Last night while putting ships away I broke another Raider off it's stand. It is a relatively quick fix, but before I made yet another Franken-Raider held up by a paperclip I wanted to see if anyone has experience magnetizing these models to the stands, and maybe achieve a more aesthetically pleasing solution. I was thinking this might be a less breakage prone way to hold ships to the stands, but I didn't want to go down the road only to realize too late that it was not going to work.

I was considering 1/8 Neo Magnets, but wanted to see if the size was adequate to hold the models without being too large for the scale and detracting from the overall. Ideally, I would like to do squadrons too, but for now I am mostly concerned about my poor small ships which just seem to be constantly be breaking at the peg.

I have never magnetized the Armada models, but I have done a lot of magnetizing of other models in other games (most recently the Dropzone Commander dropships and other flying models to their flight stands). A 1/8" rare earth magnet should be sufficient for just about anything that's made of plastic and as part of a joint that slots in for extra stability. You may need to remove some of the plastic around the ports, however, until you find a setup that fits smoothly while looking nice. Simply adding magnets to the current setup will result in the plastic pegs hanging out due to the extra height added by the magnets.

I have never magnetized the Armada models, but I have done a lot of magnetizing of other models in other games (most recently the Dropzone Commander dropships and other flying models to their flight stands). A 1/8" rare earth magnet should be sufficient for just about anything that's made of plastic and as part of a joint that slots in for extra stability. You may need to remove some of the plastic around the ports, however, until you find a setup that fits smoothly while looking nice. Simply adding magnets to the current setup will result in the plastic pegs hanging out due to the extra height added by the magnets.

Do you mean the ports on the stands, or on the ships?

My plan was snip all the tabs off the ships, drill a small hold in the base and set the magnet flush with the ship. On the stand I was planning on grinding the slot portion down until I had a flush surface to mount the second magnet on, HOPEFULLY with minium overhang. Alternatively I could fill the slot with epoxy and mold some up around the magnet to create a bit more aesthetic look, but that would probably mean painting the stand.

I meant either, really, but more likely the tabs on the stands would be the ones causing trouble. See how much total height they take up - if removed they may clear up enough space for a pair of magnets without any need for drilling.

Be very careful to keep your polarities consistent with your magnets. Being able to use all your stands interchangeably with all your models removes a lot of headaches.

If you use a permanent marker you can use it to help remind you of the polarity of things.

If you use a permanent marker you can use it to help remind you of the polarity of things.

I use this method myself and I recommend it.

Three magnets.

Levitate.

Its space dammit.

Three magnets.

Levitate.

Its space dammit.

Electromagnetic table and 5-6 magnets per model for stability should give us the desired levitation effect. Incredibly temped to try.

(Disclaimer, I work in the commercial architecture business and am sitting in an office above a warehouse filled with industrial electromagnets)

Much as I'd love to see a board of hovering ships, I think getting them to stand still in order to actually play the game would be nigh impossible.

It would be a great way to display them though.