Jump to content

2X 20s-40s Emerson fans. Seeking info and advice


Chris Jacobsen

Recommended Posts

Hi Everyone,

 

I'm new here but have been into vintage fans for several years now, all desktop till this point.

I just purchased a couple of Emerson ceiling fans to restore and install and I could use some info on identification and wiring for them.

85641 AL Just the motor, will need arms and blades, I think the AL indicates a gloss black finish?

46641 Also just the motor, missing a speed coil

Does anyone have some sort of a chart to identify the features and wiring of these?  Also is there any info on removing the armature to recondition the bearings and clean out the surely nasty old oil?

I was also wondering if modern arms could work with these, I would hate to have an old original arm only to have it fatigue and lose a blade.  We have a son 😃

On the side, the salvage store has an old 1940s Graybar fan complete I think.  Is there any info so I could identify it and possibly wiring?

thanks for any info!

Chris J

Link to comment
Share on other sites

85641 would have been mahogany brown I believe.

These are just standard 3 speed fan wiring. The coil goes between the hot leg and the motor. The fan will run without it installed (only on high, obviously).

The oil cups on those unscrew counter clockwise, then you can access the bearings. Only other thing to remove is the bottom plate and the rotor will come out.

What's wrong with the irons? They should be cast iron but if they are stamped steel, even better, those can be adjusted. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for your input Andrew,

"85641 would have been mahogany brown I believe. "

The 85641 doesn't seem to have ever been painted over and the coat appears to be a black of some sort, just wasn't sure if it was satin or gloss.  Brown sounds nice too now that you mention it.  I'll have to see if I still have automotive paint in brown, I know I have about a half gallon of gloss black I used to paint a jag. 

"These are just standard 3 speed fan wiring. The coil goes between the hot leg and the motor. The fan will run without it installed (only on high, obviously). "

I was actually thinking of making another speed coil for the 46641 out of an old transformer, I just don't know what gauge of wire would be ideal and the ohmage for the windings.  Never made my own coil before but the concept seems basic enough.

"The oil cups on those unscrew counter clockwise, then you can access the bearings. Only other thing to remove is the bottom plate and the rotor will come out. "

About the bearings, will try to take them apart and see if I get hung up, sounds straightforward.  Any sources for new replacement parts/kits for these?  Would the parts cross you think?

"What's wrong with the irons? They should be cast iron but if they are stamped steel, even better, those can be adjusted. "

I am a bit wary of irons, I have seen a lot around that have repair welding done, I also had a bad experience with a cheaply cast vice that had its head snap off, found it had a lot of bubbles in the casting, snapped like a twig on the first tighten on a pipe.  We have several newer fans that have been used since the early 2000s, light weight and no issues blades so I am a bit biased. 

Do you happen to know much about the 46 and 85 series fans?  I'm searching for any article that can determine age and maybe features.  I assume these are simple one-way (clockwise?) shaded pole motors but have not dug into them yet so I'm clueless.

 

thanks,

Chris J

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chris,

I recently restored a 1942 Emerson 87641-AL (the reversible version of your 85641-AL) and I used Rustoleum Satin Dark Walnut, which is fairly close to the original finish on the fan.  Your 85641-AL is a bit different, aside from being nonreversible, using cast iron blade brackets and turning CCW, giving you a downdraft airflow.  It was made in either 1941 or 1942.  Your thrust bearings are swappable between the 46641 and 85641.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Derek!

 

I actually saw your videos on youtube about restoring these, very nice job by the way.  I suspect these one-direction fans were mainly used in stores where reverse airflow wouldn't help anything but stir dust!  The first question that came through my head after watching your videos a few weeks ago was how you knew so much about these fans, color, motor type, age, is there a book or a database on these somewhere that I could look to find a reversible fan for the future?  Also would it make sense to build a speed coil to reduce the speed to a crawl or maybe one of the speed controls used on a modern fan can do the job?  I just don't know what sort of controller would be safe for these.  Thanks for the info on the bearings, when I pry one open I'll see what needs to be done, I am hoping maybe I can order some new ones on Ebay as these are probably well worn. 

