Reverse

Engineering of
a Stapler

By Bailee Facemyer
Foundations of Engineering
Mr. Hendricks
September 9, 2013

Introduction
Have you ever wondered how simple objects, like a stapler, work? This report is how I
reverse engineered a stapler in order to answer that question. I started out by taking the
stapler completely apart and analyzing how each piece worked. I discovered the way the staple
goes through the paper and what causes it to bend. I also learned how the staples are forced
towards the front of the chamber to be forced out. The stapler was relatively easy to
disassemble because most pieces just clipped to each other. After I took it completely apart I
measured each piece of the stapler with a caliper. I then looked to see what each material was
made of and how that affected the stapler. I discovered that the materials were mostly
common metals or plastics. I concluded that this was to keep the cost of making a stapler low
so that the most profit could be made. They did not use plastic for all of the pieces though
because some of them needed to be able to withstand pressure. Some pieces also needed to be
able to stay firm and not bend so that the staples would go into the paper properly. The pieces
mostly just clipped together so this made me think that the size of each piece cannot be off or
else the pieces will not fit together properly and the stapler will not be effective. Overall, I
learned that even simple things take an engineer to think up the idea and execute a plan and
there is a reason every part goes together the way it does.

Step 1: Disassembly is required

Disassembly of the stapler was much easier than it seemed. There were only 4 screws to
be taken off using a screw driver and the rest of the pieces just snapped apart. The first thing I
did was unscrew all of the screws. They held the bottom of the stapler to the top of the stapler
and when I removed them I was able to separate the stapler into two parts, the base and the
head. The only part of the base that was very important was the anvil which bends the
staples.
The head of the stapler was all held together with a rod that went
through each piece and allows the stapler to move up and down. After
removing the rod the top cover was able to be taken off. Attached to the
top cover was a metal piece which forces staples out of the magazine and
through paper.
After removing the top cover all that remained was the magazine
holding the staples. Inside the magazine there was a coil that held the
follow block which holds the staples forward, and the spring which makes
the staples stay down. This left only the staples which were stuck together
tightly in a row.

Step 2: Measure Every Piece

The next step to better understand the stapler was to measure each individual piece.
Below is a diagram of what each piece was measure to be using a caliper. (Note: not all pieces
are listed, only relevant ones)
Part Name

Length (mm)

Width (mm)

# of this part

Material part is made

used

of

Screw #1

6.9mm

3.1mm

Steel

Screw #2

6.6mm

5.9mm

Steel

Cover

131.3mm

n/a

Plastic

Base

133.5mm

n/a

Plastic

Anvil

20.2mm

16.7mm

Sheet metal

Coil

n/a

4.3mm

aluminum

Staples

n/a

11.7mm

25

Zinc plated steel

Magazine

13.7mm

15.4mm

steel

Spring

57.3mm

11.2mm

Steel

Follow Block

23.6mm

11.7mm

copper

I determined that the sizes of my parts needed to be exact and could not be off in size
because all the parts clipped together. If the size for each piece was off then the parts wouldnt
clip together and the stapler would not function properly. The screws held the staplers base
and head together but the rest was all just clipped together or held together on the rod. I
believe this method of fastening was chosen because it is easy to use on an assembly line and is
very quick when it comes to assembly and disassembly.
The other important thing I realized after taking apart and measuring the parts that
most of them are made of steel or of plastic. This is most likely because steel is a common
metal and plastic is cheap. The coil had to be aluminum because it needed to be able to bend.
4

The magazine and anvil needed to be made of a strong metal like steel because it needed to be
stronger than the metal the staples were made of. The cover, on the other hand, could be
plastic because it didnt need to be stiff or strong; it just needed to be able to protect the rest
of the stapler.

Conclusion
By doing this reverse engineering project I learned that simple can be what works best
and that it is important to think about complexity when coming up with ideas. The stapler is an
object that could be made to be very complicated but engineers have made it so that it is
relatively easy to build and operate. I learned that there are more to simple, everyday objects
then there appears and to not take these simple things for granted. The stapler is a good tool
for any household, office, or school because it is cheap, simple to operate, and effective.