electromagnet

14 years ago

I was hoping someone would be able to help me here......I make sculptures out of steel wire (rebar tie wire to be exact) that people can put outside in their gardens/porches/lawns/ what-have-you. What I have been wanting to do is experiment with texture for these sculpture by taking the following steps. Get a large flat electromagnet (with some sort of steel top to make it like a table i could work on, stick my unfinished sculpture on top of it thereby magnetizing the sculpture and sticking various metal objects to it that I could then melt with a torch to achieve the desired result. Where would I find such an electromagnet? The sculptures are all fairly small (12" high or less) Can this be done? Thanks!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (4)

dave777_2009
14 years ago
I don't think you want to do this...

But an electromagnet could be purchased from Edmunds Scientific. Or, you could make one.

A strong, and powerful electromagnet is going to use some juice; and will not take heat very well.

They make welding magnets, which could just be stuck onto the metal, and hold some stuff together... while you melt and weld. Course - they don't hold up to heat reall well either.

You cuold use some rare earth magnets; such as Neodymium; which can be small and powerfull. But they are 'only' good for 500 degress F.

Plus - if the magnet is powerfull - like being your work surface, and radiating magnetic waves up toward your project - to hold it into posistion - your project will be pulled down by gravity and magnetism - into the magnet. It won't hold the shape you desire...
lascraigus
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks! My initial thought was conceived then I saw a show on Discovery Channel about scrapyards and those huge electromagnets they use to hoist cars around with for scrap. I thought "wouldnt that be cool to magnetize my sculptures somehow and then stick iron filings onto them and melt them to make it look well......more interesting!" Then I thought that (as you said) the sculpture would just be pulled down by the force so why not spray adhesive onto the whole mess and THEN proceed in the same way once it dries. I think that would produce some pretty nasty fumes which I for one do not want to inhale....unless I had a fan to blow it away while i worked. Which of course would snuff out my torch flame pronto! IF there were a way to produce a strong enough magnetic field so that it would be able to keep the heat far enough away from the electromagnet while I worked........ah hells bells.
Related Discussions
DIY electromagnet
Q
Comments (2)
Here's a simple electric motor... I remember making one on a mouse trap. Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.mymotor.org/
...See More
Clearwave device for hard water & B-W water heater
Q
Comments (5)
Plumbers are fine for replacing water heaters and other plumbing regular/irregularities but there are VERY few who really know anything about water treatment. In most cases you can temper anything a plumber says regarding water treatment with a 40lb bag of softener salt. To "soften" water is to remove calcium (among other things like iron) from the water and that is commonly done by one of two methods. One method is ion exchange as done by a water softener. A water softener exchanges either sodium ions (if using NaCl) or potassium ions (if using KCl as a SALT SUBSTITUTE) for calcium (and other) ions in the hard water. That's it, no ifs, no ands, no buts, and no sales double talk. Simple chemistry and physics. Softening water is not black magic. It is physics and chemistry with a side of mechanics. No matter how hard sales people try (and want) to they can not violate the laws of physics or change the nature of chemical actions and reactions. The other is by a filter and/or membrane technology or distillation, but no simple filter will remove calcium. You would need a reverse osmosis unit large enough to service your entire house. You would not want to pay for that big an RO nor pay for the service and routine maintenance it would require and RO water would be very aggressive in your plumbing and it would waste a lot of water. NO magnet(ic) gizmo or electronic gizmo or "conditioner" will soften water but people waste their money on them EVERYDAY. Check out this URL for one story http://www.nmsr.org/magnetic.htm and there are many more on the net if you Google. Pick the right softener (not a box store brand), size it properly for your water conditions and usage and the SFR of your plumbing, and get a competent install and you should go 15-20 years minimum as you've already done with your Culligan. The MOST IMPORTANT thing is that water treatment begins with a water test so you know what needs to be treated or filtered out to get the quality water you want. Hit the Yellow Pages and call at least three local water treatment pros. Make sure you call at least [b]one of the big dogs[/b] like Kinetico or Culligan for comparison and at least a [b]couple independent pros[/b]. Give each an opportunity to offer suggestions and provide you with a quote to meet your water treatment needs. IGNORE ANY THAT DON'T TEST YOUR WATER THEMSELVES as they can't speak intelligently to water treatment without knowing what needs to be treated. Ask lots of questions. Softening the entire house or just the water heater (bad idea)? Warranty, parts & labor or just parts, how long and on exactly what? Install, permits required, licensed plumber? Routine maintenance and costs? Do they stock parts? Response time for emergency (water leak) calls? If they don't explain things to your satisfaction that is a good indicator of how you'll be treated after the sale. Are all your treatment needs being addressed? Ask your neighbors if they have any water treatment experience. They might tell you who's good or who to avoid. Come back here and post the specific recommendations and hardware components with the costs and we'll give you our opinions.
...See More
Water well: dowsing, BS or not BS?
Q
Comments (3)
my FIL found my lines to the garden water hydrants. seeems they come due west out of the pump house for about 30 yards, then Tee one north for teh small garden, and one turns and goes southwest for the big garden and horse pasture. it worked to find my leech field lines as well. i have a friend who tried to teach me how to do it, but i never can hold the things still enough for them to work.
...See More
Favorite Cooking Technique
Q
Comments (22)
A few years ago, my answer would be grilling hands down, since we live where it's possible year round. However, since I got my Bluestar with griddle, I'd say griddling (is that's a word?) has taken over as first place. Pretty much anything that can be grilled, can be griddled, often with better results. Also, much of what can be fried, can also be cooked on the griddle. It is just so versatile I love it, and use it daily often several times. My griddle is followed closely by cast iron skillet and dutch oven cooking, not limited to frying only, often stovetop to oven roasting, and of course searing. Next would be simmering sauces, soups etc. I also stir fry maybe once a week or so. Boiling for me would be pasta and rice often, and poaching chicken now and then for shredded recipes, boiling potatoes for mashed, and hard boiled eggs. I steam veggies now and then, but also roast, grill, and cook them on the griddle:) I saute a fair amount, but usually it's ingredients not meals. I don't think I've ever braised that I know of. In the oven, it's home made pizza once a month or so, and a prime rib and Yorkshire pudding two or three times a year :) I do bake cookies, pies, biscuits and cakes but not regularly. I never cook in the microwave, very rarely even warm up in it other than coffee, and manage to live easily without one at our vacation place. Edit: LOL, I had to look up braising to realize I do it quite often! I just called it stove top to oven roasting ;)
...See More
dave777_2009
14 years ago
LasCraigus -

