It Happened: The Hydraulic Press Was Defeated

Frankly, I was getting a little bummed that the mighty hydraulic press so easily crushed all of its opponents. Sure, it's cathartic to watch a block of LEGOs deflate into a paper-thin wisp of plastic, but c'mon, everyone likes to see a little competition now and then.

Now, thankfully, it seems the monster machine has finally met its match. The folks over at YouTube channel PressTube recently paired the press against a neodymium magnet—the strongest type of permanent magnet available.

This magnet isn't just any magnet, it's a super magnet. And by that I mean its force is strong enough to crush a human hand or finger, mess with a pacemaker, and even derail a plane's navigation systems. When handled incorrectly, it can also inflict fatal injuries.

Neodymium magnets are rare-earth magnets made from an alloy of neodymium, iron and boron. They're mostly used by manufacturing industries, which is why China—which controls large supplies of neodymium—isn't so eager to export its cache of rare earth elements to countries such as the United States.

Neodymium magnets have been known to hold up 1,000 times their weight. But how would one stand up to the brute force of a hydraulic press? Ladies and gentlemen, as you can see, it stood up pretty damn well. Not only did the magnet survive the crushing weight of the press, it actually repelled it for a time.

According to PressTube, the only harm done to the magnet was an internal crack that later split it in two. But as for its anti-smooshing properties, I think it's safe to declare this magnet a winner.