Broadcast - 26 July 2026
Following Eric VK7ZPE’s recent Technical Night display of his brand-new Rivnut set, a number of club members have since shared their own stories about acquiring similar tools and the sheer convenience they’ve brought to project construction.
Back in the 1980s, Adelaide hosted excellent Electronics Trade Expos, and it was at one of these that André VK7ZAB discovered his Nutsert tool. The Avdel stand was showing off this new “must have” device, and that very unit made an appearance at our most recent Technical Night.
Roger VK7ARN added his own tale. He first came across nut‑rivets and the associated tools while on holiday “back in the old country” about thirty years ago. After buying Land Rover accessories, the sort not available in Australia at the time, he discovered that the approved method of fitting some of them involved nut-rivets, a fastening system he’d never seen in local tool shops.
You may not have seen Roger’s Land Rover, but anyone involved with WICEN or Safety Comms will know he has a reputation for putting things in boxes, especially radios. Rivnuts have played a major role in many of those projects, usually to secure an aluminium plate in the base of the enclosure on which the radio and ancillaries are mounted. The plate is fixed firmly in place via nut-rivets.
These fasteners are now commonly known under two generic names: Rivnut (rivet-nut) and Nutsert (nut-insert).
Both do the same job. They put a strong, reliable thread into sheet metal where there simply isn’t enough thickness to tap a thread. They effectively secure a nut to the material, spreading load and stress far better than a plain sheet‑metal screw or self-tapper ever could.
The advantages are many: durability, strength, repeatability, and a fastening that can be undone and redone without degrading. There’s even a medical advantage, no sharp self-tapper or tek-screw tip poking out the other side waiting to shred your hand.
And of course, think of the number of times you’ve fumbled around trying to align a washer and nut in some awkward, almost unreachable position while inserting a bolt. Nutserts eliminate all of that.
Not to mention, the finished job looks neat and aesthetically pleasing, to those of us who care about such things.
Follow the link in the text version of this broadcast for an excellent rundown on selection and use: Rivnuts & Nutserts
UPCOMING EVENTS
CW course - Every Wednesday night, on 3.580 MHz from 7 to 7.30 pm. Your CW Coach for the evening is Nic, VK7WW.
On Air Test and Technical gathering - Wednesday nights, on 3.567 MHz from 7.30 pm.
Club Room Technical night - The next session will be Wednesday the 5th August and will commence at the usual time of 6.30 pm at the Club Room Archer Street, Rocherlea.
Coffee Morning - Held every Friday in the NTARC Club rooms. Time is from 10 am to noon.
Club General Meeting - Saturday 8th August at 2:00 pm. Held at the NTARC Club Room, Rocherlea Scout Hall, Archer Street, Rocherlea. If you have items you would like added to the agenda please email the secretary at: secretary@ntarc.net no later than Friday the 7th August.
Finally - If you have any items of news please email them to the Secretary at the following address news@ntarc.net all items to be received no later than 5 pm on the Friday prior to the Broadcast.
That’s all folks,
73, Stefan VK7ZSB.
