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Tearing force range (kg)
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1Know what the number actually measures
Pull force is measured with the magnet in direct contact with a thick, flat, clean steel plate, pulled straight off at a right angle. It is a comparison figure obtained under ideal conditions, not a promise of what the magnet will hold in your application.
Everything that separates the magnet from the steel reduces it: an air gap from 1 mm, a coat of paint, dust, rust, or sheet metal thinner than the magnet.
2Apply a reserve of 2 to 3 times
Take the weight you need to hold and look for a magnet rated two to three times higher. A 1 kg sign therefore needs a magnet in the 2 to 5 kg band, not one rated at exactly 1 kg.
Add more reserve if the joint will be opened often, if there is any vibration, or if the counter surface is painted or thin.
3Check the direction of the load
A magnet resists a perpendicular pull many times better than a sideways slide. A magnet rated at 10 kg may start to slip under a couple of kilograms of shear load.
If the load hangs down along the surface rather than pulling away from it, either move up several bands or add a mechanical stop, a lip or a screw that takes the shear.
4Use the bands as a shortlist
- Up to 0.3 kg: paper, labels, light signage, models and experiments.
- 0.3 to 2 kg: keys, small tools, curtains, name plates, light covers.
- 2 to 5 kg: cabinet doors, inspection hatches, display panels.
- 5 to 15 kg: heavier doors, fixtures, workshop holding.
- 15 kg and above: industrial fixtures and handling, where you plan the handling as carefully as the holding.
5Do not treat force as the only parameter
Two magnets with the same rating can behave completely differently. A tall magnet keeps more of its force across a gap than a flat disc of the same rating, a higher grade reaches the same force in a smaller body but tolerates less heat, and the shape decides how you will mount it at all.
Tip: Above roughly 15 kg, handling becomes the limiting factor rather than holding. A magnet in that class closes across several centimetres, crushes fingers and cannot be pulled off steel by hand. Choose the strongest band only when the application genuinely needs it.
Related categories to the Selection by pull force category
- Pull force up to 0.3 kg
- Pull force 0.3 to 1 kg
- Pull force 1 to 2 kg
- Pull force 2 to 5 kg
- Pull force 5 to 15 kg
- Pull force 15 to 50 kg
- Pull force 50+ kg
- Block magnets by pull force
- Cylinder magnets by pull force
- Ring magnets by pull force
- Atypical magnets by pull force
- Cylinders with hole by pull force
- Self-adhesive magnets by pull force
- Ferrite magnets by pull force
- Selection by temperature resistance
- All neodymium magnets
Frequently asked questions about pull force
With the magnet in direct contact with a thick, flat, clean steel plate, pulled straight off at a right angle. The steel has to be at least as thick as the magnet is tall, otherwise it saturates and the reading drops. It is a standardised comparison figure obtained in ideal conditions, which is why the same magnet holds less in practice.
Two to three times the weight you actually need to hold. A 1 kg object therefore calls for a magnet in the 2 to 5 kg band. Allow more if the joint is opened frequently, if there is vibration, or if the magnet will meet a painted surface or thin sheet metal rather than a solid steel plate.
Because the load is acting sideways. Magnets resist a perpendicular pull far better than a shear load sliding along the surface, and a magnet rated at 10 kg can start to slip under a couple of kilograms of side load. Add a mechanical stop, a lip or a screw to take the shear and let the magnet do only what it is good at.
Not in every situation. In direct contact they are comparable, but across a gap a taller magnet keeps far more of its force than a flat disc with the same rating. The grade matters too: a higher grade reaches the same force in a smaller body but usually tolerates less heat. Compare force, shape, height and temperature together.
Above roughly 15 kg, handling becomes harder than holding. Such a magnet snaps shut across several centimetres, can crush a finger caught between it and a steel surface, and cannot be pulled off by hand once it has closed. Choose the highest bands only where the application really requires them, and plan the handling in advance.
Pull force is the parameter customers search by most often, so we state it for every single magnet and let you filter the whole neodymium range by it, in seven bands from under 0.3 kg to more than 50 kg. We also explain the conditions the figure applies to, because a magnet on thin, painted or rusty sheet metal never reaches its catalogue value. If you tell us the weight, the surface and the direction of the load, we will tell you which band you actually need.
