Special current distributions that are widely assumed to have vanishing self‐force in fact can have sizable magnetic forces. The Lorentz self‐force is often miscomputed by ignoring part of the magnetic self‐field in the traditional model of force‐free configurations. Furthermore, magnetic stresses in general do not vanish when the Lorentz force does. These stresses are responsible for the observed deformation of Lorentz force‐free electromagnets. Although straightforward, these results revise some long‐established models in superconducting magnet design, magnetic confinement fusion, and astrophysical magnetic fields.