Magic invisible buttons

ok, i'm no rocket scientist...but i have a current setup with the electric remote. been years since i messed with it, so without looking at the wiring, isn't there a relay currently in it? Can you just wire into that? Also the magnetic switch or sensor, are you talking something from home depot type hardware stores? is there a good brand you use?

 

Yes, as I said above, you only need 1 relay. The relay (whether its a new one or one in your set up) is what carries the load to activate the solinoid, rather than the switch carrying the amp load. You could even wire the switch in conjunction with your fob and use either/or, or even as a backup (but you still want to have a mechanical back up).

Yes, we use the cheap plain magnetic alarm switches like you get at home depot or radio shack. You can go more high end if you like, but I have yet to have a cheapo one fail me.

 

I tried finding the switches at Radio Shack and all of the hardware/home stores near where I live with no luck whatever. I finally went to Amazon and found them. I even found them in black which will fit much better with my colors. I have a kit from A1electric.com so I'm planning on hooking these into the existing relays as a back up in case I leave the fob in the car. I will just put a magnet somewhere on the car or in my wallet. I also will have a mechanical back up.

 

Ok, I've been asked for a wiring diagram on how to do this. There are a few ways depending on your magnetic switch. I use ones that are called "normally open" whick just means if you run an OHM meter across the opposite sides they will be open and you get no reading, if you hold the magnet near it, they close, giving you a connection.

If somone needs me to show a diagram on how to use a "normally closed" switch I can.

 

Thanks for posting this!


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I heard of a guy that had a switch like that right under his ignition switch and it would only turn on when the key chain magnet on the back of a beer bottle cap was slapped to the dash, i thought it was awesome and now i know how to duplicate it! Thanks!

 

Yep, Ive used them for starter buttons, door solinoids, trunk poppers, even window switches. Basicly anything you can use a momentary relay on.

No sweat Big Creep, if you need anything else, ya know how to get ahold of me.

 

thanks again! im doing it this weekend on an off topic 69 chevy low low.

 

If you cant find "normally open" switches, just let me know ad Ill walk you through it. Most alarm ones are normally open.

 

Hey "prewarcarsforme", I have a slight problem with this system working and wonder if you can help me out. Everything works as it should; wave the magnet over the switch and the door pops. However, the moment the magnetic switch is placed behind a single gauge panel and the magnet is waved, nothing happens. I've tried a magnet that measures about 1 1/2"x1/4"x3/4" (very strong) and it will energize the magnetic switch from almost 2 1/2" away, when it is not behind a metal panel. Have you experienced something like this. Love the setup, but can't get it to work as it should. Thanks in advance.

 

This is the third or fourth time I have read this in two days, how does the porcelain fragment break the glass so easily?

 

I havent had the issue. We have used them countless times behind metal (in fact ALL of them have been behind metal. Heres what I would try. First, take a piece of sheetmetal on your work bench and try it. This will tell you if your magnet is truly strong enough. If it doesnt do it on the bench test, then it might mean your magnet isnt strong enough. If it does, then what I would make sure is, since its behind a dash that you are only going through a single piece of sheet metal on your dash, and not several layers.

The switches are extreemely sensative, and even a week magnet with no interference would activate it. If youve ever seen the magnets used on the alarm switches, they are very small. If adding the sheet metal stops it, the magnet its self may not have enough draw.

 

Nice!

 

"PWCFM", I've done what you have said and that is....I took a piece of 20Ga sheet metal (about 4"x6"), placed the alarm switch behind the metal and brought the magnet close to it. It worked! As a matter of fact when I bring the magnet to within 3" of the alarm switch (without any metal between the two) it energizes. Placed it behind a single panel on my COE and brought the magnet close to it. Nothing. In fact the magnet is so strong that when I bring it within 3/4" away from the sheet metal, it becomes stuck to the metal very quickly and is very hard to remove. I think that my problem is that the sheet metal is too thick (almost 16Ga) and the expanse is great and the magnetic waves course throughout the sheet metal without affecting the alarm switch. I really, really love this system, but am at a loss as to what I can do next.

 

Where exactly are you putting the switch in the dash? Maybe place it near the bottom/back so there is no steel between it? Let me know where you are putting it and maybe I can help with a solution. Ive donr it a ton of times, and as you saw with the 20g it worked fine. Always more than one way to skin a cat.

