Toys with magnets

[Charleville]

I have been buying cheap rare earth magnets from Hong Kong which have been useful for a number of purposes in the workshop.

http://img.skitch.com/20090408-fgdtpyp6qjcs3sx8cb98xhct11.preview.jpg (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bk9ag/dealextreme-search-for-magnets-57-products-in-17-categories)
Click for full size (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bk9ag/dealextreme-search-for-magnets-57-products-in-17-categories) - Uploaded with plasq (http://plasq.com)'s Skitch (http://skitch.com)


However, of late I have been thinking that maybe these small flat disk magnets might be useful to make some fun toys.

Does anyone have any ideas please for toys that use strong little magnets?


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[keju]

Easy........ have you ever seen a Brio train? They use magnets instead of hooks to add train wagons - easier for kids.

When I was little my Dad brought home fun toy..... two scotty dogs... each had magnets in the front and rear....can't remember for sure... but you could make them chase each other without them actually touching or sort of "kiss"....

You could also make your own travel games by putting a metal board under a piece of wood you drill holes into... then glue or insert ( depening on the size) small magnets into the bottom of game pieces.....

I'm sure everyone has lots of ideas for these - bet you'll get a few customers out of this one.

Juvy

[triden]

Any chance of a link for the Magnets Charleville? I have been looking for some like those for box lids.

[Ruddy]

Hi Charleville,
I also have recently purchased a number of these rare earth magnets and I have nearly completed an idea I have had in my head for a long time. They are so powerful, I am sure there are plenty of good ideas out there that can use these little magnets.
I have almost completed making a special money box that has a draw that will only be opened by these magnets by using the repulse force of similar poles. When the draw is closed the magnets attract and the coins disappear .....well, thats the general idea. The draw is flush mounted, no handle so you cannot open the draw from the front.When ever you open the draw, the coins have gone......
It is more of a box than a toy as I would like it be made to look as good as some of the boxes that members show in the boxmaking section......
Just a few more days and I should have something to show.

Ruddy

[Charleville]

Any chance of a link for the Magnets Charleville? I have been looking for some like those for box lids.

Sure. See link below. This website shows lots of interesting stuff to buy which gets delivered in the mail with zero postage charges. I have bought quite a few things from them over the past six months or so and have never been disappointed.

The prices shown are in US dollars so that means that the prices in Aussie dollars are not as good now as they were a few months ago but it is all small change really since there is no postage charge..

They are much,much, much cheaper on things like computer and TV cords and connectors than what you will buy locally at Big W or Dick Smith etc and I have found the quality to be OK. Indeed, I was put on to this site by my entrepreneurial IT son whose mates around the world told him of their pleasing experiences in buying computer connectors etc from this crowd.

All of that stuff is made in China anyway so by buying though this crowd, you are just cutting out the local middleman who adds little value to the deal anyway.

http://www.dealextreme.com/search.dx/search.rare%20earth%20magnets#1105


I always pay via Paypal so the vendor does not have my Visa details and the transaction is very simple to do.


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[Charleville]

Thanks for the great suggestions so far, folks. I am sure that we will get lots more.

One really useful application that I have used these for is not a toy but it is very useful.

I have epoxied a dozen of these magnets inside a hole drilled in the end of a 25 mm diameter broomstick and used this as a tool to pick up screws, nails etc that I have dropped in the garage or elsewhere. (The old knees are not what they used to be for getting down to pick up nails and screws. :rolleyes: ) They are pretty damn good for retrieving fish hooks from hard-to-get-at places in my boat as well.

The pictures below show one of these sticks that I have just made and shellacked to make it a bit fancy to give as a novelty gift to a brother-in-law who turns 70 this weekend. The raw material was just a Sabco broomstick from Bunnings which is cheap and comes with a plastic handle. Cheap and quick to make but with a few coats of shellac it looks passable.

http://img.skitch.com/20090408-qgyxf5rpud65ddfas1jq3yeyx7.preview.jpg (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bmyqa/skitched-20090409-000359)
Click for full size (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bmyqa/skitched-20090409-000359) - Uploaded with plasq (http://plasq.com)'s Skitch (http://skitch.com)

http://img.skitch.com/20090408-c7xtyix12bbgh89kd2dig3c17a.preview.jpg (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bmyq3/skitched-20090409-000613)
Click for full size (http://skitch.com/charleville2/bmyq3/skitched-20090409-000613) - Uploaded with plasq (http://plasq.com)'s Skitch (http://skitch.com)



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[Charleville]

Just a few more days and I should have something to show.


Ripper! I am looking forward to seeing photos of that! :)

[Phil Hansen]

When I was little my Dad brought home fun toy..... two scotty dogs... each had magnets in the front and rear....can't remember for sure... but you could make them chase each other without them actually touching or sort of "kiss"....
Had the same. Mine was a promo from 'Black & White Whisky'

[cadeuceus]

just a though for toy makers

be very careful making toys with magnets _ they are often bright and shiny and just the sort of thing that a child might like to try and pry out of a recess


if the glue fails and the magnet comes out _ then it forms a significant swallowing and choking hazard


also _ toys that are made with small parts need to be labelled as a choking hazard


a number of toys over the years have been recalled due to magnets posing a choking hazard>


also remember that older children often have younger siblings so therefore a toy made for a five year old and includes small parts may well be played with be the younger child and therefore poses the same hazard


safety first

[Charleville]

be very careful making toys with magnets _ they are often bright and shiny and just the sort of thing that a child might like to try and pry out of a recess


Yup! Good reminder, thanks.


Some generous use of epoxy to hold them firmly without crevices for leveraging them out sounds like the order of the day.


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[mickelmaster]

Well you could always place a small woden disc, quite thin, over the magnet so that it just looks like wood then it wont be such a hazard. Also, this is for you Ruddy, coins arent magnetic, so your idea wont work unless you had them in another little metal box, sorry I dont quite get what you said, maybe some drawings would help.

[Ruddy]

Michael,
A good suggestion.
A veneer covering the magnet certainly works and also adds to the mystery. It also will help prevent the magnets from chipping as they are extremely brittle. I am using the magnets to open and close the drawer that houses the coins, If coins were magnetic these rare earth magnets would never let this concept work.
A 10mm dia x 10 mm long rare earth magnet has a pull strength of about 5kgs. They are very strong.

Ruddy

[mickelmaster]

I know, i can get one for about $70 that pulls over 200kg and isnt very big at all. Im looking into creating a magnetic power generator in the distant future.

[mick59wests]

Ruddy,

I can't wait to see your money box'

Mick:)

[Ruddy]

Mick,
I have posted the moneybox in the box making section......

rgds

Ruddy

[munruben]

Also have to bear in mind that magnets are not good around people/children with pacemakers. My friends little boy has a pacemaker and he has to avoid magnets at all cost.

[Charleville]

Hmmm! Something relevant ...

http://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/About_us/News_and_events/Media_releases/2008_media_releases/20080514_government_inquiry_into_toys_with_magnets.html


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