Magnetic Knife Rack

[HRRLutherie]

Hi all,

I'm making a knife rack for a friend's birthday, and was wondering what magnets to use. I want to strike the right balance between the magnets being strong enough to hold the knives in place, but not so strong that it wrenches knives out of the users hand. Furthermore, there's the issue of cost. Stronger magnets are more expensive. I think that the knife rack is going to be 500mm wide. These are the two magnets I have in mind:

http://www.first4magnets.com/rectan...n42-neodymium-magnet-6kg-pull-p3664#ps_1-2969

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/50-x-Neod...297?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3384136b71

I'd need to buy 8 of the first type, and 50 of the other type. The first type would cost £28 in total, and the second would cost £19.99 in total. The first type of magnets is rated at 6kg, and the second at 3.1kg. Which type of magnet do you think would be most appropriate?

Thanks in advance,

Hugo

 

[marcros]

It is a bit of an unknown. The thickness of wood between knife and magnet makes a huge difference.

If you have something in mind like the magblok (worth googling) then I would probably go with something like http://www.first4magnets.com/circular-d ... pull-p2557 and drill from the back to within a mm or two of the front with a forster bit. I would mark the position for each knife with a contrasting dowel. You nay get enough hold with smaller ones but it is a bit trial and error.

 

[Baldhead]

Here's a link to Mark Turners question about magnets,

magnets-for-tool-storage-t73147.html

As you can see First4magnets gave a lot if help, maybe worth getting intouch.

HTH

Baldhead

 

[HRRLutherie]

Thanks,

Since these magnets aren't cheap, I really don't want to have to buy them twice. I reckon that in order to create good coverage, the magnets will have to sit end to end for the length of the block (500mm, although I'll probably add a bit to that on either side for mounting). I'm planning to drill/route as close to the surface as possible, but the round magnets re 20mm in diameter, meaning that I'd need 25 or them, and at £2.45 each, that would extremely costly.

 

[sometimewoodworker]

You might do better with http://dx.com/p/diy-square-ndfeb-magnets-silver-30-x-10-x-2-mm-10-pcs-214951 for about £4 a set of 10

 

[marcros]

I was suggesting not making them continuous.

The other way of doing it is to cut a veneer from the workpiece, do what you need to to create a recess for the magnets and stick the veneer back on. You could risk going thinner that way.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

At £100+ for some of my knives, I can live with seeing the magnets - I'd rather not take a chance on the knives falling off.

 

[bugbear]

This thread (don't be deceived by the title, it drifted!) may be helpful:

lie-nielsen-bevel-edge-chisels-for-sale-t39128-15.html

BugBear

 

[HRRLutherie]

Thanks, that's really helpful. I think I'll go with these ones: http://www.first4magnets.com/rectan...n42-neodymium-magnet-6kg-pull-p3664#ps_1-2969 as they offer the same amount of pull as the ones detailed in the thread you linked, but are cheaper per cm of magnetic surface. This means they're are sure to work, and I can use the same thickness wood as detailed in the thread.