December 28, 2008
A few months back when it was hot I had this little fan that I bought for $8 several years ago that just was not putting out any air. I could find nothing wrong with it except that maybe the safety shroud was a little too safe. The overzealous safety folk gotten a little carried away and not only could you not stick you finger in the fan but air could not get in or out either.
I had many important things to do (New roof, fix fence, replace leaky faucet, paint bicycle, rebuild front porch, fix car, etc.) but I put them all aside and tore down this little fan.
Ugly
While the shroud was off I noticed that this fan was rather interesting looking whereas when fully dressed it was ugly with a capital U. I further stripped it down to bare essentials. When I turned it on it put out some serious air. So much in fact that I run it on low now and it looks good too.
Rummaging around in the laboratory here I found some brass colored paint, some antique copper paint, some copper wire, some boot laces, a half dozed dead bugs and a water spiget handle. I discarded the bugs but used the rest.
All the white plastic in the motor
room is covered with the copper paint and and the rest is brass paint.This is a poor picture but in the upper right corner there is a smudge of red, yellow and blue that is a toy biplane on a wire that circles around above the whirling blades of death when the fan is on. The oscillator no longer works but the gears turn which makes the back of the fan interesting.
The green ball to the right is a green tomato I grew that has long since ripened and gone on to its reward.
The copper coil turns dispersing cosmic rays and confusing alien mind control. I don't know how it works but I haven't seen any cosmic rays and my mind is totally uncontroled.
I have plans for the big gear whenever I get some more parts.
She Who Must Be Obeyed ask me why there is a faucett in my fan. I told her it was water cooled but she didn't fall for it.
The brass object in the lower right corner in front of the fan is a solid brass door knocker that I picked up at a thrift store for 50 cents. It is ready to install and has been for a month. It should be on the “things I should have done instead of working on this fan” list.
Whirling Blades of Death just waiting of the chance to chop off arms and legs when a dull person turns the fan on or off. I have noticed that not having a shroud has heighten my awareness of the fan. Dangerous but what fun.
The cord is cloth covered by pulling the core from a pair of boot laces and replacing it with the electric cord.
Thanks to Jake von Slatt at the Steampunk Workshop http://steampunkworkshop.com/
for that idea. Go look at his work. It is good.
The picture is not good but it's what you get with a cheap camera.
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