"Polished nickel steel" works GREAT with a magnetic chalk holder
I just noticed that the metal kits that shapeways has for sale are ALL stainless steel, coated different ways.
Most stainless steel metal that I own has very little if any attraction to magnets of any kind.
Looking forward to hearing from any of you who get one of the metal chalk holders to hear if a magnet will hold to it tightly.
Thanks,
JoeyA
Joey (and shannon.spronk):
Just a quick note to let you guys know that I received my chalkholder yesterday -- Polished Nickel Steel -- and it works GREAT with my ChalkShark magnetic chalk holder. Additionally, what I like about this holder is that it holds onto a cube of chalk quite firmly, and even as you wear down the whole top surface of the chalk, when you push-up the cube (through the hole), it stays in that position even while you're chalking (i.e. the cube doesn't push/slide back down into the holder).
You'll recall I ordered the original design, with no flat faces except for the bottom (which has a hole). Even with this hole, the magnet holds onto the outer rim of the bottom surface quite strongly. However, I've just ordered the new design with the flat surface (on the "Z"-lettered side), and that should prove to be an even stronger hold, since the whole surface will be in contact with the magnet in the ChalkShark. And, what's nice about the placement of this flat surface, is that it's on the
side of the holder, so you can place the chalk holder onto the magnet with the chalk facing upwards (towards the ceiling, as you're standing with the magnetic chalk holder on your belt), and not facing outwards to the side, as when the chalk is attached to the magnet by the bottom of the cube. The facing-up orientation would minimize chalk dust from falling out of the cube (onto your pants or the chair you sit in), and also minimize the cube itself from marking chalk lines onto anything you might bump into.
FYI to Joey: "polished nickel steel" is NOT stainless steel. It's just steel with a nickel coating, that's been polished to a sheen. So your concerns of reduced magnetic pull are a non-starter.
Can't wait to receive the new design! I'll write a review once I receive the new design, with pics to show how it works with a magnetic holder like the ChalkShark.
Hope this is helpful,
-Sean