Emerson 78646-BC project (post #2)

[John Landstrom]

Got the fan blade off - thanks again Stan.

This is a non-oscillating wall mount model so there was no help online for this.  

Next I needed to get the cast iron front motor housing/bushing cover off the motor.  Due to the thickness of the paint (original nice black from the 2 others I’ve seen here - and the thick grey painted on by or for the Navy) I used a utility knife to cut/scrape the paint at the seam where the front cover meets the motor.

First tried to pry at the slot with a large screwdriver being careful not to touch the stator wires inside.   Didn’t budge.   Next tried two screwdrivers- one as a base and the other as a wedge.  The cover came up about 1/32” and began to bind the rotor shaft to the point it wouldn’t turn.  Not wanting to damage the rotor shaft, bearings, or risk cracking the cast iron cover I decided to make a tool to help.  

Using a 1/4”x6” machine screw, some nuts, and a spare bracket for an old LCD TV wall mount kit I came up with something I could insert into the cover vent slots and tap with a small hammer (in an upward manner) to try and “urge” the cover to release.   I used my twin screwdriver trick to get the cover up the 1/32”, then I took my time working around the cover inserting the bolt head inside each vent hole and tapping with a small hammer.  Didn’t hit it hard.  
At first I thought it might be a lost cause but on the third or fourth go-round I started to see a minute amount of progress.  After 8-9 times around it popped clear.  No damage to the cover.   
 

It may not be the most elegant method, but it worked for me…..and the “tool” didn’t cost a dime !

Couple of notes.  
First I used a penetrating oil around the seam where the two parts meet - both before and during the effort.  I used a very small artist’s brush to put it around the seam.  
Second I had two nuts (jammed) to prevent me from pushing too far in and touching/damaging the stator wiring. 
Finally I used a downward and outward pressure on the machine screw to keep it at the outermost (thickest) area of the vent hole.  
Don’t know if it mattered but I didn’t have the motor clamped in anything.  It was sitting on top of an old shop vac filter I use as a stand.  
 

it may seem silly to post this, but who knows it might help someone else who has a similar issue getting a front cast iron motor cover off.  
 

Now, onto thinking about removing the rear cover and if possible the stator.  Anybody successfully done either?
 

Edited January 1, 2023 by John Landstrom
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