Grampie's Magnetic Coat Rack

Magnetic Coat Rack
11/27/99

This project was kind of and experiment, I had no idea if it would stick to a metal door, let alone hold four kids coats and bags!
Why a coat rack to stick to a door? Well my wife runs a daycare in our home. There's not alot of room and she didn't want it up all time. I wasn't going to drill holes in my new fire rated door....

so a magnetic idea was worth some thought.
What I tried to do was to have the magnets near the top, so it could be removed easily by pulling from the bottom. After much trial and error, I discovered the magnets need to be perfectly flush and slightly raised 1/32" above the surface.

This is a pic of the back, finished. The magnets are 1/2" thick and 2 1/4" dia. I drilled their holes with a forstner bit and epoxied them in. Shims were needed under some of the magnets. The straight-edge was needed to check the magnets for flushness.

1" holes were drilled for the pegs. Scrap blocks clamped to the drillpress table guide the stock Click Here for setup tips for drilling acuratelly placed holes at an angle. It's not tough at all! Use your browser's "back" button to return to this page.

The 1" dowels can be rounded by hand with files and sandpaper. I used a 1/2" roundover bit with a ball bearing. The arrow shows bit rotation.
Click Here for setup directions and a safe way to do this! Use your browser's "back" button to return to this page.

I chucked a 1/2" cove bit in the router table, and plowed a 10" finger pull into the back of the rack. This really wasn't nessecary, since you can pull up on the pegs and the rack easily releases from the metal door. A small rubber bumper in each of the lower corners keeps the coatrack from sliding down the door. I used the self sticking pads that come with those self closing hinges.

That doesn't look to shabby...but
will it hold???
I finished the back with a clear spray finish.Coat the magnets heavily so they don't scratch your door. The front side I finished with a satin poly.

There ya go! And a prefect height for the 2 and 3 year olds! It does slip if the kids are too aggresive, but we don't have that problem.
If this is something your interested in trying, and run into trouble, I'll be glad to help out where I can.

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	This project was kind of and experiment, I had no idea if it would stick to a metal door, let alone hold four kids coats and bags! Why a coat rack to stick to a door? Well my wife runs a daycare in our home. There's not alot of room and she didn't want it up all time. I wasn't going to drill holes in my new fire rated door....
	so a magnetic idea was worth some thought. What I tried to do was to have the magnets near the top, so it could be removed easily by pulling from the bottom. After much trial and error, I discovered the magnets need to be perfectly flush and slightly raised 1/32" above the surface.
	This is a pic of the back, finished. The magnets are 1/2" thick and 2 1/4" dia. I drilled their holes with a forstner bit and epoxied them in. Shims were needed under some of the magnets. The straight-edge was needed to check the magnets for flushness.
	1" holes were drilled for the pegs. Scrap blocks clamped to the drillpress table guide the stock Click Here for setup tips for drilling acuratelly placed holes at an angle. It's not tough at all! Use your browser's "back" button to return to this page.
	The 1" dowels can be rounded by hand with files and sandpaper. I used a 1/2" roundover bit with a ball bearing. The arrow shows bit rotation. Click Here for setup directions and a safe way to do this! Use your browser's "back" button to return to this page.
	I chucked a 1/2" cove bit in the router table, and plowed a 10" finger pull into the back of the rack. This really wasn't nessecary, since you can pull up on the pegs and the rack easily releases from the metal door. A small rubber bumper in each of the lower corners keeps the coatrack from sliding down the door. I used the self sticking pads that come with those self closing hinges.
	That doesn't look to shabby...but will it hold??? I finished the back with a clear spray finish.Coat the magnets heavily so they don't scratch your door. The front side I finished with a satin poly.
	There ya go! And a prefect height for the 2 and 3 year olds! It does slip if the kids are too aggresive, but we don't have that problem. If this is something your interested in trying, and run into trouble, I'll be glad to help out where I can.

Home	Recent Works	Help Tips	Plans	My Shop
Vinny's Ride		Who's Grampie?		Resources
	Plans for your shop!		WOOD Magazine Plans	Email