Wrap tape around the nail at about the center of the nail. Continue wrapping until the tape is about 1/2 inch in diameter.
Cut off one 10-inch piece of magnet wire and save it for later.
Wrap magnet wire around the nail between the nail head and the tape, leaving a tail of about 10 inches free near the tape. Continue wrapping until the entire space between the nail head and the tape has been completely filled. Leave a piece of wire that is about 10 inches long at the end and cut with wire cutters.
Lift up the top layer of the tape and place the wires in between the layers of tape.
Cut away about 1 1/2 inch of insulation from the wire with a knife or wire stripper.
Tape the end of the nail to the long, narrow end of a matchbox.
Use duct tape to tape the matchbox to the firm cardboard. The tape may pass over the open end of the nail.
Press the end of one pushpin into the end of the second pushpin to create a dent. Place a dent in the second pushpin in the same way.
Push the pins into the boxes or books so that the centers of the pushpins are at the same level as the center of the electromagnet.
Push the needle through the center of the cork so that it comes out of the center of the other side. The needle must be balanced and through the center of the cork.
Determine the opposing poles on the magnets by placing them near each other. The faces that attract are opposite poles and the poles that repel are the same. Glue the magnets to opposite sides of the cork so that the same poles are touching the cork. This cork is called the rotor.
Cut off about 1 1/2 inches of the insulation from the extra piece of magnet wire. Wrap one end of the wire around one outside contact of the reed switch. Tape the switch to the long, narrow end of the other matchbox so that half of it is on the matchbox and half is not.
Place the electromagnet in an open space. Place the books or boxes with the pushpins in them on either side of the electromagnet with the pushpins facing in towards the electromagnet. The nail in the electromagnet should be running parallel with the books or boxes.
Place the rotor in between the pushpins so that the ends of the needle are in the dents in the pushpins. Make sure that the pushpins are far enough apart that the rotor can spin freely. Move the electromagnet so that it is close to one of the magnets but allows the rotor to spin.
Place the switch on the other side of the rotor so that the part of the switch that is hanging off of the matchbox is near the opposite side of the rotor from the electromagnet.
Connect one wire from the electromagnet to each pole on the battery. Make sure that the electromagnet repels both of the magnets away from it. If it does not, switch the wires to the other pole on the battery.
Remove one of the wires from the battery and connect it to the open outside contact of the switch. Connect the wire already attached to the switch to the open pole of the battery. Close the switch to turn on the motor.