RV Learning

Comparing RV and Travel Trailer Rivets

Q: What makes Bowlus aluminum and riveting the best in the industry?

The Bowlus is constructed using 2024 T3 "Alclad" aluminum , the optimum aircraft-grade alloy for applications requiring a high strength-to-weight ratio. This shell is held together by approximately 5,000 rivets. Unlike other travel trailers that use soft, non-structural fasteners similar to those found on a leather belt or clothing, Bowlus uses authentic aerospace techniques to ensure the entire trailer functions as a rigid, high-strength monocoque.

Q: How does Bowlus construction compare to other aluminum trailers?

The difference is fundamental to safety and longevity: Structural vs. Aesthetic: Other manufacturers use soft rivets that match their lower-tensile aluminum sheets. While these are easier to install, they are not structural. In a Bowlus, the skin is the structure; the frame simply holds the position of that skin. Corrosion Resistance: Moisture often gets trapped under clear-coated soft aluminum on other trailers, causing filiform corrosion. Bowlus's aircraft-grade "Alclad" skin has a layer of pure aluminum that can be polished indefinitely without this risk. Impact Resistance: Our 2024 T3 aluminum is the same material used in aircraft wings, allowing it to withstand significant impacts (like hail) that would dent softer RV aluminum.

Join Geneva Long, CEO of Bowlus, as she explains the different types of rivets used on travel trailers and why it matters to camping performance. Learn more: https://bowlus.com/

In this video, we dive into the intricate construction process of a Bowlus travel trailer, which mirrors that of an aircraft. Crafted with aircraft-grade 2024 aluminum panels and secured by approximately 5,000 rivets, the Bowlus is designed for superior strength and durability. Two types of rivets—Olympic and structural bucked rivets —are used, with buck rivets providing the structural integrity. Installing these requires two skilled craftspeople working in sync to ensure precision. Unlike other aluminum trailers that use softer rivets, Bowlus utilizes aircraft-grade materials and techniques to achieve unmatched strength and quality. Learn more about the craftsmanship behind every Bowlus!

FAQs

The Bowlus is constructed using 2024 T3 “Alclad” aluminum, the optimum aircraft-grade alloy for applications requiring a high strength-to-weight ratio. This shell is held together by approximately 5,000 rivets. Unlike other travel trailers that use soft, non-structural fasteners similar to those found on a leather belt or clothing, Bowlus uses authentic aerospace techniques to ensure the entire trailer functions as a rigid, high-strength monocoque.

We use two distinct types of rivets, each serving a specific mechanical purpose:
Olympic Rivets: These secure the exterior skin to the internal frame. A hand riveting tool flares the head out to lock the panel to the frame. The visible side is then shaved down and polished to a mirror shine for a seamless look.
Structural Bucked Rivets: These are the primary fasteners responsible for the tensile strength of the Bowlus. They join the aluminum panels to one another, making the skin itself the primary structural element of the trailer.

Installing buck rivets is a highly skilled, two-person process. One technician stands on the outside with a pneumatic rivet gun, while another stands on the inside with a “bucking bar.”
The Technique: The gun acts as a rhythmic hammer, causing the rivet to expand on the inside.
The Precision: Technicians must judge by ear exactly how many “taps” are needed to reach the proper spec.
The Specification: To achieve the ideal strength-to-weight ratio, the flattened part of the rivet on the interior must be exactly 1.5 times larger than the rivet stem. If the tool slips, it can dent the interior, requiring immense focus and stability.

The difference is fundamental to safety and longevity:
Structural vs. Aesthetic: Other manufacturers use soft rivets that match their lower-tensile aluminum sheets. While these are easier to install, they are not structural. In a Bowlus, the skin is the structure; the frame simply holds the position of that skin.
Corrosion Resistance: Moisture often gets trapped under clear-coated soft aluminum on other trailers, causing filiform corrosion. Bowlus’s aircraft-grade “Alclad” skin has a layer of pure aluminum that can be polished indefinitely without this risk.
Impact Resistance: Our 2024 T3 aluminum is the same material used in aircraft wings, allowing it to withstand significant impacts (like hail) that would dent softer RV aluminum.

