Magnetic OU principle, You should really take a look at this !

[lumen]

I did a bunch of tests over the weekend to look for any difference between the work done when expanded washers move into the field compared to the force of compressed washers.

There is actually quit a difference, but after calculating the work required to compress the washers while in the field,it ends up to be exactly even!

It is like every line of force that is used to do work requires the same work to remove it. All the tests I have ever made using magnets as a source of energy always balance in the end.

I really thought this may have been the one that was different but I am sorry to say crap!

If anyone else has had any better luck I would like to hear about it cause I hate it when things don;t work as planned.
(and I don;t like being a fun wrecker)

[nightlife]

I found that using just one magnet and just two washers works better.

Washers will fan when attracted and then they need to be compressed just before center of attraction. They also must be positioned so that the center of compression is center with the center of polarity. This can be done by using a guide rail so that it allows the washers to fan out at the first attraction point and then compresses the washers together just before the center of the attraction point and then keeps them compressed until the washers come up to the next magnets first attraction point and then repeats the process.
It may be best to use 8 magnets on the outside of a wheel with a nonmagnetic track attached around them that will compress the washers and then have 8 stationary points fitted with the washers.

The fanned attraction is strong enough to throw the compressed washers into the next attraction point. The compression must not be too tight and must have a little play. When the washers are compressed together at the center of polarity, they have very little draw back attraction.

[MarkSnoswell]

I did a bunch of tests over the weekend ... All the tests I have ever made using magnets as a source of energy always balance in the end.

I really thought this may have been the one that was different but I am sorry to say crap!

If anyone else has had any better luck I would like to hear about it cause I hate it when things don;t work as planned.
(and I don;t like being a fun wrecker)

You are correct. On this macro scale the change in reluctance due to the separation of the washers results in greater attraction of the stack of washers to the magnets causing their separation -- this balances any imagined energy gains from cycling the reluctance in this way. But the failure to break the zero sum energy cycle with these type of devices does not mean that there is no hope for this avenue of research -- However you need to work with solid ferromagnetic materials where the mechanical changes in the material are due to molecular stresses linked to the quantum nature of magnetic domains. At this level there are some indications of non-reciprocal cycles that can lead to non zero sum solutions.

Anyone wishing to find out about a whole range of highly non-linear and other interesting effects in this area should do a search on multiferroics. The area of multiferroics really only began in 2005 and has exploded since then with new discoveries every week it seems.

[BEP]

It is like every line of force that is used to do work requires the same work to remove it. All the tests I have ever made using magnets as a source of energy always balance in the end.

I really thought this may have been the one that was different but I am sorry to say crap!

If anyone else has had any better luck I would like to hear about it cause I hate it when things don;t work as planned.
(and I don;t like being a fun wrecker)

@lumen

Your results match mine. However, these results are needed for the idea I’m pursuing.

From already discussed: If using a coil as the source the flux varies only very slightly from expanded to compressed washers. I say ‘washers’ but I’ve done very few experiments with them.

My experiments are with laminations with increasing gaps. Some will call them SMOT ramps but they are not toys. Not only do the washers try to separate but the magnets will move to the separations they are trying to create.
Since there is very little difference in flux density between compressed and spaced there is very little drag created at the point where the gaps are greatest and where they are suddenly compressed.

The simplest form would be similar to a rail-gun but the rail is not a rail with sequentially pulsed magnets. The projectile would be the magnets with flux passing through the rail. The rail would be multiple short sections of laminations. At one end the laminations would be compressed. The gap between laminations would increase like an opening Geisha fan.

The projectile will seek the widest point, within limits. The trick then is an old electric motor trick. If the rotor has an odd number of poles then the stator needs to have an even number of poles.

All you need is enough projectiles/magnetic points, with the correct spacing between them, and they will keep moving.

My idea is basically three fixed points 0, 120 and 240 as stator. A 20 section rotor. Each section is pie shaped and the wide end varies in gap between the layers. I'm on the road again now but was well into assembling the rotor sections. I'm using only two dognut shaped magnets. One around the rotor shaft on each of the two faces. The stator sections are roughly 'C' shaped making magnetic connection from the face of the donut magnets to the outer diameter of the rotor.

When complete at the point where one rotor section is leaving maximum spread there will always be two points where the flux is trying to reach maximum spread.

I've done it again    No real documentation. Before you throw this idea out consider it.

The use of this spreading is not over yet 
   
--------- when is said pie shaped I mean as in a slice of pie or radial section
--------- rather than take my words as gospel try a C-shaped magnet over fanned strips of iron.

[BEP]

Thought about it over night....

I'm teaching a 2 week class far from my bench. No fancy software on this idiot box but I'll sketch something and send a photo later tonight.