In a long magnet, the center has less attraction force?

[Rapadura]

I'm not a specialist in magnets and in magnetic fields (I no even bought my first neodymium magnet yet). So I will ask for the help of the specialists in magnetic fields here:

In a long magnet, the center has less attraction force?

From the drawings I had saw in my life, I imagine that the magnetic field lines in a long magnet (cylinder or bar) are more or less how in the drawing I posted bellow.

Is it right? And if it's right, is the attraction force less powerful at the center of the long magnet? Could a steel ball escape from the magnet by going perpendicular to the center of the long magnet?

[Rapadura]

Judging by my question, I think you can imagine that my idea is that in the drawing bellow:

[Rapadura]

Where are the specialists when we need them? 

The little ball can escape the magnet going perpendicular to the center?

[mscoffman]

@rapadura

Yes, the magnetic field lines have a neutral area near the middle.
Sensitive detection of magnetic neutrality is how the Gray pure
magnetic motor supposedly operated. As magnets discharge slighly
from their strength from when they are new, the position of
this field neultrality is going to change slightly.

I realise that your diagram is only an approximation but...
The problem is when then ball closely approaches the pole of
the magnet there is an area of "control instabilty" due to the
1/(R^2) attractive nature of the magnetic field, plus the
lentz law braking force developed in the ball's material slows it
down. The ball is not normally intelligent - that is it doesn't
normally have a control processor to steer it away from the
ever stronger magnetic pole... So it becomes difficult to
guarentee the objects trajectory in engineering terms.

As it becomes difficult to control the trajectory of an object nearing
the magnetic maximum, it's also very difficult of get all the energy
out of a very close magnetic approach because of the speed with
which it happens. It goes exponential for a while and it is changing
very rapidly.

I have an idea if one would use a mechanical onboard flywheel to slow
the object down during approach one could save the energy normally
lost to lenz interaction, one could then change the equation of
energy storage which normally involves the forward and rotational
momentum of the steel mass of a ball. I think experimenters are
often stuck with these two types of energy storage equations that
don't let overunity interactions happen then claim the task is
impossible because they didn't think outside the box.

:S:MarkSCoffman

[Rapadura]

I have seen many videos on Youtube of steel balls passing the magnet a little, and then being pulled back. It happens because of the omnidirectional nature of magnetic attraction.

But, if the ball was inside a closed tube, and this closed tube was curved, in such a way that it goes perpendicular to the middle of a long magnet, after passing by the first pole? Couldn't we build a system of ramps where the ball can escape from the magnet in a angle less inclined than the angle of the ascension phase?