Stacked Magnet Disc Polarity Explained

Papa Bale gives a rundown on how his discs actually work. He starts with two four-inch discs and shows how the acrylic grips the pole. He measures the four-inch disc from side to side and explains there's a model in the middle that he needs more magnets to complete. He breaks down the components: discs of various sizes and a pole in the middle. He shows how two discs work together, with another eight-incher underneath allowing this to work in numerous different ways. He demonstrates how one disc fits right in the hole of another and levitates in the middle. If you flip it over, it sucks right into the hole. These magnets are not overlapping anywhere, yet they're feeling the same amount of force or even greater force. He pushes against his thumbs to show how strong the repulsion is. He then shows how the six-inch and four-inch fit inside the eight-inch, and how the ten-inch disc works too. He starts working the other side, flipping discs over to show the interactions. He wonders if the whole stack can fit on the pole and discovers it doesn't fit in one piece, but he could probably put it on there with some thought. He notes that when it's not levitating, it won't spin for real. He explains the law of physics that says you lose a certain amount of original force every cycle, and you need to reintroduce energy at some point or it's going to stop. He's been going with this and finds that less is definitely more when it comes to this type of setup. He experiments with different stack heights and configurations, counting out magnets in groupings. He tries to create a wave effect where the force goes gradually up to a third magnet, then plateaus, then goes down. He explains how staggered magnets with stacks of two and three create different effects that the spinning disc will eventually feel. He wants to get that wave effect going and make the whole sculpture jump for joy when the forces collide.