Chris J

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chris,

There are a few ways to slow down an antique ceiling fan:

  1. Factory speed coil.  Hit-or-miss.  Some offer decent speed separation, some very little at all.  You can definitely rewind one.  Just keep in mind that if the slow speed is *too* slow, the fan will not be able to self-start on Low.  I've found most Emersons can reliably start and run at about 100 RPM at a minimum.
  2. Capacitor.  A good option for adding a nice slow low speed, just keep in mind that they will hold a charge without a bleeder resistor.  I've been zapped a time or two during testing using these.  For 36" fans, usually a 10-12uF is a good range for a low speed.  For 52"+ fans, start around 20uF and go from there.
  3. Triac-based Wall Speed Controller.  KBWC-15K or similar.  These work great on some fans but not so great on others.  They can introduce an annoying buzz on certain fans.  They do seem to play nicely with Longnoses though.

For bearings, you can look for an Aetna F-6 or INA/Andrews GT6.  They can be a little tricky to find.  Only replace your bearing if it is worn or loud - I'd say about 80% of my restored Emersons use their original factory bearings.

Edited by Derek Warnecke
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the reply Derek,

1. Do you happen to have some idea of what ohmage range would be typical of a low speed for the speed coil?  I could then calculate the length by gauge to hit close to it.  Totally understand that this hit or miss comes from if too little then the insulation has already been damaged in the test.

 

2. I think I will play with this option too, I assume the capacitor will have to be in series with all of the windings, don't the capacitors get hot though?  In passing that sort of current maybe polymer aluminum would be best for lower ESR?

 

3. The triac is a good, I have one to experiment with.  So long as there are no ill effects like overheating it is worth a shot.

Thanks for the bearing sugggestion, will see if I can find a couple.  By the way, do you know which older emerson fans are reversible?  Can I potentially rewind one to make it reversible?  Also is 15W40 or SAE30 good for lubricant?  I have some redline lubricant left over that may be suitable but it is a little bit thicker than SAE20.

 

Thanks,

Chris J.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

51 minutes ago, Chris Jacobsen said:

Thanks for the reply Derek,

1. Do you happen to have some idea of what ohmage range would be typical of a low speed for the speed coil?  I could then calculate the length by gauge to hit close to it.  Totally understand that this hit or miss comes from if too little then the insulation has already been damaged in the test.

 

2. I think I will play with this option too, I assume the capacitor will have to be in series with all of the windings, don't the capacitors get hot though?  In passing that sort of current maybe polymer aluminum would be best for lower ESR?

 

3. The triac is a good, I have one to experiment with.  So long as there are no ill effects like overheating it is worth a shot.

Thanks for the bearing sugggestion, will see if I can find a couple.  By the way, do you know which older emerson fans are reversible?  Can I potentially rewind one to make it reversible?  Also is 15W40 or SAE30 good for lubricant?  I have some redline lubricant left over that may be suitable but it is a little bit thicker than SAE20.

 

Thanks,

Chris J.

1. A speed coil will usually only give 2-3 ohms of resistance.  You can check some of my past posts - I believe I included a schematic for the 87641-AL I restored with ohm values:

2. I use 450VAC-rated CBB61 capacitors from eBay, connected in series.

3. Reversible Emersons are model numbers: 81641, 49641, 86641, 87641, with various suffixes.  Nonreversible Emersons can't really be rewound to be made reversible without considerable effort.  All but one model (87641-AK) are reversible shaded pole motors, so each motor pole has a pair of wound shading coils that are shorted via a SPDT Levolier to change the direction of the motor.  They also have rotors with bidirectional oil lubrication grooves, and the 36" reversible models have physically larger motor castings than the nonreversible models.  I use Zoom Spout in most of my ceiling fans, or a good 20W or 30W synthetic if there is a bit more shaft wear.

Edited by Derek Warnecke
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you Derek, I appreciate your input.  I'll check on the coil, I will need to build another coil for the other fan...  Well maybe, I might just install a speed controller, it's pretty hard to find a coil fitting for that space unless someone has a used one or two that I can buy.  Do you happen to know of anyone who has 1 or 2 very old AC voltage fans they may have for sale?  I'm looking for some more interesting fans to replace the noisy asian fans we have around. 

