I feel like this is about to become a solution in search for a problem for me. Extremely elegant.

I wouldn't consider rivet nuts expensive, especially considering the time savings . I do appreciate your approach, it's valid and a useful option to have. Your video was entertaining, informative and easy to follow.

Hi Jer, great idea, as a welder I would advise using unplated nuts, the arc will strike better and you'll get better penetration into the nut, thank you for your videos, your content is always very interesting.

Forget the rivet nuts, this is a diy solution, well done.

Excellent process! Added this right to my specialty skill toolbox.

Great solution! I just put out a similar video that solves the same problem in a little bit different of a way…and boy, oh boy were the rivnut fans unhappy about it! Great job!

Can't wait to see the upcoming project.

if you want an even sturdier solution weld the nut onto a piece of flatbar, then plug weld the flat bar in similar fashion. The nut could be welded full circumference (much stronger) and you can use multiple plug welds on the flat bar distributing the torque along a great surface area.

I can see numerous times this will come in handy

Your level of ingenuity never ceases to amaze me. Well done. Looking forward to the video on this 'upcoming' project.

Young man you did a great job demonstrating your idea on the thin wall square tube. I only wish you the best of luck. You seem smart and willing to work but most importantly you are a thinker, not willing to give up and always willing to figure things out. Thanks for sharing. I wish more young people could learn some lessons from you!!

Very ingenious, the way you improvised a way to position the nuts and then weld them throughout the inside length of a long tube. Very impressive. Thanks for the ideas.

You make simple things complicated, blind rivet is the key

Fantastic tip that I must remember when the situation calls for it. Thank you!!!!

Clever. The threads sheared on my cheap riv-nut tool, so I bought a quality one and it wasn't cheap. Also manually swaging a large number of riv-nuts can be tiring, so definitely gonna keep this method in mind.

Thanks for demonstrating this solution outside of your project video. I'll look forward to seeing this in a project.

If one does not have access to expensive metal working equipment (i.e. welders, lathe, etc) try a bit of grease on the threads and JB WELD on the face of a flange nut. Use a bolt and jam nut to pull the inside nut tight against the inside surface (tight enough for the flange serrations to indent the metal) and leave for 24 hours. It is not as strong as welding but it is another alternative (that works with dissimilar metals ... example: Steel nut and Aluminum tube).

Very cool idea! If the thing you are making is going outside make sure to antiseize the bolts. Nothing sucks more than a captive nut coming loose inside a boxed in thing during disassembly

I like that you showed several ways of acheiving this and your "posh" version at the end, a very cool little system Thanks for sharing

Going straight to the playlist of clever stuff

Not bad, Herr Schmidt! See me impressed.

Nice idea! FYI you can get Rout-a-Burr bits with a hook shape for deburring inside walls - and they work just fine. I also recommend using integral-flange nuts - they spread out the load more and also give you more material to weld to.

Thanks for sharing this smart work around Jer 👍🏼, big thank you from South Africa

Thanks Jer….. I need to do something like this for a bike rack I have in mind. Thin walled .060 steel square tubing and I thought there’s no way to do this. Yours was the first hit. Great idea and I think I can make this work. Cheers!

GENIUS! A solid carbide spade bit is made to drill thin steel. I haven't tried it yet but it is said to leave a burr-free hole on the back side. It is the go-to drill bit for custom-built handsaws.

What a innovative idea. Now I need to find a use for this.

Apparently most commenters just want to buy a solution (rivnut, etc.) rather than create one. I'm not sure if that's because they have too-much money or too-little ambition (or creativity). The least-impressive ones pretend to be economists engaging in cost-benefit analysis ("time is money," "a rivnut tool is cheaper than a welder," etc.). Their merely-commercial attitude leaves me cold, but your approach to this resonates with every (well, most) fiber in my being. It's the way I was raised, the way I watched my father approach his own work (personal and professional), and the way my best friends pursue theirs. And it leads to growth and dignity in other aspects of life as well. Do it yourself, and then share what you've done with others. Thanks for both the doing and the sharing.

Nut plates, or flush mount t-nuts would make this operation easier. Having a flange means you won’t need to reach in through the hole, so can use tig (I don’t have mig) or just flush rivets. Regarding rivnuts: they don’t sit flush (at least the one I have do not). Jer, I have enjoyed your videos for years (bought multiple plans from you and built your grinder). Am so happy you are now posting more frequently!! Keep’em coming!

Harbor freight sells this pop rivet type tool that instead of rivets, it fastens threaded inserts into thin-walled metal like your tubing here. I bought one years ago and have never had a cause to use it yet, but it might work beautifully for this situation. However, your method was brilliant to be able to weld a nut inside a tube like this, inconspicuously cover your tracks, while not getting a speck of weld into the interior threads! You always impress me with your brilliance Jeremy :-)

Necessity is the mother of invention, that will never change. Very cool man.

