Spare Tire Tub

[Dan L.]

What type rivits are used on the spare tire tub? I searched but couldn't find if they were a GM type or just a regular pop rivet. Anyone have a pic, inside and out? The tub we have is a gray fiberglass, little or no black, except for some black paint, is that correct? Thanks.....

'70 Conv. 350/350 W/AC

[Michael G.]

Re: Spare Tire Tub

Dan,
I'm unable to post pictuers, but the rivets are NOT the POP type. I purchased mine from aftermarket supplier (many have them) and they appear very close to originals. I also purchased a rivet tip for my air-impact hammer to get the proper peening,(is that a word). The black paint is a overspray of the "black-out" or undercoating from the factory. Mike

[Chuck S.]

Re: Spare Tire Tub

What type rivits are used on the spare tire tub? I searched but couldn't find if they were a GM type or just a regular pop rivet. Anyone have a pic, inside and out? The tub we have is a gray fiberglass, little or no black, except for some black paint, is that correct? Thanks.....

'70 Conv. 350/350 W/AC

Original tubs MAY have black overspray on the outside, but the tub fiberglass for 70 is black. Sometimes it's called "dark charcoal gray", but it's still black, and not the lighter gray that GM used later. Your tub was probably replaced along the way.

For judging, or originality, you'll need to find a used tub at a swap meet or at "Corvettes At Carlise" in August. If the tub you find has an embedded date tag, make sure the date will work with your build date, or find one with no date tag.

The rivets used were soft aluminum, and can be hand peened with a hammer and a heavy back-up tool like a 3 pound sledge or a large steel bar. There is no need to buy special tools for this small job. Have a helper to hold the back-up tool firmly against the head side, as you peen the shank.

The rivet head goes on the fiberglass side, and the rivet shank is peened on the steel support side. MAKE SURE you use the proper length shank; you can determine the shank length, as well as buy the rivets, on Dr. Rebuild's catalog or website. Look up the rivet part number on the AIM page, find the proper length from the Doc Rebuild table, then cut the shank length to fit the application.