Use That Magnet! Repurposing A Great Product!

Have you ever purchased a “kit” that came with many options but you only used one of those options and then had left over parts? We usually hold onto the good stuff that is left over, just in case we need it in the future right?

Well after a while of collecting those misc pieces, there comes a time where they just beg to be put to use! And the kit we are referring to is the Rugged G1 Adventure Series Waterproof GMRS Mobile Radio with Antenna!

Our readers know that when it comes to communications, there is only one company that we trust and use. Taken from their website, when Greg Cottrell, Founder and President of Rugged Radios, started this company he set out to revolutionize the offroad communications industry. That dream grew into the communications giant that is Rugged today, manufacturing communications for Work, Race, Play.

Whether you’re ripping through Baja in your UTV, hitting the single track with your friends on the weekend, or taking flight in your Cessna you need communications you can trust. With nearly 30 years experience in manufacturing high noise environment communications, Rugged Radios boasts a full line of communication products. From industrial job sites to agriculture to fire & safety – we offer Communications For Any Environment.

I have collected a couple of these UNI-MAG magnets from the radio kits always thinking I would find a use for them. I had even mentioned to Greg that they would be a perfect “goPro” or action camera mount a while back. Cleaning up the shop one afternoon, I was trying to figure out how to better mount a Dometic water faucet for easier and more convenient use.

Since on the newer Jeeps, like the JT and JL, many of the body panels are aluminum, and there are very few flat areas for the Dometic faucet to stick to. It does have a small magnet in its base though and if it had a flat spot, it would stay there.

Enter in the super strong Rugged Radios Magnetic Antenna mount. It was time to take it apart and see what options it would give me. It turns out there are mounting screws on its face and would provide an easy place to attach a small “shelf”.

I grabbed a piece of mending plate (thin steel) I had laying around and threw it in my mechanical brake (my vice) to bend a small ledge on the plate. A couple hits with a hammer to bend it, a shot of black paint, and I was ready to test it out.

Was it pretty? Not really. Was it functional? Absolutely! And is that Rugged magnet strong? Wow! It will “stick” to anything a magnet will stick to…and NOT MOVE. It works and was made with a few things I had laying around in the shop.

Have you created something that was different from its intended use? Share your projects with us!

Dometic GO Hydration Water Faucet

UNI-MAG Universal NMO or Magnetic Antenna Mount

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