I will probably use the 46641, maybe I can move the coil over to it, restore and possibly use the 85641, I would prefer a reversible fan but had no idea when I bought it what could be done.  Makes sense what you said though, the grooves need to be made in the opposite direction for it to lubricate correctly so even if it were to go reverse the spiral channel would need to be machined into the shaft.  Thank you for the model numbers, I'll keep an eye out and be patient =). 

Will seek out the Zoom Spout oil, I like the goose neck and that it is rated for industrial use as well. 

One other question, does the oil need to be changed every 4-5 years perhaps?  I am a bit concerned about the stability of the oil after I found an original 80s Hunter fan with original oil that had mostly solidified and gone nasty in the reservoir.  I was able to revive the fiber washer but that corrupted oil was tough to clean off. 

 

thanks,
Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Popped open the 46641, the bearings useful life os finished.  Going to see another thrust bearing.  I am going to guess the dimensions.  The 85641 bearing is worn but not completely finished, there is rust on it.  Probably will also replace it by approximation and ebay.  Anyone have an idea of an NSK or other part number for a good bearing substitute for either?

Also is the lower bearing pad for the 46641 leather or maybe felt?  It is solid and will probably dissintegrate on removal for cleaning.  

Question on the 46641, does anyone know if it has an oil return galley or other method?  It appears the oil will travel up but stays up, maybe stays suspended in the middle?  

Also the front plate/grille for thd 46641 was broken, came apart when I unscrewed it.  I am guessing I need to have it welded somewhere.

Thanks,

Chris

20230517_094617.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/9/2023 at 3:20 PM, Chris Jacobsen said:

Thank you Derek, I appreciate your input.  I'll check on the coil, I will need to build another coil for the other fan...  Well maybe, I might just install a speed controller, it's pretty hard to find a coil fitting for that space unless someone has a used one or two that I can buy.  Do you happen to know of anyone who has 1 or 2 very old AC voltage fans they may have for sale?  I'm looking for some more interesting fans to replace the noisy asian fans we have around. 

I will probably use the 46641, maybe I can move the coil over to it, restore and possibly use the 85641, I would prefer a reversible fan but had no idea when I bought it what could be done.  Makes sense what you said though, the grooves need to be made in the opposite direction for it to lubricate correctly so even if it were to go reverse the spiral channel would need to be machined into the shaft.  Thank you for the model numbers, I'll keep an eye out and be patient =). 

Will seek out the Zoom Spout oil, I like the goose neck and that it is rated for industrial use as well. 

One other question, does the oil need to be changed every 4-5 years perhaps?  I am a bit concerned about the stability of the oil after I found an original 80s Hunter fan with original oil that had mostly solidified and gone nasty in the reservoir.  I was able to revive the fiber washer but that corrupted oil was tough to clean off. 

 

thanks,
Chris

I think you're overthinking this a bit. These are really simple devices. Just clean them out. I change out the fans fairly frequently in my shop, and will commonly just flush them out with WD40 and then put in whatever oil I have. The old "non-detergent" myth doesn't apply to ceiling fans since they have no porous surfaces. I honestly think that Zoom Spout is too light and will evaporate. Plus bugs seem to love it. But I have some fans installed at my folks house 20+ years ago still chugging on their original oil fill.

You can just get some leather scraps and cut out new washers for them. I've done that plenty. 

Those bearings from that 45641 do look shot, any bearing shop should be able to fix you up with something good. 

I prefer the 85641 personally. It's an evolution design. I have one on my porch that was installed to keep my dogs cool 2 years or so ago. Has never been turned off since, even during storms. Doesn't make a peep. I'd suggest using that one. A speed controller will give you a better low end on these fans.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Andrew Block said:

I think you're overthinking this a bit. These are really simple devices. Just clean them out. I change out the fans fairly frequently in my shop, and will commonly just flush them out with WD40 and then put in whatever oil I have. The old "non-detergent" myth doesn't apply to ceiling fans since they have no porous surfaces. I honestly think that Zoom Spout is too light and will evaporate. Plus bugs seem to love it. But I have some fans installed at my folks house 20+ years ago still chugging on their original oil fill.

You can just get some leather scraps and cut out new washers for them. I've done that plenty. 

