Jeff Eaker Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 I’m new to the fan restorative hobby and I just got a 73468 emerson 16 “ desk fan. When I plugged it in to see if anything happens it just made a buzzing noise. So I immediately unplugged it and and looked for answers to what may be the cause. It is not froze up it moves freely no tight spots to speak of. I’m thinking new coil and stator cleaning in addition to cleaning up switch. Any suggestions from the real experts out there. Could it be the switch transformer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 (edited) Hi Jeff. Welcome to the group. Nice folks here! What you describe can be caused by a number of things including wrong wiring (the result of someone doing some work and putting the wires back incorrectly as it relates to the speed coil in the base) and/or a bad speed coil. Try turning it on and spinning the blade in the correct direction (clockwise for Emersons) to see if it will run. If it does run under those circumstances then you may have a burned out start winding on the coil or a bad choke coil. If the former situation (bad start winding in the stator) it wll need a rewind or a new stator which isn't cheap. Emerson fans are well made and I haven't run into bad start windings on this particular model. I have seen bad start windings on centrifugal start Emersons (much earlier models than what you have). I'm guessing your issue has to do with the choke (speed) coil inside the base. Report back after you try my suggestion. Pictures of your fan (and the choke coil when you expose it) are always helpful when posting on the forum. Hope to hear more from you Jeff. Edited January 6, 2023 by David Kilnapp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Eaker Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 Yes I tried to spin while plugged in clockwise and it wont spin just hums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Eaker Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 Anyone have a reference for wiring to check im sure it’s not to complicated just want some thing to double check wiring easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 (edited) Sounds like a choke coil issue. Your fan (model 29646) dates to 1922-1925 and was produced in oscillating and non-oscillating versions. I can't tell which one you have from the pictures. Take a picture of the back please. Before you do much more, you should remove the cage and the struts and put them aside so that you can flip the fan upside down or put it on its side in order to examine the choke coil. You can remove the blade by locking the rotor in place and turning the blade CLOCKWISE to unscrew it. You lock the rotor in place by screwing a threaded rod (or long screw) through one of the threaded holes in the back (if there is one) until it butts up against the rotor tightly thereby locking it in place. If no threaded holes are in the back of the case, you can take a small screwdriver and insert it through one of the holes in the back of the casebeing very careful not to touch the stator with the screwdriver until you are able to keep the rotor from turning while you turn the blade clockwise. Once the rotor is locked, you should be able to get the blade off. It may be tight but it will come off. Put a glove on so you don't cut your fingers while you turn the blade. After the blade is off, you can remove the front cover. That won't effect whether the fan will run or not (i.e. the front cover can come off after the acorn nuts are removed and this doesn't effect the fan's operation). After you do the above, flip the fan on its side and remove the screws that hold the choke coil to the inside of the base. There should be three screws (sometimes four depending on the model) and slide the choke coil out of the base at an angle (to accomodate the switch lever coming out the side). Take some pictures and note how many wires are coming from the stator to the coil. Take lots of pictures so you have something to consult when putting things back together. Disconnect the headwires (coming from the stator) being careful to note where they connect to the choke coil. I find it's easy to take different colored fingernail polish - red, yellow and green, to mark both the wires (at the ends) and the spot on the choke coil where they connect with dots of fingernail polish. Once you have the headwires off, you will need to check for continuity with an ohm meter. You can get an ohm meter at any Home Depot or Lowes or hardware store. They are very inexpensive. Set the ohm meter for 200 ohms and put the red and the black leads on two of the headwires at a time keeping a record of the readings. Three headwires will require three readings. In the case of three wires, say red, green and black, the readings will be red to green, red to black and green to black. You should get three distinct readings. No reading for any of the three combinations means that you have a break in the wires somewhere (no continuity) and your problem will be isolated to the stator. Three good readings means that your problem is the choke coil. The above is a lot of information, I know, but it is useful to have particularly if you plan on acquiring other Emersons. A word of warning - this is a very addictive hobby. Very few people own just one fan after doing a restoration. Edited January 6, 2023 by David Kilnapp 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 (edited) Here is an Emerson wiring diagram for reference. The top diagram is your fan. Edited January 6, 2023 by David Kilnapp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Eaker Posted January 7, 2023 Author Share Posted January 7, 2023 Thank you Dave that was great info especially the diagram. I already have 4 Edison’s I’ve already became addicted. I’m a an antique collector so to say they remind me of a time when integrity and a firm handshake meant something. I have a 29 model A pickup I restored and many old motorcycles to date this is just another chapter my friend lol. I appreciate your help very much. And yes the fan mentioned is an oscillator. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 7, 2023 Share Posted January 7, 2023 Wow, that's a gorgeous Model A! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Eaker Posted January 7, 2023 Author Share Posted January 7, 2023 Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Carmody Posted January 7, 2023 Share Posted January 7, 2023 (edited) Judging by the model T you should have few problems restoring fans.Although sometimes it’s probably harder to find parts.Almost the only source of information is on this forum. Edited January 7, 2023 by Paul Carmody Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 Consider becoming a member. I have made many fine friends here! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven P Dempsey Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 If you ever need spare parts, let me know -the 29646 was my first Emerson! Document the process - - lots of small parts!! Gear box, collar has washers as shown Note the rotor was stamped 29646! & Please join the group! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Newcity Posted January 9, 2023 Share Posted January 9, 2023 The Emerson 29646 restores very nicely. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Kilnapp Posted January 9, 2023 Share Posted January 9, 2023 See, just what I said, nice people here!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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