Love seeing this guy's diy projects. What a great and talented young man!

Turning the nut on the lathe was really cool.

Always a good day when you post. I had to do something similar a while back and I just cut the tube in half then welded it back together. As usual your craftsmanship surpasses my brute strength methods.

Very creative method you came up with. I enjoyed watching your work flow to a solution. Thanks for sharing that with us.

Brilliant idea!!! Lathing the shoulder on the nut even better, well done

Thanks Jer, the screen flash warnings were really useful for me! I really appreciate you adding them.

Great video there! I liked how you showed all the different case scenarios and the use of plug welds to weld the inside nuts reaching from the outside😊

Thank you for this!!! Excellent work.

Great tip. Looking forward to the upcoming project :o)

Great idea, Jer. I've used weld nuts before, but not in this situation, those don't have a coating so would also be suitable for TIG - I think they would work well here.

Weld nuts are another option. Essentially a short bar with an extruded thread, the tab(s) give ample space to weld. The extruded thread is easy to locate in a clearance hole, and works like your modified nut with threads closer to the surface, and a lower profile inside. Now, weld nuts and rivnuts/rivet nuts are often employed in situations where assembly happens ONCE, usually for flat-packed items to be assembled on-site, or limited cycles such as access for replacing a component once or twice. I'd prefer the more solid threads of real nuts for something seeing repeated use. Others have mentioned flange nuts, there's also "heavy" hex nuts, which are basically the next size larger nut with a smaller thread, and there's "heavy jam nuts" which are a combination of larger width, but normal thickness (regular jam nuts are thinner than normal nuts)... So, there's lots to choose from, for thread engagement, width, thickness/clearance, if the standard hex nuts aren't good enough.

You should look into FRICTION DRILLING (flow drilling / thermal drilling) and TAPPING. All you really need is drill and a tungsten carbide flow drill bit. You can take thin-walled stock and essentially thicken the wall for tapping... no inserts or bolts required.

You are a fantastic communicator Well done.

For options, look up Noga reversible countersink tools, and self-clinching nuts.

Ur the best, Jer! I love to see your ingenuity on display in every video!

This is the best video on KZfaq for this year.

This video took quite a bit of set up for clarity in design, setup, execution. So Thanks so much Jer.

Good information and demonstration! Thanks!

Brilliant, Jer! 😃 Thanks a bunch for the tips!!! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

Thanks for some nice techniques and looking forward to the upcoming project.

Great tip and technique, thanks Jer!

Hi, usually for this application I use Rivet Nuts but your approach does give move options and is probably stronger (although labor content is higher). Very impressive. Bye

Great idea! Thanks for sharing!

Pretty slick. I’ll have to stow this in my brain for a future use situation.

Very nice I always learn something every time I watch your channel. Great content with no drama.

Well, that was beautiful! And great job welding those holes in so quickly! I’d be chasing it as I burned through the thin wall material…

Some great tips. Rivnuts really aren't that expensive though. I use them all the time and 100 M8 Rivnuts cost like a tenner. I think my putter-inner tool was another 20-30 quid, which I guess is a bit of an outlay but not that huge IMO. I'd say that the biggest downside to all the rivnuts I've used is that they don't finish up flush with the outer surface. Although I've seen that you can also get ones designed for a countersunk hole so they do end up flush (still working through my stocks of regular ones but will be getting these next time).

Nice video. Thank you for showing me something I've never seen done. Great technique. Thanks

The most surprising was what you said after half a minute. "US HOBBYISTS"... I can't see you as a hobbyist, but as a super professional. 👍🇪🇺🇳🇱

Some tips 1. non serrated flange nut. Extra meat to weld to, less chance for the weld to deform the threads, because it's round, three holes can be made, giving even more power to that connection. Bonus, because of the flange, there's a little more thread too (in most cases, these nuts are slightly taller than normal nuts). 2. shoulder bolt instead of threaded bolt. The shoulder can be matched to a drill thus giving you even more accuracy. 3. Noga RC2000, nuff said. Worth having that tool.

It is so great to see your iteration process in solving issues in a build. Thanks for sharing, Jer!

I like your solution. I have the same equipment (mostly) as you, so using what I already have (vs finding specialized nuts & tooling) appeals to me very much. Thanks for posting.

Great method, as always. And thanks for putting out a quick update!

Great job 👍

It's another tedious step but thinking of this would also make me consider welding a fender washer to the nut first, and then you could just weld the fender washer/nut combo through the plug hole. I think there would be less chance of error in accidentally touching the mig wire and prematurely plugging the hole before a good weld is made. (Note: this is just my hypothesis.)

