Bead Blasting Fan and Fan Housing?

[SeaDweller]

Hey gang,

I've poured through the 100's of posts regarding fan polishing, powdercoating, chromates, etc., and found that many folks had bead blasted the parts before having them done.

I powdercoated my last assembly, which turned out beautiful, but I'm not going to repeat with my new car. I've been scrubbing the fan housing with a Scotchbrite pad and Simple Green, but it'll take me days to get it cleaned up, particulary with all the channels on the outside of the fan housing. All I'm looking to do is get the fan, and fan housing clean, and restore the factory finish. I know it'll "age" in a few weeks, but I'm not concerned with that.

Can I have the fan and housing bead blasted, and simply install it after the bead blasting? Again, I don't want to get into polishing and powdercoating, so what does the freshly bead blasted finish look like? Has anyone just bead blasted the fan and housing to clean them, and installed them without further work?

Thanks!

[Argo]

Yup. I did polish a little with a scotchbrite pad after bead blasting just cause it was so easy to get an even nicer shine. Bead blasting alone looked great though. I couldn't believe how nice it turned out; it would have taken me hours to get a comparable result. Well, well worth the money. You'll be very pleased.

Argo
88 Targa

[RickM]

IMO: Bead blasted parts that are left unprotected will provide one heck of a "bite" for grease and dirt.
I bead blasted and shot the parts with a high temp clear. I do like the matte finish after blasting. The powder coated and polished assemblies look nice as well.

Here's my fan assembly:

[Slider79SC]

When I had all of my parts blasted and powder coated just a month ago, the blaster suggested using a glass bead on the fan because the glass does not move the metal around like sand will. This helps keep the fan in a more original state and will not cause it to be out of balance. And it puts a really nice finish on it to boot. If you don't want to go with color, I would also suggest putting a clear coat on it because the newly clean surface will pick up any and all blemishes such as finger prints when you install it.

[Argo]

RickM - I did think about the possibility of inviting even more gunk after bead blasting (the blasting making it perhaps a bit more porous at a microscopic level), but after reading up on the issue I decided that powder coating wasn't for me and I was afraid that clear sealer would eventually peel. I even considered putting a coat of wax on it. In the end I just reinstalled it after polishing a bit with the scotchbrite. Maybe that was enough to reduce the porousness; after a year it still looks great. It has oxidized some, but did so evenly and didn't seem to attract extra dirt. Then again, my engine compartment is very clean and the engine doesn't leak or burn any oil. How long has your clear seal been on; does it show any signs of peeling?

Argo
88 Targa

[masraum]

Another bit of info... If you buy a new fan it comes clear coated. The finish on the metal is just a raw finish, not shiny, but then the whole thing (except the pulley surface) is painted with a gloss clear. Also, the new fan housings are matte black.

[john walker's workshop]

i bead blast most of them when i do valve grinds, and engines, as well as the chain housings and rocker covers. i used to use krylon clear ignition sealer, but it seems to have been discontinued. now i just leave them.

[BGCarrera32]

IMO: Bead blasted parts that are left unprotected will provide one heck of a "bite" for grease and dirt.

That really depens on the media and air pressure. If you want to get the best results, you can buy progressively finer sizes of glass beads. In other words go for a rough cut, then medium (like 70/140) and follow with a polishing bead. Running your fan and housing in to the local auto parts store and machine shop might not be the wisest move as they might not have all the beads, or be very picky about the finish.

I recently did my intakes with 70/140 and they turned out quite nice. Flush your parts under water when done and blow out the remaining beads with an air nozzle. The best way to keep the fan clean is to wipe the tips of the fan off after every other drive.

Hey Rick- what's the orange donut thingie up by your air meter???

-BG

[BGCarrera32]

Here's a cruddy picture of my fan I have on hand...I blasted it to clean it up, and then painted it with an aluminum colored Rust-Oleum industrial paint that was supposedly chip resistant. So far it has worked good. The pulley wheel in the middle I painted black as it seems to collect plenty of crud anyway.

[RickM]

Let's see here: I did the glass bead blasting on these parts about 6 years ago. I used High-temp clear "engine" paint...I think it's the VHT brand paint that you see at most auto parts stores. In retrospect I wish I used a matte or satin finish and not glossy. I've had no cracking at all, but then again the car is rarely driven (soon to change) and has never been in rain or snow.

The new fans that I've seen come with a cosmoline or yellow-ish varnish type finish that is very uneven. I was not happy with the way my new fan looked and decided to refinish.

While I like the blasted look I would give serious consideration to having Al Reed polish the assembly.

The red "donut" thing? A cheesy auxilary siren (please don't laugh to hard) that I haven't gotten around to removing. Hmmm, maybe I'll hook it up to my intake....good for 20hp? ;-)

[GRMPer]

Some of the new "Cast Aluminum" finish paints work really well....great for timing chain covers too. Of course, it's not concours, but hey, it looks good.

Per

[code7rpd]

I would put on some clear sealer; the type used for hight temps and then bake it per the directions so it cures to be heaqt resistent. It will look nice and have adequate protection.

[Tom F2]

I think the factory yellow-green finish is "Dow 7, " which is a magnesium sealer developed way back in WWII for aircraft. I'd like to know if anyone knows of a place that will apply this coating. I gather it is fairly specialized.

[andrew15]

I had my fan bead blasted and left it uncoated about 8 months ago - I'll post a picture when home tonight

Regards,
Andrew M

[andrew15]

Heres a picture of my very dusty engine bay. The Fan and Shroud still retain their satin finish from the bead blasting. The slight discoloration on the fan shroud is only dried dirty water droplets from driving in the snow one day



Regards,
Andrew M

[SeaDweller]

Here's how mine ended up turning out.........