Those bearings from that 45641 do look shot, any bearing shop should be able to fix you up with something good. 

I prefer the 85641 personally. It's an evolution design. I have one on my porch that was installed to keep my dogs cool 2 years or so ago. Has never been turned off since, even during storms. Doesn't make a peep. I'd suggest using that one. A speed controller will give you a better low end on these fans.

 

Thank you for the input Andrew.  I read articles earlier on just flushing with WD40, however I'm a bit more snoopy and decided to investigate the condition of the innards, "just in case".  The 85641 was revealing, the dirt dobber bees had made a nest in the oil return galley ages ago and had backed up the oil, looks like the motor had slung oil everywhere a few times.  The remaining oil was filled with sand, grit and oil that had turned to sludge or hard varnish.  Couple balls in the race were frozen too causing scoring and flat sided balls.  I gave the oil cup, rotor and other parts a soak and scrub to make sure it lasts.  The older 46641 had years of metal dust sludge, ball bearings missing and maybe half a teaspoon of what I assume is dirt from being in a storage shed.  True that these are pretty simple devices made to last but I would have to add to bring one back should really involve a thorough cleaning to have them last another 100yrs.

I am comparing these Emersons to a couple Hunter fans I have which used some nice felt washers, I'm sure dampening any bearing noise.  I was thinking about that too but don't have a source, maybe car battery felts? 

I just scored a qt. of SAE30 compressor oil then thought, according to the original instructions on a 1920s Westinghouse fan, it said to "change the oil every season".  Guess that could be because dust, oil degradation and bugs.  Oil being cheap and not too hard to swap I may just use synthetic detergent oil, it keeps the junk suspended but also generally won't cake/harden.  I will probably try one in either fan and see what works.  So long as it reaches the top and drains it should be ok I would guess. 

I found bearings that should be a good match already, will see how they are in a couple weeks.  I like how the new bearings have 3X as many balls, only maybe more noisy, will see.

Personally I like the older 46641 for the styling, the innards not so much, the rotor lacks an oil return...  I guess it is just meant to suspend oil in the shaft...  would starve the bearing so maybe that was the flaw I just found, that and the rotor side of the bearing had no race so it dug a groove into the rotor...

 

Just a heads up to any fan restorers, if anyone has a front cover to an Emerson 46641, I could really use one! 

 

thanks,

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can use any felt or leather. McMaster sells dense wool felt. Not sure i'd go synthetic, because it might break down in the oil. As long as the rotor sits at the same height in relation to the stator, you can put whatever you want. I've used needle bearings and shims to achieve this.

Most of these fans don't have really great tolerances. You lost a bunch of oil as it's being pumped up; I'd say only 20% makes it into the upper reservoir. The early fernleaf models had no oil returns and they worked fine.

The Westinghouse suggested changing the oil because oil back then was basically mildly better than whale oil; it went racid and broke down. But lots of these fans have developed a sort of "seasoning" on the surfaces, which allowed them to keep running with no liquid oil. I've rescued lots of fans that were completely dry but running fine.

This Emerson in my moms breakfast room has been there for decades. It's filled with basically gear oil, because it has a microscopic crack somewhere in the oil cup casting and will drop oil into the globe. Very slowly..

View recent photos.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting, how did you get needle bearings to seat properly?  I know they need to be pretty well centered to prevent sliding + friction wear.  I was considering them too but I would have to mic the center shaft and keep tolerances within about 0.5mm - 1.0mm thusly I decided on balls as the races will self center with the grooves. 

Guess that makes sense, the oil will get suspended in the shaft.  Did the fernleaf fans use something like SAE30 or SAE40 then?  It will be pretty hard to tell how high the oil is getting in the upper reservoir.  Maybe I can run it, then pull the rotor and check the oil line trace in the upper reservoir.

I like that globe you have on there, reminds me of the Sees Candies stores.  Wish I had more access to these older fans, being in CA they are pretty scarce and very hard to find anyone willing to attempt to ship one.

 

thanks,
Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The needle bearings were the same ID, we just had to shim them to account for the height.

