I found this neat idea for a homemade gauss meter, made from a CDROM Hall Effect sensor:
http://forum.gobrushless.com/archive/index.php/t-3793.html
Technical Article: http://archives.sensorsmag.com/articles/1297/he1297/main.shtml
Hacked Gadgets Instructional Video by Rick Hoadley (the Magnet Man) - http://hackedgadgets.com/2007/04/11/build-a-hall-effect-gaussmeter/