Flat Spherical Rivet – Full Batch Set

A lowered head changes how a surface reads

Between a fully flush joint and a high dome lies the shape that was used most often: a head only slightly raised above the surface. That is how wing skins, engine bay covers, fuel tanks and hatch rims were done, that is, places where a protruding bump disturbed the airflow or kept another part from seating. The difference from a full dome is small in millimeters and large in the result, because the lower shape holds a weaker, softer shadow.

Box contents

Eleven part-sheets are brought together, each for a different head size. The range starts at 0.3 mm, rises by tenths to one millimeter and the upper part is made up of 1.2, 1.4 and 1.6 mm. All told the package holds 2392 parts, with the small sizes many times more numerous than the largest. They are, after all, what the long skin seams are covered with, and on one fuselage those run to tens of meters of real length.

When to reach for this shape

The scale and the nature of the machine decide. In the smaller scales a high dome looks oversized on an aircraft fuselage, while a lowered head stays legible even after painting. On later ground vehicles, where riveting was giving way to welding and the remaining joints have a smoother profile, it is the more faithful choice as well. It also proves useful as small hatch hardware and as an imitation of countersunk screws in places where a hexagon would be needlessly conspicuous.

Painting

A shallower relief is easily drowned by a heavy coat. The primer therefore belongs on in several light passes, and the emphasis is better handled with a dark wash running into the shadow than with light on the top.