I don't know what the original oil weight was, but whatever it was, the stuff today is better. Again, I think you're way overthinking this process. Obviously having the oil circulate is a better design, but I don't think I have ever encountered a longnose with a worn out shaft. GE, yes, but never an Emerson. These things run at 225 RPM, they're not really stressing any of the components. If it makes you feel better, you could probably swap the rotor out for one with a return, but these fans ran for decades with no issue on the original design. Just clean it up and hang it. No need to reverse engineer a 100 year old design if it's functional. 

Attached is a picture of one from my house. The lady who lived here her whole life until she died at 97 told me that the fan came from a church across the street when it was torn down right before WWII. They paid $5 for the workers to remove and reinstall it in the "summer kitchen" attached to the garage. They only bought one because it was the only one with a light on it. She said they used the fan every summer until AC was installed in the 60's and then they quit using the outdoor kitchen and converted it into a "playroom" for the kids, wherein the fan basically just ran all the time. This continued after the kids grew up and her husband used it as a workshop, the thing ran 24/7. He died 30 years ago and they continued to let it run for air circulation to keep the stuff stored in there dry. It was running on the day I took possession, probably not having been oiled in 50 years. It was not happy, and very scratchy sounding, but it was running. I did nothing but run some oil in her cup and she runs like the day Emerson packed her in a crate. 

She's hung up there with a t-ed off pipe sitting on top of the joists so taking her down will require 2 people and be a pain so I'm just going with it until we absolutely need to.

On a side note, you want another longnose, I've got 40+ of them in stock. 

IMG_7444.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Andrew Block said:

The needle bearings were the same ID, we just had to shim them to account for the height.

Yup, they are definitely thinner.  I considered needles for a while but they are really made for a serious load, need better precision to align (prevent rapid roller wear) and can be more noisy so I figured balls are more forgiving and the original design lasted long enough, the balls did not even have a race so the whole cage shifted around everywhere wearing it out.  I'll bet if it had races the assembly would still be good today.  I guess my main gripe was that the lace of the upper bearing race meant they used the bottom of the rotor as a bearing surface which unfortunately did not wear well.  I will probably use a leather washer to help compensate.

I don't know what the original oil weight was, but whatever it was, the stuff today is better. Again, I think you're way overthinking this process. Obviously having the oil circulate is a better design, but I don't think I have ever encountered a longnose with a worn out shaft. GE, yes, but never an Emerson. These things run at 225 RPM, they're not really stressing any of the components. If it makes you feel better, you could probably swap the rotor out for one with a return, but these fans ran for decades with no issue on the original design. Just clean it up and hang it. No need to reverse engineer a year old design if it's functional. 

Agreed, the oil is much better today.  My only one concern is the "Original Hunter fan, if overfilled will spray oil all over your room when the upper reservoir overflows".  I would hate to clean up that mess from the white walls...  I also have a longnose apart and compared the rotors, they do look similar but the design is different in that the compressed plates are all shifted with respect to each other, I assume it is a design improvement but not sure how it would respond to the old stator, I could experiment after I clean and paint it all up. 

Attached is a picture of one from my house. The lady who lived here her whole life until she died at 97 told me that the fan came from a church across the street when it was torn down right before WWII. They paid $5 for the workers to remove and reinstall it in the "summer kitchen" attached to the garage. They only bought one because it was the only one with a light on it. She said they used the fan every summer until AC was installed in the 60's and then they quit using the outdoor kitchen and converted it into a "playroom" for the kids, wherein the fan basically just ran all the time. This continued after the kids grew up and her husband used it as a workshop, the thing ran 24/7. He died 30 years ago and they continued to let it run for air circulation to keep the stuff stored in there dry. It was running on the day I took possession, probably not having been oiled in 50 years. It was not happy, and very scratchy sounding, but it was running. I did nothing but run some oil in her cup and she runs like the day Emerson packed her in a crate. 

She's hung up there with a t-ed off pipe sitting on top of the joists so taking her down will require 2 people and be a pain so I'm just going with it until we absolutely need to.

That fan looks great, exactly what I have in mind for our living room.  Thanks for sharing the story, to me that really adds value and I love the nostalgia.  Was the speed switch (if it has one) converted to one of those levolier or ball chain types?  I assume the hanging switch is for the light.  I really want to add lights to mine, hate drilling out the nose cone (damage to authenticity) but would like to keep the speed switch.  Have to agree servicing these is a JOB, the whole rotor comes off if you are trying to change the oil...  Really has to be on the floor and will be a mess.  I like the idea of using a T on the joists, didn't think of that.  I was planning on using a hook from a beam, I could never figure out precisely how people mounted these back then but I assumed hooks were the typical method.

