Australian tool... you thought I was going to say DrifterDriver, didn't you?

For anyone who's longed for a better tool for sheet metal cutting, I found this today: The CaNibble. Question: Is this a revolutionary product? Not necessarily the nibbler punch head, but the power-it-with-your-own-drill-motor style. The video below is pretty funny... beware DANGEROUS TOOLS!

I've got one identical to it but mine is blue and sold by Bull Dog. I've had it for 10 years. It came in handy a few times when building the Bearhawk, mostly for getting into tight places where other tools wouldn't fit.

The neatest tool, if you can find one is called a Winslow gun. Makes installing nut plates much faster and easier.

I have an electric nibbler made by Bosch. Easy to use, works good. I have been using it for many years. Droppings are small and sharp. I am usually outside using mine so I put sown a tarp or piece of large cardboard for easier cleanup.
Gary

I have a few nibblers of different sizes. I like air power. You can make cardboard templates to make perfect cuts. It is a great way to handle corrugated materials as well.

A large size is nice to have to avoid setting up a plasma torch. One of mine will handle 14g crs or worse. I have a palm sized unit for .040 alum or lighter as well, with a .080 kerf.

Air units can be had really reasonably as well compared to electric.

blackrock wrote:
The neatest tool, if you can find one is called a Winslow gun. Makes installing nut plates much faster and easier.

(off topic, addressing an alternate to the Winslow tool for nut plates)

FWIW, I found that a machine screw glued into a short length of 1/4 or 3/8 bushing stock (phenolic or aluminum) can make the nutplate process faster, but on a cheapskate budget. It can fit into a tight area where you couldn't use a cleco through the nut plate screw hole.

You cut the bushing length so that only three threads of the machine screw are exposed. Drill the hole where you want the nut plate screw to go. Insert the tool through the back side, leaving just one or two threads sticking out of the skin on the front side. You only want there to be enough threads outside the skin to engage the threaded hole in the nut plate, but not enough so that the screw gets into the self-locking feature of the nut plate (nylon insert, oval hole, crimp, etc.).

Screw the nut plate onto these two threads (from the incorrect, outer side of the skin), spin the nut plate into the correct position, and then tighten the screw tool using the bushing piece as a finger knob (this is the reason for the glue )

Now you can drill one of the rivet holes using the nut plate as a guide, knowing that the screw is holding the nut plate at exactly the right spacing.

Now put one AN rivet through the nut plate and also through the skin. (on larger size nut plates you can use a Cleco, on smaller ones you have to "pin" it with a rivet). If you need both hands on the drill for precision work, then just tape the rivet into position instead of holding it with your finger.

Now you can drill the final rivet hole with 100% confidence that you have all the holes aligned, and that the screw will be perfectly centered in the hole after you buck or squeeze the rivets.

Remove the nut plate, tape, rivet, Cleco if used, and the screw tool. Now de-burr and vacuum all the shavings, prime as desired, and install your nut plate on the inside of the skin.

From my limited experience, I highly recommend the use of "riveter's tape" to place both rivets into position before squeezing or bucking the first rivet. If you don't, this sh*t always moves around a little when the rivet expands and the second rivet often doesn't want to go in.

That thing looks extremely handy, based on my recollection of building.

shortfielder wrote:I have an electric nibbler made by Bosch. Easy to use, works good. I have been using it for many years. Droppings are small and sharp. I am usually outside using mine so I put sown a tarp or piece of large cardboard for easier cleanup.
Gary

Bosch power tools are really nice, I have one of their small routers. But they are not cheap.

When I first saw this post, my mind pronounced the tool name cah-NIBB-uhl After seeing the video, I now understand the reason for their pronunciation, but I can't stop thinking my way sounds better!!

To quote Austin Powers: " I put the em-FASS-iss on the wrong sil-AH-bull"...or something like that