Boot Cowl Nutplates

[alaskabearhawk]

I made the formers for my boot cowl and now I want to add nutplates for the screws. Should I use 6-32 or 8-32 nutplates? There are 7 per side.

[bestbearhawk1231]

8-32s will add a bit of weight and stand out more once the paint has chipped off, but when I was working avionics, I had a lot better luck removing #8 phillips head screws than #6 without rounding them out. APEX bits and clover valve grinding compound help out tremendously on #6s but once they start to round out you better have a drill and ezy-out handy. Using a screw knocker on the screws on the way out helps prevent hogging out also. Strengthwise, #6s should be enough I would think. If you are looking to save weight, use the mini nutplates (MK), they can be a bit of a pain to rivet but will save weight. Also, you are less likely to be hogging out #6 screws if you use the plastic insert nutplates rather than the all steel nutplates. Not sure if this helped any.

[Battson]

I used #6 and they are a lot less visually obvious than the #8's I used elsewhere. Also they interfere with the doors less, as there will be an overlap. Use c/sunk heads.

If you are rounding the screw heads out (*unless they have been there for years / corroded*), then chances are you're over-tightening them, using the wrong screwdriver head shape for the screw, or you got the el-cheapo screws which aren't worth the 0.02c you paid and I rounded out all those ones too

[X'N]

Apex bits n lapping compound work well! I have a 20" Snap-on #2 screwdriver that has paid for itself 10 fold. The shaft kind of winds up and snaps em loose. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[alaskabearhawk]

Thanks for the info! I would like to use the nutplates with the nylon inserts but last time I checked they were around $5 a piece. I was more worried about the strength of a 6-32 fastener in that area and if it was adequate.