This can also be done with soldering. Aluminium tube and al nut. The zinc containing solder flow very nicely and fill all the gaps.

Very interesting half of one and how to do this myself. I like the bridge toll pull up tight to the tube. Look forward to the next project.

Cool idea! You could also just drill an oversize hole and weld the whole nut or a slice of drilled and tapped round bar in flush with the surface, using a magnet to stop it falling into the hole.

Well done. Good idea

You should use Flange nuts more surface material to weld too or even nut plates

Excellent solution to a problem that I've had many times! Thanks

Jer, you can get a blade for your deburring tool that is designed to deburr inside edges of holes. You can even get ones that are made to deburr both edges at the same time and just push or pull on it to only get one of the edges.

Brilliant!

Well done Jer & that was a great solution for the placement of those nuts. 👍👍

I must say that your approach is clever, something I don't think I would have ever thought of. However, as others have already noted, it does add a lot of labor. A few years ago, when I purchased a new Ford F-150, I did a lot of projects involving adding/securing items to the truck bed, which is aluminum. I just went ahead and purchased a rivetnut setter, and it has been a wonderful purchase, for which I have no regret. There is no way I could have used your particular method, considering the thin aluminum sheet, sprayed-on bed liner, delicate wiring and hoses (on the underside). For some of my other projects, your approach may be a good solution. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for sharing some good tips! I do feel there are some better alternatives, at least if you need to do more than a couple of these. For example there is the blind rivet nut which is a very cheap option. Changing the construction is often a better way to deal with when possible. Maybe a aluminium profile (can't find the right english translation for these) for machinebuilding could be used. There are steel alternatives too. Thank you again for sharing :)

I did the idea and usefulness. Drilling access holes to fill and tack nuts in place is slick. I would add something in there about covering the nut with anti-spatter so you don't get a seized bolt after welding the nut in. Rivnuts are not that expensive and you can use a bolt and can install them Without the tool. Though the tool is also not too expensive. I do feel nuts welded in like this would have more holding power than a traditional Rivnut.

Brilliant, as I’ve come to expect from you! Thanks

Learn new ideas with each of your videos, plus you explain things just so well, always with good reasons why. Thanks Jer!

Un vídeo genial Gracias!

*Excellent* tip, thanks! A clever, robust and versatile solution, well done!

Friggin' ingenious!! Now I have to see what your project is!

That's a pretty ingenious solution. It's good to see you posting videos again!

The zinc plating will leave you with a weak weld and in such a small area with limited burn time you have no chance of burning of a substantial portion of the zinc. Better to use un-plated nuts or pickle them before use to remove as much zinc as possible.

Use a drill press vise! A high school buddy that we interred recently at age 70 had his thumb yanked out by the roots 50 years ago because he was doing the same thing. That drill bit just has to catch in the material and its all over 'cept for the crying. Thin wall is basically sheet metal folded up and can become a rotating knife in a blink. Just a tip from a retired tool and fixture maker.

This is brilliant! Thanks a lot for sharing!

Use a Cogsdill deburring tool to remove all the burrs from both the top and bottom side of the holes in one pass. They have a video on their website that show you how it works. This can be done by hand, and I have also used them in my HAAS CNC machine with GREAT success.

Here's an idea for free... cut a small cross in the tube, line the nut up on the cross, hammer or press it flush, then weld around it. Grind the weld flush. Might need a tool to hold the nut in position, some sort of tube, but it would need an overlap or a stopping mechanism so that you don't press the nut too far. edit: In fact, even that is too complex. Drill a hole larger than the nut, weld a tripod on to a bolt with the bolt longer than the tripod, thread on the nut, place the tripod on the box section, hold with one hand, weld with the other, detach the tripod and finish weld, or finish weld then detach tripod. So many options, I'm feeling creative. .

Genius! Cool idea for so many projects! Thanks for posting!

I used this method on the pallet of my mill to make the mounting threads. With flange nuts you'd have more area to weld on and they tend to lock to the surface so you don't need to have the long wrench tool, just something to push them in like a magnet stick.

very useful!

If you can buy flanged nuts this job might be even easier.

That's some pretty clever stuff Jeremy. Thank you for sharing. I bought your plans and built my version of your belt grinder. Thank you, Ed.

Okay I was going to say "rivnuts," but you addressed that right away. Your solution for the given problem is excellent.

This will be super handy for me in the near future. Thanks for sharing.

Very clever and very neat! Thanks for posting this. 🙂

Lovely work. Thanks for sharing bro!

Well done. Enjoyable video. Thanks for posting.

Great vid buddy. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for sharing. You are a great teacher!