Also, what kind of magnet are you using?

 

If you absolutely cant do it, you could always remove a small section of dash material and weld in a lighter piece of metal where you are mounting the switch.

 

Several years ago I watched a guy walk up to his custom, pull a card out of his pocket. The card looked like a credit card without numbers or writing, just the magnetic strip on the back. He slid the card into a slot on his door which you could hardly see cut right below the belt line chrome. As he slid the card in the door opened and I thought wow, that's high tech stuff, a magnetic card reader!. Turns out the card was just some plastic he made up and when you slid it in the door it hit a momentary switch. Any credit card or even a stiff piece of cardboard would open it. Still novel I thought.

Had a friend that shaved both inside and outside handles on his truck. On a road trip, windows up, A/C on he hadn't notice his charging system wasn't working till he got where he was going and hit the button to get out. Nothing worked, door poppers, windows (power) nor could he restart the truck. 102 outside, he about had heat stroke before someone noticed him stuck in the truck, he was about to start kicking a window out. Kicking out the window would get him some air but the truck was too chopped and he was too big, he still couldn't of got out. Add insult to it when they got ready to jump him to get him out the realised the battery was under a locked tonue cover and he had the keys inside. An emergancy cable to the outside is a good idea but mandatory on the inside if you shave the inside handles on anything I build.

 

Pretty slick, nice tech. Gotta love it when the O/P is willing to go the extra mile and really try and help with troubleshooting problems. Well done.

 

Yes, when putting in door solinoids, you should always have a backup if they fail.

Thanks, just car guys helping car guys.

 

Very cool, I think I'm gonna give this a shot. Thanks!

 

I was at Harbor freight and bought a pair of their magnets (craft) which are quite large, thinking they would set off the alarm switch. They didn't. I would mount the alarm switch somewhere else, but my Ford COE ('42) is devoid of all chrome or any stainless. These trucks were not exactly glittering in any respect. And so I am at a loss as to where to put the alarm switch. I know the magnets are strong because they will set off the alarm switch as much as 2 1/2" away (without anything inbetween).

 

I did a 49 Merc like this back in the mid 80s. He mentioned the Barris trick and wanted to do it on his car. I mounted a microswitch behind the center of the quarter panel behind the door. It took less than .030" to activate the switch. When you wave your hand, you bump the quarter at the same time with your knee, and the door pops open. There was a key lock hidden in the gas door that armed the microswitch when turned on, and would pop the door when turned to start. The microswitch was also interlocked with the shifter, so it would only work in park, so body flex would not activate it while driving down the road. The passenger door also had a hidden weatherproof button that bypassed everything except the door solenoid on that side, so if all the other means failed, he still had a way in. The manual handles on the inside still worked.

The same car had racing type jumper cable lugs in the wheel well so it could be jumped with no access to the battery. I've used them on other cars that do not have easy access to the battery.

I did a 47 Chevy pickup with the Bear claws in the jamb, and Nissan inside door handles mounted inside the jamb at the bottom of the seat manually operating the Bear claws from the inside. From the outside it has small magnetic switches mounted in the front of the bed rolls behind an aluminum cover painted body color, that grounds a relay. That truck also has a cable to the body sill for a backup. I have used the bed roll switches on several trucks.

The magnetic switches on my Marlin are at the corners of the windshield. I have glued them to the back of the door mirror glass on a couple cars.

 

27TallT, if you had to, maybe mount the original door handles, but don't actually hook them up. A hollowed-out area inside the pot metal handle could contain the switch. With the magnet hidden in your hand, no one will see how you activate the lock. I can just imagine the confusion from people pushing the button and getting nothing.

 

I dont know what to tell you, we do it all the time. Maybe if you cant get it to work under the dash, maybe put it under carpet, or behind a door panel, or even inside your seat covers. All I know, is what I showed pics of works, even several guys have chimed in and said theyve done it, so I would look at either different magnets or an easier place to mount it.

 

Still working on the problem. Going to try different magnets or find another location for the alarm switch, wherever that may be. Thanks for the input.

 

get yourself a "Wizard PK" magnetic ring like the magicians use. really powerful and no one would suspect its a magnet.