How do I make realistic 'Rivets' using textures and Normal maps?

NVIDIA has this plugin for creating normal maps off of the texture.

  • Add bevel or something to your rivets
  • Generate the normal map using this tool
  • Get rid of any direct shadows on the texture

Now if you apply this normal map to the material you’d have good shading of the rivets.
There’s a lot of settings in the tool you can play with to get the best result.