Come spring, it may be time for you to consider joining the growing number of hobbyists who have taken to magnet fishing. The pastime has grown enormously in popularity in recent years, says online magnet dealer supermagnete of Germany.
To do this, a strong magnet is attached to a sturdy rope and cast into a lake, river or pond. Once ferromagnetic items are attached, they can be pulled from the water. The fascination lies in the fact that you never know what is waiting at the end of your hook … uh, magnet: a safe, knife, key or just a tin can or screws.
Magnet fishing is a hobby suitable for everyone. But, before casting your first “lure”, there are a few basic things to keep in mind, explains the company. Similar to geocaching, magnet fishing has become a veritable sport. The objective is to retrieve metal objects from well shafts, rivers and lakes with the help of fishing magnets. Customers of supermagnete have managed to salvage age-old cannonballs, but also rusty bicycles, nails and much more. And that is exactly what makes magnet fishing so alluring, it notes: You never know what will come to the surface, attached to your magnet.
But it is not quite as easy as it sounds. You can’t just buy any type of magnet, toss it into the nearest water and hope to pull up a huge treasure. supermagnete provides important pointers on its website where, of course, you can also order your fishing gear.
Depending on where you go magnet fishing, you will quickly come across smaller or larger finds. But what do you do with the rusted nails and screws, the bottle caps, the bicycle rim or the rusty iron rod? You cannot simply leave these items behind on the shore or throw them back into the water. You must take everything you find, and which is of no value, with you and dispose of it properly or risk a fine because environmental pollution is a punishable offense.
You are a beginner and want to get started right away: Sets with an oblong pot magnet and a nylon rope are perfect for that. Thanks to its rounded edges, this magnet is less prone to getting snagged and easily slides off obstacles.
For the more advanced, supermagnete carries three strong retrieving magnets. These heavyweights have two adhesion surfaces, and there are two different options for attaching an eyebolt. For beginners, retrieving magnets with adhesive forces of 30 or 45 kg are advised. Experienced magnet fishermen and women, on the other hand, will enjoy retrieval magnets with up to 400 kg adhesive force. Adheseive force versus shear force makes a difference, the company explains.
Based in Gottmadingen, Germany near the border with Switzerland, supermagnete has operated its online shop for magnets since 2003 and has filled more than 2 million orders. Today the staff numbers more than 50 members, filling more than 224,000 orders annually. For more info, see www.supermagnete.de.
