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I'm sure AustonT will be answering this at some point as well.

but magnetizing the minis!

What size magnet works with the normal space marine models?

For arms and such you can go with 1/16 diameter magnets since the arms aren't very heavy.

Thanks ToI I'm assuming they are Rare Earth or another similar brand?

Rare earth isn't a brand, it's a layman's term for magnets made out of neodymium. I used 2mm diameter, 1mm thick neodymium magnets for my grey knights. Works fine, it'll hold without being too strong of a connection.


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Oh and as a shameless self promotion, I have a tutorial for my greyknights on these boards as well that gives information on how to magnetise grey knights (works just as well for marines btw).

ya i also thought they were a brand with that name. I'm surprised they aren't yet haha

Regardless i'm trying to find them I found some off google 1.5mm wide .8 mm thick is the closet i found

I got a good deal of 100 for I don't remember how much on Ebay

I'm watching for advise on this one too...

I magnetize most of my models nowadays, I buy form www.amazingmagnets.com, though I know others use k & j magnetics and like them.

I most commonly use 1/8th
http://www.amazingmagnets.com/show-decimal-d032a.aspx

which fit with a small amount of room (so the hole does need to be well centered) the shoulder joint for marines. On guardsmen/smaller sculpts, check before trying to use these.

1/16th will hold the joint together I found, but will give you droopy arm syndrome, ie, it won't have enough hold to keep the arm in a position, it'll just sag to point at the ground. 1/16th are useful for heads/wrists though, if you choose to magnetize those.

now the 1/16th and 1/8th magnets what are the size difference from the 2mm X 1mm ones?

mikewars85 wrote:now the 1/16th and 1/8th magnets what are the size difference from the 2mm X 1mm ones?

Standard vs. Metric, just google inches to millimeters and math it out

i did and that gak didn't work out to well. lol

mikewars85 wrote:i did and that gak didn't work out to well. lol

I Laughed now everyone in the office is looking at me kinda funny....

1/8th is roughly 3.11mm
1/16th is roughly 1.55mm

if my memory and calculator foo are both working correctly. one inch is roughly 24.9mm (so nearly 25mm) divide that by 8 and you have one 8th of an inch, yes, That works right??

Sure, so like i said I need the 2mm X 1mm magnets

or the 3mm for extra hold...

Mullet, they are going to be arms on AM and just the troop choices mostly. I don't plan on magnetizing the tanks walkers etc. So you think the 3mm is going to be needed on a AM?

For basic troops you shouldn't need anything bigger then 1/16 x 1/32 Grade N50 or so. I use two magnets for each connection. One on the model and one on the arm or weapon. They snap together and stay put. Just make sure your polarity is correct when you glue them on.

K&J sells them.

Other advise.
These magnets are really small. So I use a thin piece of metal 10" x 12" to work on. That way when I drop one they stick to it, and are easy to find. Otherwise you'll need to find something to drag around on the floor that's metal so they will stick too it.

HAHAHAH PC that is so true about the metal piece to catch them lol

and i forgot to mention i'm using them for BA backpack to jump pack so i can switch in between either.

Jump packs might be a bit heavy for the 1/16" magnets, but they are pretty strong.

You could go as big as (1/8" x 1/32"-1/16") for the back packs. They are a penny cheaper then the 1/16" ones at K&J.

With the 1/8" you'll have just enough room to drill a hole and place it just above the nub on the back of the marine body. You can shave a tad off the top of the nub to help center the drill/hole for the magnet a bit down. You'll see why when you get them. By top I mean the upper part of the nub, not the rounded part that faces the pack. You will want to keep the nub on the back of the marine if you can. It will stop the packs from turning.

another fine point, i didn't think of that as i was going to use the hole that is already there to apply the magnet


time to google the magnets and K&J haha

BTW

You'll want to look in the disc magnets section on K&J.
The higher the N grade the better the pull force. They have N42 and N52 for the same price on the 1/8". Go with the N52 if you choose to buy these from them.

I sometimes find good deals on ebay, but a lot of times they will be low grade, so you want to make sure they are strong enough.

K&J magnets are dirt cheep and very good. I've used their magnets to magnetize marine and guard arms. A little bit of work and you can have a cheap versatile army that looks good. (and you can pose them too)

Vehicle weapons are a little heavier and a larger magnet size is better, I'm currently tossing about the idea of magnetizing bases for ease of transport