fan blade disaster

mass A man

mass A man

Well-known member
Had to post this sad pictorial of the results of old steel fans cracking and coming apart. May not be a Model A this time, but it happens. I met a man today that is fixing up a '31 Ford pu.I told him a few things but educated him about the notorious fan. https://forums.aaca.org/topic/32698...on-fan-disaster/?tab=comments#comment-1880604. I hope I posted this correctly so you can see this poor Dodge phaeton. Not only did the blade go through his hood, but almost went right through the fender. Took out the water pump & honeycomb rad. core!
 
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Fatigued fan blades are very common in these old cars. The Model A's are especially notorious for this. The original Model A fan blade is made up of 2 stamped sheet metal pieces that are sandwiched together and then seam welded together and spot welded to a hub. Moisture would get between the 2 layers of sheet metal and the fan would rust internally and weaken the structure. Also the blades would start to crack at the hub and eventually one blade would break free, often going thru the hood or radiator. I highly recommend an original fan be immediately replaced.

There is an aluminum fan that is shaped like the original that a lot of owners have been using with good success and also the "plastic" modern fan with a steel hub that works well but personally, I do not like the appearance of it.

There is an inexpensive 4 blade fan being sold where the blades mount to the hub with 4 bolts that I would NOT recommend. The blades are not stiff enough and will flex and can fatigue and fail with the same results as the original Ford 2 blade fan.

Again, please understand, this is just my opinion.

Chris W.
 
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Any engine driven fan on any vehicle including modern class 8 trucks should be inspected for cracks at every service.
 
I bought the plastic fan from Snyders. I agree the look is not my favorite, but I drive my car so I need something different.
 
Gene F said:
I bought the plastic fan from Snyders. I agree the look is not my favorite, but I drive my car so I need something different.
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I have one of those fans on one of my cars but on the others, I run an aluminium reproduction of the originals.
 
mass A man said:
Had to post this sad pictorial of the results of old steel fans cracking and coming apart. May not be a Model A this time, but it happens. I met a man today that is fixing up a '31 Ford pu.I told him a few things but educated him about the notorious fan. https://forums.aaca.org/topic/32698...on-fan-disaster/?tab=comments#comment-1880604. I hope I posted this correctly so you can see this poor Dodge phaeton. Not only did the blade go through his hood, but almost went right through the fender. Took out the water pump & honeycomb rad. core!
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Ouch. Your heart must have just sank. I cant imagine. I cant imagine the sound it made.:eek:
 
Sorry to see the damage caused, lucky that no one was hurt, the car can be repaired.
I would say that all 90 year old parts have started to reach service life.

But, the question arises, are we exceeding the design criteria for these vehicles as designed in the 20's and 30's? Even the two lane asphalt roads today are much better than the older roads and if you venture onto the freeway, definitely beyond the criteria.

John
 
johnneilson said:
But, the question arises, are we exceeding the design criteria for these vehicles as designed in the 20's and 30's? Even the two lane asphalt roads today are much better than the older roads and if you venture onto the freeway, definitely beyond the criteria.

John
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Fatigue failure prediction and analysis capability in those days was petty much a guess, and was not of real concern to the designers.........statistical analysis was about the best they had, and that was fairly crude. It wasn't until the '70s that fatigue and fracture mechanics became more of a science than a guess.
 
johnneilson said:
Sorry to see the damage caused, lucky that no one was hurt, the car can be repaired.
I would say that all 90 year old parts have started to reach service life.

But, the question arises, are we exceeding the design criteria for these vehicles as designed in the 20's and 30's? Even the two lane asphalt roads today are much better than the older roads and if you venture onto the freeway, definitely beyond the criteria.

John
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Back roads, little traffic, under 45 MPH. This has aways been our idea of where to be driving a Model A Ford.

Would you fly a Ford Tri-Motor with more powerful engines at 25,000 feet and 250 MPH?

Enjoy.
 
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