Rivet

engineering · metalworking · fasteners · building

What it looks like. Before you use a rivet, it's basically a smooth metal stick with a head on one end and a flat tail on the other, like a miniature mushroom waiting to be flattened.

How it works. You push the rivet's tail through a hole in two pieces of metal, then use a special tool to smash the tail flat so it spreads out like the head, locking the pieces together permanently.

Built to last. Once installed, rivets create a super strong connection that doesn't loosen over time, which is why they've been used for centuries in bridges, ships, and buildings.

The new name. When a rivet is fully installed and the tail gets squashed flat, that flattened end is called the shop head or buck-tail.