Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Sometimes screws just aren’t the right fastener. There may not be enough material for threads to hold....or you may not want threads at all.
Attaching a plywood sign to this plastic lid, for example, doesn’t give me much to screw into.
But if we switch to rivets...now we’ve got options.
You can use rivets on all kinds of materials. If it can take a hole and handle the pressure… rivets work.
Just drill a hole and slide the rivet through the side you want showing. A small flange, or basically a collar, sits against the front…the side people will see.
This crazy metal part sticking up is called a mandrel, or what I call a stem. It slides into our pop rivet gun and breaks off when we squeeze the handle.
Under a microscope, you can see that the stem rides through a hollow tube, and when I squeeze the gun, the tube flares out.
Now both pieces are trapped between the front collar and the deformed back side.
But the secret to really making these work is adding a washer on the back end. It has to be a nearly perfect fit, but it gives us more surface area for a better clamp.
If you need to remove them, these are even easier than screws. Take a twist bit and drill the front collar off. Once that head is gone, the rest pushes right out.
Quick tip...if you think you may remove them later, go with aluminum over steel. They drill out much easier.
For woodworkers, rivets are perfect when screws don’t make sense. They don’t rely on threads, just think of them as mini c-clamps.
Like step by step projects? Check out the second channel! → @makethingswithrob
Become a patron! → patreon.com/makethings ←
Huge thank you to my patrons that keep this thing going!
*MAKER TEAM*
Michelle B
Keith Current
Rich Lightfoot
Tutor the Barbarian
Aubrey G.
Nukebert
Sam W.
Aaron Knows DIY
G. Salazar
David B.
Marc B.
Richard B.
Ben. K
Bill Patterson
D. Lundman
Make Things
#MakeThings #mtbitesize
Sometimes screws just aren’t the right fastener. There may not be enough material for threads to hold....or you may not want threads at all.
Attaching a plywood sign to this plastic lid, for example, doesn’t give me much to screw into.
But if we switch to rivets...now we’ve got options.
You can use rivets on all kinds of materials. If it can take a hole and handle the pressure… rivets work.
Just drill a hole and slide the rivet through the side you want showing. A small flange, or basically a collar, sits against the front…the side people will see.
This crazy metal part sticking up is called a mandrel, or what I call a stem. It slides into our pop rivet gun and breaks off when we squeeze the handle.
Under a microscope, you can see that the stem rides through a hollow tube, and when I squeeze the gun, the tube flares out.
Now both pieces are trapped between the front collar and the deformed back side.
But the secret to really making these work is adding a washer on the back end. It has to be a nearly perfect fit, but it gives us more surface area for a better clamp.
If you need to remove them, these are even easier than screws. Take a twist bit and drill the front collar off. Once that head is gone, the rest pushes right out.
Quick tip...if you think you may remove them later, go with aluminum over steel. They drill out much easier.
For woodworkers, rivets are perfect when screws don’t make sense. They don’t rely on threads, just think of them as mini c-clamps.
Like step by step projects? Check out the second channel! → @makethingswithrob
Become a patron! → patreon.com/makethings ←
Huge thank you to my patrons that keep this thing going!
*MAKER TEAM*
Michelle B
Keith Current
Rich Lightfoot
Tutor the Barbarian
Aubrey G.
Nukebert
Sam W.
Aaron Knows DIY
G. Salazar
David B.
Marc B.
Richard B.
Ben. K
Bill Patterson
D. Lundman
Make Things
#MakeThings #mtbitesize
