An updated design for holding counters on a vertical magnetic board and accessories to improve the experience.
Sorry for the tardiness, here is a video explaining that long tool:
And here is the assembly:
Post any questions below!
I was recently asked what the best solution for magnetizing a wall is. I will outline some options below:
Sheets of galvanized steel can be had from $10-$20 for a 24"x36" piece. Make sure it is steel, and not aluminum. Also, since you're getting it at the store, take some magnets to test.
What about stainless steel? Magnets will not stick as strongly to stainless as they will to plain steel. If you are willing to spend a lot more for the look though, make sure it is NOT passivated, as this can make it non-magnetic.
For a large sheet, this will be the best bet. Local places will be cheapest, but transportation may be an issue. If you are willing to spend a few extra bucks to have them chop a sheet into quarters, you can always reassemble on the wall (or make it modular!). There are a few places to get metal for a reasonable price. I found www.onlinemetals.com to have decent prices and reasonable shipping.
You can get rolls of magnetically receptive rubber. Don't bother. I bought a sample and it is simply not strong enough to hold anything of substance.
You can grab a poster size one for about $20. Large ones will be a bit more, with a nice double-sided one here and a big one here. Mounting these will be easier than mounting the sheet metal, which I'll explore a little below.
Once you have your sheet metal, you will want to mount it to a wall. First, clean both surfaces with soap and water and thoroughly dry it. Then, If you are planning on never taking it down ever, go ahead and glue it with something like Liquid Nails. If you want a semi-permanent solution (just a few screw holes) then buy a sheet of plywood or hard board, drill some countersinks, screw it to the wall, then glue the sheet metal on. Once you have it up, paint the metal with something to prevent rust (but not too thick obviously).
Other than the whiteboard linked above, I am designing a modular free-standing solution that I will share if it works at all (I'm giving it a 60% chance of success).
One of the printers is down. I have a third wave of parts on the way to fix it, but it was one of those fixing-one-problem-exposed-another situations, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this will do it. I'll try to get the instructional video up soon to give my tips and tricks for assembly. Let me know if you have any questions and Happy New Year!
I am very sorry it's taking so long to get these all made. Life and Work have conspired to some extent, but mostly it was poor planning on my part. I will be offering a special discount to backers once my online store is open. Thank you all for your patience.
I have my printers going full blast, stopping only for the occasional mechanical failure (only a couple), nozzle jam (all the time), SD card read error (new SD should fix this), poorly wound filament (Inland White PLA, I'm looking at you), Kapton replacement (piece of cake), or sleep (every night!).
I've packed many, many bags of Counter Magnet blanks.
I've separated out ~100,000 magnets and packed them by backer (along with the freebie and assembly tools).
Just a reminder, these magnets are dangerous of swallowed!
Now I just need to finish printing some accessories and I can start shipping in earnest! I'll post a separate update soon with some assembly instruction videos.
The magnets look great and are much stronger than the ones I've been using for prototypes. I've got one printer churning out clear Counter Magnets (they look great!) and the other printing other colors and accessories.
Is there a general desire for shipments to go out in waves according to the advertised ship dates, or is piecemeal okay with people? If you have a strong opinion one way or the other, leave a comment below!
I have the magnets and have measured them. I am in the process of nailing down the hole sizes to get the best fit for the printed Counter Magnets.
After that... well, Thanksgiving comes and eats up a big chunk of time. This leads to another small delay that will push shipments into early December.
I have found a better clear filament than in the pictures. It transmits much more of the color behind it! That leaves me with several extra spools of the not-so-clear filament I had planned on using. I plan on using the extra for accessories where clarity isn't so important. If anyone has an issue with this decision, please let me know.
Thank you,
Jesse