Welcome
to
MagnetNerd.com
Let
Me Show You About
Neodymium
Magnets
And
Some
Neat Experiments Using Them
Hi, I'm Rob Gallagher and I'm a MagnetNerd.
Nerd
refers to a person who passionately pursues intellectual
activities, esoteric
knowledge, or other obscure interests that are age inappropriate. Wikipedia
Neodymium Magnets are just plain cool. It's totally amazing how something so small can have such strong magnetic forces. I enjoy showing others the amazing things that can be done with Neodymium Magnets. So far I have created over 41 videos of my experiments and designs on YouTube and have incorporated most of them into this website. Since it is not in my nature to duplicate someone else's experiment you will find mine uniquely performed if not totally original. I do not narrate or verbally describe them because I have readers from every continent except for Antarctica (so far). I want them to have global appeal.
I frequently give away pairs of 1/2" cube Neodymium Magnets. It is fun to watch a big strapping fellow try to separate two 1/2" cubes. So far I have given away well over 100 Neos and will continue to do so. Neos are just plain fun. Those of you that have some know what I'm talking about. Those who don't, get some and join the fun. You may learn something along the way.
I'm proud to say I'm the creator of the "World's First Real Gauss Rifle".
Check
out the chapter Gauss
Rifle, A Linear Accelerator. To see how I
built it check out
How I Made "The
World's First Real Gauss Rifle & Pistol"
Neodymium Magnets are the most powerful permanent magnets commercially available today. They can be over 15 times as powerful as a ceramic (refrigerator) magnets. This power must be respected or there will be consequences, especially with large magnets. Neodymium Magnets have a chemical formula of Nd2Fe14B. This means it consists of 2 parts Neodymium, a rare earth element, 14 parts Iron and 1 part Boron. It is often referred to as a "Rare Earth Magnet", a "Super Magnet", a "Neo" or my favorite, a "NIB", referring to the elements involved (Neodymium Iron Boron).
Neodymium Magnets are
just plain amazing. How something so small can have powers so strong is beyond
comprehension. I enjoy sharing my enthusiasm with others. I always walk around
with a dozen or so NIBs in my pocket and frequently demonstrate the power by
putting a ½” cube on each side of someone’s hand before I give them the
cubes so they can amaze their friends and families. Without exception they have a look
of amazement and awe on their face. I show them how to separate the magnets using the edge of a table then
warn them that they “bite”. I enjoy experimenting with NIBs and have a
"Magnet Studio/Shop" where I can express my creative nature. I try to
be original whenever possible so you’ll see experiments here that are found
nowhere else, like my “Magnetic Catapult”.
First do us both a favor. Check out this video.
These are 2" diameter, 1" thick N42 NIBs. the N42 refers to the grade of the magnets. The bigger the "N" number the more powerful the magnet. This corresponds to the BHmax (Maximum Energy Product) - The magnetic field strength at the point of maximum energy product of a magnetic material. It is the field strength of fully saturated magnetic material measured in Mega Gauss Oersteds, MGOe. Currently the most powerful grade generally available is N52. A ceramic Magnet will have a BHmax of 3.0 to 4.6. These 2" NIBs have a "Pull Force" of over 230 pounds when attached to a steel plate. The rule of thumb is that a NIB is attracted to another NIB with a force 1 1/2 times the attraction to steel. With these magnets the contact attraction is about 350 pounds of force. I am not dropping the magnet. It is being pulled out of my grip. There is steel under the bottom magnet and that keeps it from flying up to the magnet in my hand.
Now imagine that instead of a pencil, that is your finger getting smashed! OK?
I recommend that you start experimenting with Neodymium Magnets no bigger than a 1/2" cube (which has a pull force of over 20 pounds). That way when your NIBs do bite you (it's inevitable) you will suffer no worse than a blood blister. As you gain experience you can move up to larger magnets progressively.
Now let's do some fun stuff. I have posted over 2 dozen videos on YouTube to demonstrate the unique properties of Neodymium Magnets. These are under my user name of "robgallagher". Many of them are incorporated into this website for your viewing pleasure.
At
this point I must give you the obligatory warnings about Neodymium Magnets.
They
can screw-up your credit cards, floppy disks, video and cassette tapes or other
magnetic media. I doubt that they will harm a computer’s hard drive for the
simple reason that hard drives run on Neodymium Magnets. Think of it like metal
in a microwave. You can do it without any effect unless the metal is extremely
thin such as aluminum foil. But why go out of your way to do that?
You
shouldn’t eat more than 1 of them. Toddlers have swallowed more than 1 of them
resulting in a section of their intestines getting pinched off further resulting in
great bodily harm. Multiple magnets in the intestines can cause obstruction,
necrosis and perforation of the intestinal walls. This has resulted in death.
Children who swallow more than one magnet need immediate medical care. If the
possibility of magnets in the abdomen exists, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
must be avoided. An MRI machine would literally rip the magnet out of the body
through the belly.
There
is potential interference of small neodymium magnets with cardiac pacemakers and
implantable cardioverter-defibrillators. If you have a pacemaker and want to
play with Neos, forgetaboutit.
Neodymium Magnets are just plain fun.
The amount of fun is only limited by your imagination.
