Fan Questions

[rennch]

Hi,

I have some questions about my fan. I have an 11 blade fan from my 72T. 2 of the fins are chipped...is this detrimental to my alternator? They are small chips, but chips nonetheless. Are there places that fix/balance fans? And how much should I expect to pay for such a service?

Thanks,

mto

[tsuter]

Is it broke this bad?

Broke fan - How bad?

[Rot 911]

I don't know of any successful ways to fix a chipped fan. It is a magnesium alloy. In spite of what others might say, I have seen plenty of chipped fans work just fine. However all the chips have been at the outer edges. If the chip was down low by the hub I would be more worried about a fan blade shearing off.

[rennch]

Oh, God no! Not at all. Here are pics:



No, in fact, I never noticed anything wrong with it. I sold it in an eBay auction, and the buyer has mentioned that 2 of the fan blades are chipped, and he will need to have it welded and balanced or it will ruin the alternator. I am just trying to verify that before I refund his money. I never noticed any chips in it, but that doesn't mean they didn't exist. I don't think they are that big, though.

[rennch]

oops...

[Deeks]

What chips ? Am I going blind ?

[Bob Spindel]

There's nothing wrong with your fan. A few chips won't hurt anything.

[RickM]

Below are my guesses. Doesn't look too bad. Consider replacement while you have it out though. Also, look for stress cracks on the mounting legs of the fan housing.

[rennch]

No, I already sold it. I'm just trying to decide what type of recourse to give the buyer.

[Deeks]

I wouldn't give him diddly squat recourse.
There's not exactly anything wrong with the fan.... the condition it's in is all part and parcel of buying a 31 year old car !!

[walt]

Nothing wrong with that fan. I think the buyer is being overly critical.

[jluetjen]

How many times have a lot of people on this BBS come down heavy against sellers who don't support the products that they sold? It's curious that they're all silent now.

Cynicism aside, if I were you I'd tell the buyer that those minor chips (which are common) on the fan are by popular concensus no detriment to the performance. I'd also offer to happily give them their money back as soon as the fan is returned. Isn't your rating more important then the selling costs for this transaction? Happy customers come and go, but angry customers are forever.

By the way, how did you describe the fan in the ad?

[McDaniel]

I'd print out and send the comments from this board to the buyer,
if he still wasn't satisfied, I'd take the fan back, give him his money back, and sell it to someone who understands it has small
chips. Just my opinion.

[rennch]

I've offered to either refund his money entirely, or refund him $50 so he can fix it. He's going to take the $50 option, and hopefully still leave good feedback.

[RickM]

I think you handled it fairly.

I personally would have made a strong effort to point out the chips in the ad. Not saying you didn't but total disclosure makes things so much easier.

[304065]

Do you really want to spin this piece of magnesium at 1.68x crankspeed, at 6300 the fan is turning 10,080 rpm?

I don't have my physics book handy, but there is a boatload of energy contained in that fan and if it ever came apart I would not want to be standing in line with the blades.

[rennch]

Honestly, I didn't even notice the chips, otherwise I would have.