Oil in fan hub

[30-9]

Met a ol guy last night - was lookin at my 39 and said he had one back in the day. Then asked if I know to turn fan and add oil in cap? Since I never heard of this I am asking the experts here - is there a spot/need?

[scooder]

The oiled fan hub is later stuff. 42 style, where the fan is not on the generator or crank.
Martin.

[30-9]

Thanks Martin!

[trainguy]

39 has the fan bolted to the end of the crank,do you have a belt driven fan ?If so it most likely has a provision for oiling the fan belt.Phil

[30-9]

Pretty sure mine is on crank w belt to turn water pumps & geni

[Bolts]

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30-9,
If your engine was changed to the later style with fan hub, you can read the oiling procedure by going to vanpeltsales.com
There is a section on the site with a detailed explanation with pictures of the hub and how to oil it.

[40Ford!!]

I just delt with this issue in a big way. I have a fresh '53 Merc flatty and about 2 hours on it. last week I took it out for a short trip and upon returning i heard what sounded like a belt squeak. Pulled it in the garage and looked & listened. Could not tell which belt was making the noise so posted on the HAMB. I had about 1/2" of play on both belts so everyone thought that was sufficient. I was told it could be everything from a bad water pump, bad bearing in generator to a bad fan hub bearing. I decided do my own diagnosis. I decided to take off the belt that runs the water pumps and generator. Still no change. Put that back on and removed the belt that runs the fan off the crank and bingo....no more noise! So I now knew that either that belt itself or the fan hub had a problem. Someone on the HAMB sent me the Vanpelts web site and they have a great link for the fan hub and it's maintenance. I had been putting a few drops of oil in the hub screw hole and thought that was enough. nope......that hub takes 2 oz of 80-90 wt gear oil. Vanpelts tells you to measure out 2 oz and pour it in the hole while orienting the hole at the 12 o'clock. Rotate it to 6 o'clock and if nothing comes out, rotate back to 12 o'clock and add another oz, turn back to 6 o'clock and because of the way the hub is designed, only the extra oil will come out leaving exactly 2 oz. After doing this I put the belt back on and tightened the belt up again. Fired up the engine and NO MORE NOISE! Man that was such a good feeling to fix it for nothing but a few oz of oil. So for all of you who don't already know this, check the oil when you hear a loud squeak like a belt. Hope this helped someone.

[Old Henry]

Here are the instructions in the operator's manual for the frequency and procedure for oiling the fan hub:



And, here is the instruction decal:

[Ralph Moore]

I just use straight 30 weight oil. Works good, lasts long time!

[Mac VP]

30 wt motor oil works ok.....that was Ford's original spec. They changed that later on to a recommendation for 85 wt gear oil. They never did change the little sticker though.

For those wondering, we are reproducing the spindle bearing for the oil filled type fans. Hope to have our first samples within the next 30 days.

[TomT/Williamsburg]

I have also used stp and slick 50 in these hubs. The trick is not to overfill the original units with whatever you are using according to several Flatheada gurus. 3-4 drops usually does the trick. Any more than that and you may be doing more harm than good. That is why I like the sticky stuff like stp and slick 50. I usually put in s drop every time I change my oil.

I usually drive my car much more than just around town and at speed (70-75) so that is also something to keep in mind.

[47COE]

I learned the hard way about oiling the fan hub in my 47 truck. Didn't know anything about it and ran it for 30 some years until it seized. Had to take it apart and get it freed up. In the process I learned how it should work.

I now know that I need to add oil to the hub with the 12 o'clock, 6 o'clock procedure. And more often than every 30 years.

[supereal]

Despite the decal on the fan blade, us 80/90 transmission oil in the fan hub. The "official" Ford recommendation was changed, but the manuals and decals were not. The hub is a strange device. It has a "dipper" that picks up oil from the reservoir and dumps it on a shaft with a "corkscrew" along its length. This groove is supposed to carry the oil thru the fan body, and drop it off into the reservoir. There is no bearings or bushing in the unit. It depends on the oil film to prevent galling and seizing. I went thru two hubs on my '47, and made up a ball bearing hub. It has run flawlessly for more than 15 years. Why Ford used the "Rube Goldberg" design is a mystery to me.

[dwick01]

I am in the process of add/replace the belts on my 47 super deluxe, and happened onto this. Was going to put them on today, but after reading all of this, looks like I need to add some fluid to the fan. The fan has been off the motor for a very long time and I am sure it is probably dry. This is great information and probably saved me some headaches later on. Many thanks to all of you!

[Mac VP]

We recently ok'd the final sample on our repro spindle bearing (21A-8626 on the drawings). The samples were very nice and fit perfectly. Should have the first run in stock before Christmas if all goes well. And (drumroll).......made in the USA!

[billfish]

(40 FORD) says he has an oil plug on the hub of his 53 Merc. No plug visable on my 51 8ba, what years had oil plugs?

[Bill]

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Ford-Other-/1...cAAOSwlV9WSQMQ Just scanning the ads on Ebay. If you want to see a perfect picture of the filler plug on the fan hub go to pic#21. Also I notice hex/torx holes on the top of the head studs. Is this only for ease of installation? Bill

[Ross F-1]

Originally Posted by billfish

(40 FORD) says he has an oil plug on the hub of his 53 Merc. No plug visable on my 51 8ba, what years had oil plugs?

Trucks had the oil-filled hub until '53, but cars went to a sealed ball-bearing cartridge in (I believe) '51. If you have narrow belts, you don't have the oil-filled hub.

I rebuilt an oil-filled hub last year, here are some pics. You can see there is a standpipe inside the hub at the filler screw, so when you "drain it", you are only draining down to the proper level. These are very nicely engineered hubs, if the oil is maintained they last forever. Also a pic of a sealed ball-bearing type.