To demonstrate the strength of these magnets I created the following video. The iron plate weighs 25 pounds and I weigh 165. That’s a total of 190 pounds being held up by a 2” cube. This is despite the fact that the magnet is sitting on a 1.125" diameter hole in the iron plate.
Neodymium Magnets are also very brittle. This demo shows a couple of ways I keep NIBs from smashing when they strike another Neo.
This is an example of Diamagnetic Levitation using only 1 piece of polished Bismuth. I polished the Bismuth to creat the illusion that the floating height is twice what it is. It is inevitable that the cube will fly up and smash into the 2" dia by 1" disk. To save the cube from destruction I illustrate 2 methods that I use to cushion the blow. On the top I glued a 2 1/8" dia by 1/4" soft wood disk to the Neo. On the bottom I have several coats of clear dipping plastic. Both are soft enough to keep the floating cube intact when it inevitably smashes into the monster. More info can be found in the chapter The Care and Feeding of Neodymium Magnets.
Below is an original experiment demonstrating the fact that like poles repel.
This was a Fun Project. Check out "Magnetic Catapult" to see it in action.
Free Plans for a Levitating Thingamajig
I created this neat little gadget on a Trial AND Error basis. I've also documented it as a 3D AutoCAD model and drawing which I am making available Free. It is a 1 to 1 scale .Pdf file that you can download. It is an as-built of the thing in the pic below. Critical dimensions are noted.
What can we call it?
Impress Your Friends, Enjoy.
The Making of a Homopolar Motor Video
While
reviewing the videos of homopolar motors (with a screw) on YouTube I noticed
that these are produced by guys in their 20’s and 30’s. I enlisted the help
of my 6-year-old neighbor to help me demonstrate. There was no coaching and the
dialogue is spontaneous. She can’t wait for school to start so she can bring
her magnets in for “Show and Tell” in her 1st Grade
Class.
The Care and Feeding of Neodymium Magnets
General information about Neos, With 1 Video
Why does it do that?
The Roman Legions should have had one of these. With 1 Video showing 3 Launched
Moving Things Without Touching Them
With 4 Videos
Gauss Rifle, A Linear Accelerator
With 2 Videos
How I Made "The World's First Real Gauss Rifle & Pistol"
Plus
How I Made the Rifle & Pistol
With
2 Videos
Eddy Currents - Magnetic Braking
With 8 Videos
Homopolar Motors - Lorentz force
With 3 Videos
Another Motor Type - The Single Brush Motor
With 1 Video
With 1 Video
Breaking the Law of Gravity. With 2 Videos
Levitation by Repelling Forces
With 1 Video
Simple Forms of Levitation With 3 Videos
Magnets with Class
Permanent Magnet Motors - Free Energy!
Several Videos, but only 2 of them mine. Read about the Con Artists.
They scheme to get your money.
Working With Big Magnets, Safely
With 1 Video
My Products for Handling Large Neos Safely
Saving Fingers with Style
Misc. Odds and Ends, Hints and Opinions
Neodymium Magnets are just plain fun. If you have a NIB experience to share or questions to ask you can get in touch with me at rob@magnetnerd.com.
Tools for Handling the Big Ones.
Be Safe, Not Sorry!
Before I started ordering Large Neodymium Magnets, NIBs with a pull force of 100 pounds or more, I designed some tools to allow for safe and easy manipulation of the monsters. These magnets have the potential of doing great bodily harm. One young lad lost his hand after it was crushed between two 3" dia by 1" thick Neodymium Disks. That's "AMPUTATED" folks. I experiment with NIBs up to 2" dia by 1" thick disks or 2" by 2" by 1" blocks. At this point I don't see any need to get anything bigger, but you never know. Click on the photos for more information
These
tools are made of Oak and the hardware is Brass
I call them my "Neo
Rocker", "Neo
Shears" and "Neo
Shears II"
"FREE PLANS"
Soon I will be producing these tools for sale on the Internet. However, I'm very concerned about the safety of my readers. So I'm offering the plans to these tools, in a .pdf format, free of charge so you can make your own. You have my permission to make 1 copy of each for your personal use. Educators, If you feel you could use more than 1 for your class/lab then e-mail me and tell me about your situation. No commercial use please.
If you build your own use a very hard wood like Oak or Maple. Otherwise the magnets will tear them apart in short order. The hardware I use is solid brass toilet bowl bolts (Fluidmaster 7110 and 7111 or equal). I use polyurethane to seal the wood for longevity.
My latest tool is a variation of the "Rocking Magnet Lifting Tool" with 2 handles. I call it my "Neo Rocker II".
This design allows me to exert even force perpendicular to a ferrous surface. With 2 hands on the handles, both are out of the danger zone. To help the magnet adhere to the gadget I placed a single layer of "tack cloth" (cheese cloth impregnated with sticky resin) between the magnet and the wood. So far I've used it to suspend 190 pounds. See Video Above
"So Much Magnetic Force Under Control. How Cool!"
I've started producing my products for sale through select Neodymium Magnet Suppliers.
Click here My Products for Handling Large Neos Safely to see action videos.
In these pages I will frequently refer to Wikipedia.org, the free encyclopedia, to summarize the scientific principle involved in these experiments. I want to thank them for sharing this information with the world.
I also want to thank Scott, the boss at my neighborhood scrap yard, (Recycling Service) for giving me scavenging rights.