (15)

just use a seeing eye screw............................i always get them out by what was said here screw the right size screw in and tap them out.

D Bronk

I usually just push them out of the plane ,but it really scares the HELL out of the dog,on the way down ...... DAVE B.

D Bronk

Oh yeah DON`t be cruel ..GIVE them BOTH, a PARACHUTE(be kind to animals)...D.B.

arthurfuxake

An excellent way to remove blind nuts without the hammer is shown on the following web page...

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/to...uts-blind-nuts

Works a treat!