my31buick Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Hello ladies and gentlemen, Some of you may remember me from the Oklahoma buick meet last year in Oklahoma. I had a 31-57 at the show and my 3 year old daughter enjoyed the show as much as my wife and I. Well we have not drove the car much at all this year due to covid shutting down car shows and other things. Yesterday my daughter begged me to take her out in the old buick and the weather was probably as cool as we were going to get for July so we charged the battery, fired her up and pulled out down the road. My daughter grinning from ear to ear. About 8 miles down the road the car got a vibration. At first I was thinking a tire going down and then we heard a loud bang like metal against metal. I eased of the throttle and coasted into a gas station. Antifreeze pouring out from under the car. I raise the hood and find a fan blade missing. It broke off and sliced up the radiator. Upon further inspection I find that 2 other blades are cracked and about to break as well. Looking at the metal break it appears there have been hair line cracks in the blades for some time as a portion of the cracks are rusty instead of being clean shiny metal throughout the entire break. Has anyone ever had anything like this happen before? Know what causes this failure? And most importantly does anyone out there have a fan assembley that would be correct for a 31-57? I have very limited internet access so if anyone has any ideas, or has a fan assembly please call me . Shawn 918-607-3923 or email me at seldredge76@hotmail.com. Thanks guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon Desert model 45 Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 (edited) Did it dent the hood too ? I had a Ford with a dent in the hood right in line with the fan, which served as a reminder to inspect the fan blades frequently. It could have been worse. This Dodge suffered major damage from a fan breaking. Fan, water pump, hood, fender all damaged. Edited August 1, 2020 by Oregon Desert model 45 fix link (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Metal fatigue. A good reminder for everyone to check their fan blades regularly I hope your repairs are easily done.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raydurr Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Sorry to hear about your breakdown. At least you weren't on the Peking to Paris route. Looking at your photos the bolt circle where the fan attaches to the hub looks almost the same as my 1929 Buick. 1929 parts seem to be much more plentiful than 1931 parts. Someone may have a spare . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibarlaw Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Shawn: So sorry for the fan failure. I know how enthusiastic you were about having your car to the nationals. I was the judging team captain. We spoke at some length about your car. Now we need to get you a new fan! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jscheib Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 Not sure if a '32 will interchange, but Pete Phillips might have one if they do interchange. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1939_Buick Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 From 1928-51 Master Parts List book Group 1.356 Fan assembly Part 214644 1929 121-129 Part 214645 1929 116; 1930 -40 Part 1254095 1931 -50 Part 1250529 1931 -60 Part 1268798 1932 -50 Group 1.359 Blade, fan Part 211596 1929 121-129; 1930 -50 -60 Part 1254706 1931 -50 Part 1242532 1931 -60 Part 1268716 1932 -50 Very little commonality between years and/or models But that is not say will not fit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Shaw Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 Some may be surprised to learn that years ago, I gave half of my spare fan to Jack Gerstkemper when he needed a replacement for his father's 1931 50 series Roadster. I will see if I still have the other half. Stay tuned... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
my31buick Posted September 22, 2020 Author Share Posted September 22, 2020 Ok guys I have found a fan similar to the 31 buick fan. It is off of an early ford V-8 flathead. the blades need cut down but the hub bolt pattern is the same. Below are some pictures. This leaves me with some questions. 1. Is the oil in the hub both for shaft lubrication and balancing? 2. I can use a cut off wheel to cut the replacement fan down to the correct length, But how do I go about balancing the fan before putting in back on? Obviously I would prefer to have the correct fan but if one is not found you improvise. Any suggestions are welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon Desert model 45 Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 Is there a machined casting inside of the stamped sheetmetal hub that can be removed ? If so, then you should consider replacing it with a machined hub with modern permanently lubricated bearings . Below is photo of the new hub I machined for my Buick and drawing of the machined part. Some of those dimensions may different for 1931, so use this drawing as reference. Kevin 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Engle Posted September 23, 2020 Share Posted September 23, 2020 To balance the blade, do like you would for your lawn mower blades. there is a very low cost balancer that you set the center hole on the device and the heavy side will tilt down. The oil is not part of the balance as centrifugal force will spin the oil to balance. I highly recommend the bearing replacement as failure on the bushing and oil system is very prone to seizing up and throwing the whole assembly through the radiator. Bob Engle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
my31buick Posted September 24, 2020 Author Share Posted September 24, 2020 21 hours ago, Oregon Desert model 45 said: Is there a machined casting inside of the stamped sheetmetal hub that can be removed ? If so, then you should consider replacing it with a machined hub with modern permanently lubricated bearings . Below is photo of the new hub I machined for my Buick and drawing of the machined part. Some of those dimensions may different for 1931, so use this drawing as reference. Kevin I had something similar done to my previous fan hub. It was crude looking and squeeled a bit like the bearing was damaged when it was pressed in. Would you be willing to machine one for me if I sent my fan hub to you? If so what would you charge? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldtech Posted September 24, 2020 Share Posted September 24, 2020 I have a dead 31 in my boneyard that has a fan. the hub is seized solid but the propeller is fine. I'm up in Can. but if it helps pm me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
my31buick Posted September 24, 2020 Author Share Posted September 24, 2020 How much you take for it? Do you know what series it is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldtech Posted September 25, 2020 Share Posted September 25, 2020 Don't know the series, plate is missing, but its a small model. Detroit Buick, not a McLaughlin. The fan looks like the pic you posted. Price is right. I'll PM you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldtech Posted October 8, 2020 Share Posted October 8, 2020 Bounce: I cant seem to reply to your email. I pm'd you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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