The monocoque (single-shell) design creates a “space frame” effect where the strength is distributed across the entire exterior skin. This allows the Bowlus to be incredibly strong yet lightweight enough (GVWR between 3,500 and 4,000 lbs) to be towed by a wide range of vehicles, including EVs and mid-sized SUVs.

By using high-tensile aircraft materials and structural bucking, we achieve a lightweight profile that results in:
Superior Efficiency: Better fuel economy and significantly increased range for electric vehicles.
Natural Handling: A low center of gravity that eliminates the sway and “push-pull” effect common in traditional, boxy RVs.
Durability: A trailer built with the same mechanical integrity as a private jet, designed to last for generations.

Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Geneva Long, CEO of Bowlus, and today we’re going to talk all about rivets. Let’s flip this camera around and get started! So the construction of a Bowlus is similar to that of an aircraft, we use many of the same techniques materials down to the panels of the 2024 aluminum which is the optimum alloy for applications requiring a high strength to weight ratio and as with aircrafts, rivets are used to hold those aluminum panels together. There are about 5,000 rivets on a single Bowlus and that’s more than just an aesthetic touch. These metal fasteners are responsible for the strength of the entire travel trailer and that’s because Bowlus has a monocoque shape.

We use two different types of rivets, we use some olympic rivets that secure the skin into the shell or the skin or the or the shell into the frame and are simpler and less strong than buck rivets, which are responsible for the tensile strength of the Bowlus, and that’s all the rest of the rivets that you see on the Bowlus. So to install Olympic rivet, its head is inserted into the panel above the frame and a hand riveting tool sends a jolt of force through the rivet and the head of the rivet flares out secures the panel to the frame and then the round side that’s visible from the outside of the Bowlus is then shaved down and polished to a shine which gives gives it that seamless look.

Now structural bucked rivets, which are the rest of the types of rivets on the Bowlus, require an even greater level of skill and that’s because Buck rivets hold the panels of aluminum together and so all of the strength of the Bowlus comes from the joining of the two the aluminum together and the strength of the buck rivet hold the panel of aluminum together and all the strength of the Bowlus comes from the joining of the two and the bucking of that rivet happens with one person on the outside with a rivet gun and the other person on the inside with the buck. The gun acts like a hammer setting the rivet to expand on the inside and securing it in place now this sounds pretty simple, but there’s an ideal strength to weight ratio with buck rivets so the flattened part of the rivet on the inside of the Bowlus needs to be exactly 1.5 times larger than the stem of the rivet and the tunseth has to be carefully stabilized because if it slips it can dent the interior.

The technician on the outside of the travel trailer has to be able to distinguish exactly how many taps of the rhythmic machine gun rivet gun will result in the rivet that’s within the proper spec so this is just one of the many complex processes that go into making a Bowlus. Please go over and check out my full video on how a Bowlus is made – this is a very different process from all other travel trailers and even all other aluminum travel trailers. So other aluminum travel trailers are using soft rivets to match the strength of their lower tensile strength aluminum sheet and these are the same types of rivets that you might find on an article of clothing, maybe a belt or something like that.

Now compare that to the aircraft grade rivets found in a Bowlus, which require skilled craftspeople to build them. On one hand the softness of the other aluminum travel trailers manufacturer rivets makes them much easier to buck, but again that’s because they’re not structural and you know you’ll have to remember that the whole Bowlus’ skin is what gives it that structure the frame simply holds the positioning of the skin. So like I said, feel free to go check out our full video on how a Bowlus is made for even more details.

Geneva Long

Founder & CEO

Geneva Long has redefined the RV landscape since 2011, establishing the ultra-luxury travel trailer category. Drawing from her passion for adventure, she leads with a vision for user-centric design. Geneva ensures that every Bowlus delivers supreme comfort and innovative performance, built with a level of craftsmanship designed to last for generations.