The Ford Barn

Dodge · 09-15-2024, 09:38 PM

The way to bullet proof an original two blade fan is to have it sitting on your shelf.
I tried to keep a perfect looking one on my car and it went thru my hood but not the radiator.

Brentwood Bob · 09-15-2024, 11:07 PM

Fatigue cracks and harmonics and 95 years of use are the big issues.

nkaminar · 09-16-2024, 05:30 AM

Bob brought up an interesting point. Fatigue failure was not well understood in 1928. The steel that Ford used then was amazingly strong when first made but is not very fatigue resistant. A good example is the Model T crankshaft. Ford published photos of the crank being bent in half, but after 100 years they commonly break because of fatigue fractures.

Bob Bidonde · 09-16-2024, 09:28 AM

The original design of the 2-blade fan on the Model A & Model B is a folded sheet metal affair that is inappropriate for a propeller. Moreover, the amount of the original fan's fatigue life that has been expended is unknown. I caution all that there is no practical modification / repair that makes the 90+ year-old 2-blade original fan safe!

09-15-2024, 09:38 PM	#21
Dodge Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Sonoma, CA. Posts: 1,633	Re: 2 blade fan "bullet-proof?" The way to bullet proof an original two blade fan is to have it sitting on your shelf. I tried to keep a perfect looking one on my car and it went thru my hood but not the radiator.

09-15-2024, 11:07 PM	#22
Brentwood Bob Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: brentwood, ca Posts: 4,502	Re: 2 blade fan "bullet-proof?" Fatigue cracks and harmonics and 95 years of use are the big issues.

09-16-2024, 05:30 AM	#23
nkaminar Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Western North Carolina Posts: 6,857	Re: 2 blade fan "bullet-proof?" Bob brought up an interesting point. Fatigue failure was not well understood in 1928. The steel that Ford used then was amazingly strong when first made but is not very fatigue resistant. A good example is the Model T crankshaft. Ford published photos of the crank being bent in half, but after 100 years they commonly break because of fatigue fractures. __________________ A is for apple, green as the sky. Step on the gas, for tomorrow I die. Forget the brakes, they really don't work. The clutch always sticks, and starts with a jerk. My car grows red hair, and flies through the air. Driving's a blast, a blast from the past.

09-16-2024, 09:28 AM	#24
Bob Bidonde Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 4,388	Re: 2 blade fan "bullet-proof?" The original design of the 2-blade fan on the Model A & Model B is a folded sheet metal affair that is inappropriate for a propeller. Moreover, the amount of the original fan's fatigue life that has been expended is unknown. I caution all that there is no practical modification / repair that makes the 90+ year-old 2-blade original fan safe! __________________ Bob Bidonde Last edited by Bob Bidonde; 09-17-2024 at 11:40 AM.