 

On a side note, you want another longnose, I've got 40+ of them in stock. 

Very interesting, do you have any pics of fans you could part with?  I am looking for 1 or two more, maybe a longnose rotor too. 

thanks,

Chris

4 hours ago, Andrew Block said:

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The needle bearings went primarily in Century and Westinghouse sidewinders. The big rotors seemed to exacerbate noise and the needle bearings quieted them down by quite a bit. I learned this from a 50+ year restorer. 

Those are the original Bryant pull chain egg switches. The light is a fitter mounted on the bottom (which I will replace, the screws are stripped). When you bought a fan back then a dealer could add a light kit. The switches are as such to allow the chains to hang down and not touch the globe. They're still the only way to turn the light and fan on and off. I've gotten lots of fans with those installed.

I don't recommend the hanging method this fan used, I just have not bothered to take it down as it's working. We will eventually delete the knob and tube feeding that fan and I'll deal with it then. I have custom made hooks for the old fans; you can't get a big enough one at most hardware stores and I will use that as a hanger.

I can get some pictures. I have a big load of fans possibly coming in next week so I'll be working in my storage building. I have a couple hundred fans as it is to shift around.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting on the needle bearings, got me curious again.  Think I'll order a couple and see how they do in the roundnose and one Hunter.  Being me being the picky engineer I'll have to make sure the bearings are well aligned but I love it when vintage appliances work better than they were originally designed without major modification.  I know the original bearing from the roundnose doesn't free-spin for too long, I checked it under the microscope and I can see the races are worn to have a texture now.  Not surprising but amazing how well it held up since the 1920s/30s.  I'll change it anyways, they only cost about $12 or so for NOS US or Japan made bearings. 

On the older style fan lights, did the dealer usually add the light like the single bulb globe you have installed?  I have seen versions where there are four arms sticking out with bulbs/bells and figured that was the typical setup since the three speed switch was secured in the nose tip.  Or did they usually sacrifice the multi-speed switch for the light?  Either way they must have drilled the nose for accessories.  Makes sense to hang off the switch so the chain doesn't rub the globe, I'm sure the rattle would be endlessly annoying. 

Will look into sourcing a fat hook, maybe bracketing around the beam.  Do you think the fan retrofit boxes they sell at Home Depot are strong enough?  I have attic access and installed one for a newer fan.

Would be great to see what you have available, I like these 46641s because they are a little more fancy but would love to have something reversible in the future, not mandatory but would be real nice for the winters. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Couple pics of the original 85641AL bearing.  Note the balls held up well and the dark ring in the race is texture from wear.  Impressive lifespan considering dirt dobber bees had dropped grit and sand into the oil pot.

20230523_135601.jpg

20230523_135540.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

I am now on the "cut the crap" filth cleaning phase of these two fans.  The bodies seem to have traces of original paint but I am planning on stripping them and carefully cleaning. 

Does anyone have tips on removing the stators and how to clean off everything?  Maybe a favorite cleaner to eat off paints?  I am trying to avoid media blasting as I like the smooth finish.  

Also what materials can I use to reinsulate the stator coils?  I assume some special paper?

 

Thanks,

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I began cleaning to find out the fan is brass.  Does anyone know of this fan is solid brass or just a plating?  Also does anyone know of a good oxidizer to bring back the original black oxide finish? 

I also plan on removing the stator coils and replacing the insulation paper with Nomex paper as the old paper is rotting out.

20230617_153644.jpg

20230617_184524.jpg

20230624_204503.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's not brass, its copper plating. They flashed all the fans even if they were painted, but some were copper oxide from the factory.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

49 minutes ago, Andrew Block said:

It's not brass, its copper plating. They flashed all the fans even if they were painted, but some were copper oxide from the factory.

I see so it is flashed as in layered with copper with iron underneath.  I have anothed one thay is solid cast iron, was the copper removed then?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...