Any of you been following the AACA thread on Mopar 20's and 30's fan developing cracks because of lap design and age w/ flexing ?
Some have exploded taking out radiators and punching through the hood doors . Many are replacing with modern six blade racing fans trimmed and balanced .
https://forums.aaca.org/topic/326980-1929-dodge-da-phaeton-fan-disaster/
Wow. Such a sad sight. Feel for him. :'( the theory they say regarding the ability for the fans to flex close to flange. Over time cracking. Sounds like the cause.
Not sure if 28/29 would be affected. due to 1 fan blade stamping. does anything know of a failure.
Ian
I think if you have an old car which you drive a lot, this opens the question of originality vs. practicality. I think Ian is right about the fan in the 28/29 but how about the drive shaft and a leaky carb dripping onto the gravel guard which funnels the gas to the exhaust pipe or some brake parts that are 90 years old. Just to mention a few. When I am driving my 48 Plymouth at 60 mph on the NJ Turnpike many possibilities for parts failure come to mind. There has been so many safety and manufacturing improvements since the 20's that there has to be a trade off on part decisions. I believe that's why the discussion of originality can draw heated arguments among people who sit on either side of this issue. There are always excellent arguments on both sides of any issue so you can only do what makes you feel comfortable.
As far as the fan is concerned.., if I had a Dodge with 4 blades I would be inspecting the part this morning.
I know this is an old topic, but just wanted to throw it out there again to see if anybody's come up with a replacement fan, preferably two blade, for safety reasons. Or as mentioned previously, is it an issue with our one piece fans?