Magnetizing Mecha! A how to...

So here's a quick rundown on how I'm magnetizing my gears. I started by buying a bunch of magnets in the following sizes:

• 1,5 mm x 3 mm
• 1,5 mm x 1,5 mm
• 1,5 mm x 0,75 mm
  

I bought mine from Amazing magnets, but I know they're available at a lot of other places as well.

So, let's begin with the torso. Start by cutting off the two knobs on the shoulders.

And sand it down to make it smooth for the drill.

Then drill two holes straight down with a 1,6 mm drill. The idea is to make it about about 0,75 mm deep. Basically drill for a little bit and then insert a middle size magnet and see how much of it pops up. When it looks about right that's when the hole is done.

When you've got the right depth put a drop of glue at the end of the magnet and press it down. Be sure to be careful of the polarity of the magnets! Use the same technique for the rocket packs but instead of having the magnet poke out, drill a whole that is deep enough so you can completely insert a 1,5 mm length magnet and then glue a 0,75 mm length magnet in there. This way it'll fit perfectly with the shoulder magnets. Again, CHECK POLARITY BEFORE GLUING!

Again, same idea with the hands, but here you want the magnets flush with the hand, so drill a 1,5 mm deep hole and insert a 1,5 mm length magnet. 0,75 mm magnets works as well for gears with smaller hands.

The weapons uses the same technique as the hands so I didn't bother to take pictures of it. But some guns, like the MAC, is a bit too thin to support a 1,5 mm diameter magnet so instead drill two 1 mm holes close to each other and insert two small pieces of wire. I use paper clips for this, but anything that can be magnetized works. You can do it with just one wire, but if you want a bit more stability two is better.

And that's it! The first time you do it it's a bit fiddly and will probably take some time. But now, after having put together half a dozen, it's actually rather quick.

One thing that needs repeating is to be mindful of the polarity of the magnets! If you put one in the wrong way around you just end up with arm/shoulder/rocket pack that you can't use, so make sure before gluing. It's also a good idea to keep the original gear you magnetize as a reference and always have that close by to make sure your magnets always match up (all guns have the same polarity etc.).

So, get magnetizing and let met know if you have any questions. Good luck!