Rivet
Industrial-looking rivets are one type of metal fastener, permanently connecting materials
The rivet is a metal fastener used to attach a material such as wood, sheet metal, leather or plastic to another material. It has an industrial look and the ability to connect materials needing a shear-force strength. Other metal fasteners include screws, keys, pins, rings, nuts and clips.
For combining materials such as steel and wood, screws or glue could do the job, but using rivets the old-school way is gaining popularity. The heated metal becomes soft and is squashed to form the head, and the layers it joins are tightly squeezed together when the metal cools and shrinks.
This garage door resembles the riveted planks of an airplane or a large tanker, where the layers of metal would not be pulled apart (tension force) but need to resist wind or water movement (shear force).
Rivets can be fastened with heat and a hammer, or with a rivet gun, which smashes the pin without heat. Both methods create a button that is bigger than the hole it passes through, making a permanent connection.
Welding gained popularity over riveting in the 1920s and '30s. Riveting required several workers to take on the roles of heating, tossing, catching, placing and pounding the rivets into place. Welding was a much quieter process and required less teamwork.
The placement of rivets is measured and spaced equally, allowing for curved and bowed surfaces such as airplanes, boats and this custom-made kitchen hood.
Rivets can have a pan head, a snap head or a mushroom head, or be countersunk, which means that the top of the rivet is flush with the surface it connects. These rivets extrude, or extend outside the sheet metal.