Your second post - you mention "iron filings". Your first post - you mention Rebar 'tie wire".

You could probably get away with this - if you magnetized the Tie Wire; and Magnetized the Iron Filings.

Have you ever noticed that when your welding - steel scraps are magnetized?? This occurs because of the heat, and the earth's natural magnetic field.

Iron filings are fairly light weight.

So, if you took some steel tie wire, and stroked it with a strong permanent magnet... (you need to move the magnet in the same direction for a distance pass the wire, and then move it UP and AWAY in bringing it back for the next magnetic stroke...) - you could magnetize the steel wire 'permanently.'

If you then take the iron filings; put them into a glass jar; and let them sit for a day or so next to a couple of strong permanent magnets - they too will become magnetized.

You could then weld up one of your wire sculptures like you normally do... then sprinkle on some of the iron filings, and then heat that up for your desired effect.

After you are all done, the sculpture probably won't be very magnetic - because of the heat. My previous post - I was looking more at using magnets; and not thinking about light weight and magnetism.

Please feel free to send me one of your cool sculptures :)
lascraigus
Original Author
14 years ago
Dave, this is a GREAT idea! I have been racking my brain for months now trying to figure this thing out! I think that is the best course of action. Besides, I think it would be too dangerous and not very cost effective to try it the way I had previously thought of before. Thanks for your help!

electromagnet

Comments (4)

dave777_2009

lascraigus
Original Author

Related Discussions

dave777_2009

lascraigus
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

electromagnet

Comments (4)

dave777_2009

lascraigusOriginal Author

Related Discussions

dave777_2009

lascraigusOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

lascraigus
Original Author

lascraigus
Original Author