I don't think the long rivets I used in this build were long enough. On other builds I got nice formed heads with Plinker's jig, but this one only allowed for a little button. It was fine at first, but has loosened up with shooting, moving back and forth (lft to rght0. I am not as worried about the shape of the head as I am not damaging the receiver on this finshed rifle. Here are my options as I see them.

1. Have a friend hold the rifle steady on an anvil ( maybe wood shims to aid in holding the rifle square.) 3lb hammer and a 1/4" punch, and whack it once real good.

2. Put it back in the Plinker's jig and smoosh it with the flat head. I'm afraid I might twist or otherwise damage with the receiver.

3. Drill the head off the rivet, drive it out with a punch and replace and refinsh the rivet using the Plinker's jig. Here I'm afraid that I will wreck the finish and haver to refinish this already oiled and fired (quite a bit) rifle.

So I guess what I'm asking, will the hammer and punch idea work? Thanks, tips appreciated.

You can maybe have someone weld some material on the end of the rivet and resquash it.

Picture would help,  sound like you need to drill it out and remove the bad rivet, then put a new one in and squash that sucka.

Pound it on your vice anvil.

I hammer my own rivets on all my builds. I have a cheap harbor freight bench vice (just broke it the other day) that I drilled a shallow dimple in the anvil of the vice to support he right side rivet heads. I then clamped my receiver to the anvil. On two of my builds I pounded the hell out of the left side rivot heads with a hammer and a punch.

On my 3rd build I made a nice home made tool that forms a really nice rivot head.