Grit dog wrote:
Doesn't answer your question directly, but you can magnetize your dipstick (for whatever reason you feel that is necessary) with a length of wire and a car battery.
I would be very careful about making your own electromagnet.
Using a car battery and a "length of wire" is pretty vague and potentially a hazard when combined with a car battery. Car batteries can deliver thousands of amps into a short circuit.
Not long enough wire and too heavy of wire can create one whopper of a spark right over top of the battery which has the potential to blow the battery up..
Too light of wire and you have the potential of a big fuse blowing up in ones hands blowing hot metal all over the person. Essentially, you need the length of the wire to have the correct resistance to draw current and not cause catastrophic damage to ones self.
Much better option is to take a existing strong magnet, attach to the end of the dipstick and drag it off the end of the dipstick. Repeat this a few times, check to see if dipstick will grab and hold small screws. If not strong enough, repeat same action a few more times.Have done this many times over the years to magnetize screwdrivers and there are lots of sources for very strong magnets now days which can pinch your fingers if not careful.
Do be aware, any magnetism that may be developed on the dipstick via these methods ARE "temporary" at best. The magnetism will fade over time and even the vibration from the gen motor may help to make it fade faster requiring one to repeat the process every few yrs.
Metals used in making magnets are specially designed for the purpose of making magnets.
Not sure as to why the OP needs a magnet in the gen engine, you have very few steel parts in there, basically crankshaft, camshaft, lifters, rings, cylinder liner and perhaps a few ball bearings.. Been playing with small engines for yrs, I can assure you, you find metal pieces that are attracted to a magnet and you have done something bad wrong.
