Door Handle Rivets

[MSGia]

Good afternoon all. I am installing some aftermarket exterior door handles on my 2010 Ranger. Does anyone have any guidance on removing the rivets? I have watched 3 different videos and I am reading the instructions from the kit, but my rivets won’t budge.

 

[JoshT]

Knock the center out with a punch, then drill the head off. Not sure how much simpler to make it.

 

[sgtsandman]

Yep. Knock out the center and drill off the head.

 

[JoshT]

I should add, go slowly when drilling the head. You want to stop as soon as the head breaks loose, or you'll go through the door and oversize the hole.

Also if you are replacing the handle with a new one, use the new handle as a size guide for the drill bit. Select a bit the same size as or just a hair larger than the rivet hole in the handle. Since these are pull rivets after you knock out the center the bit will line up nicely and with the right size bit the head will pop right off once you get through it. Then remove the handle and remove the remaining rivet shank.

 

[MSGia]

Thank you all for the help. I ended up getting them off. One came off nicely, the rest were difficult. I used a small chisel and drill to break the head around the center pin, and then it would punch through easier. No problems oversizing the hole on the door. New handles fit great.

 

[JoshT]

I figured you were probably installing those. Not my style, but Rick makes some interesting stuff. Probably going to look good on there once you get them painted to match.