Magnetic Storage Question

[Shockmaster]

Probably a dumb question but I thought someone on here more experienced with this idea might be able to help.

 

I knocked together a practice box using what I thought was magnetic sheeting that I had bought years ago for WFB movement trays, all great, the minis with the neodymium magnets in their bases stick great to it, very secure, don't move even when I turn the box on it's side.

 

So I ordered a couple of small sheets of the magnetic sheeting but when it turned up it is glossy(unlike the product I purchased years ago) and the same miniatures do just about stick to it but they are prone to sliding at the very least and sometimes falling off when I do the box on it's side test.

 

After doing some searching online, I see the phrase Rubber Steel sheeting mentioned, is that a different product to magnetic sheeting and so have I just bought the wrong thing? 

 

Thanks for any help anyone can offer.

 

[Major_Gilbear]

Just as there are different strengths of magnet, there are different strengths of magnetic sheeting.

 

Unfortunately, short of asking the seller if they have any info, or trying it out as you've done, I don't really know how you can tell when buying the stuff online - whilst "proper" magnets often have a pull strength, the magnetic sheeting doesn't.

 

Same thing with magnetic paint too.

 

 

...I suppose the only thing to do is to research or look for user reviews on the specific product name (if it has one).

[Shockmaster]

Thanks for the advice, I just can't find a conclusive answer if Magnetic Sheeting is the same product just with a different name as Rubber Steel Sheeting, maybe I will just order a sheet to see. 

[Arkhanist]

In short, buy rubber steel sheet, it'll work better.

 

Magnetic sheet is itself magnetic, usually with stripes of N and S on one side and adhesive on the other. Rubber steel is iron particles embedded into a rubber sheet, so it's not magnetic itself but provides something for magnets to stick to, like sticking them on your fridge - it usually comes with an adhesive backing. Ferromagnetic/steel paper is a similar idea, with paper as the base rather than rubber but harder to find.

 

Magnetic sheet isn't ideal for use with strong permanent magnets such as neodymium. Say the magnet has a N pole against the sheet; it will be attracted to the S stripes and repelled by the N stripes. As it's strong, the magnet will warp the sheet's field so it will stick (and stronger ones do it more), but it's still not that great an effect. Left it place, it can leave permanently changed weak spots on the sheet.

 

Both poles on a magnet stick to ferromagnetic materials such as iron and steel well. There's a handy chart half way down here which confirms which magnets work best with what.

 

So since you have neodymium magnets in the bases, for the box (or tray) you want a thin non-stainless* steel plate for max strength, which is admittedly a pain to work with and prevent rust, or instead a rubber steel sheet for the next best thing that's flexible and easily cut to size. Rubber steel is usually matt, while magnetic sheet is often glossy (often made of plastic), so hazarding a guess the first stuff you used was actually rubber steel sheet.

 

Magnetic sheet is more useful when you want to stick ferromagnetic materials directly to it, or glued onto something light, then stuck to a steel or rubber steel surface.

In other words, it's a cheaper alternative to put on the base underside (it also comes as tape) instead of the neodymium magnet with rubber steel sheet on the box for both types to stick to. It won't grip as strongly as neodymium magnets do though, as it's usually a a fairly weak magnetic field in the sheet.

 

You should be able to test your new magnetic sheet on some steel (fridge, radiator) to get an idea of the strength to see if it'd work for you as an alternative to magnets, or whether you'll just send it back.

 

Neodymium magnet to neodymium magnet (with opposite poles) is the strongest bond of all, but impractical for box use, especially as I suspect you haven't kept the same pole on every base...

 

 

 

* stainless steel, depending on how it's made, can often be non magnetic.

Edited January 18, 2018 by Arkhanist

[Major_Gilbear]

Thank you for your very helpful explanation Arkhanist. :)

 

I have thin sheet steel for my WHFB regiments (which is a nuisance to cut), but I have also resorted to just putting a grid of magnets into a plastic movement tray and then lined up corresponding magnets in the models' bases.

 

The main reasons for my avoiding other sheet materials for these applications is for the same reasons as Shockmaster; I've never really been able to determine exactly what I'm buying, and my few explorations into it yielded disappointing results.

[Shockmaster]

Awesome, thanks a lot for all the info, I will order some of the Rubber Steel Sheets as I expect that is what I purchased years ago for my WFB models and just got confused.

 

Annoying that I wasted £7 on the magnetic sheets but at least I have a solution now.