Fan blade death

[McFarmer]

Couldn't see where this has been mentioned before :


COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Police say a Council Bluffs man working on his pickup truck died after a fan blade from the engine broke loose and struck hit him in the neck.

The Daily Nonpareil (http://bit.ly/QmHSIC ) says 50-year-old Roger Klein was working on his truck on Thursday. Police say he was apparently keeping the motor running with starter fluid and using the choke. When he bent over the engine, the fan blade dislodged and hit him, killing him almost instantly.

His wife came home and found him on the driveway next to the truck.

Authorities are trying to determine how the blade came loose.


Just a freak thing ? Or something shade tree mechanics should take aims to prevent ? I know I've never heard of it happening. My sympathies to the family.

___

 

[mmack66]

Without more information, it sounds like nothing more than an incredibly unfortunate freak accident.

 

[KenC]

Freak for sure. Rarely happens, but the older fans did fatique at the riveted center. Never saw one that actually hit someone, but did see an old truck that had lost a blade. Went right through the hood like it had been hit with a can opener. 50s GMC 248.

 

[Gary S]

I've seen fans come apart at high rpms and go through the hood, but it always was because someone used the incorrect fan for the application.
I don't know about the other manufacturers, but GM made different fans for different uses. The non-clutch fans were full length blades that crossed at the center and all blades were firmly attached to the water pump. This style isn't going to throw a blade, even over 10,000rpms
The clutch fans had separate blades riveted to a center section. This type of fan was protected from over-revving by the clutch. Over the years, some people chose to delete a worn out clutch and direct mounted this fan. That is a recipe for disaster. Also, if the clutch wore out and locked up, and was not checked at proper maintenance intervals, the result is the same as removing the clutch.

 

[Torque1st]

A belt or pulley that fails can also cause injuries and death.

 

[EOC_Jason]

I know on my Toyota forklift is has a plastic fan blade. Over time they just become brittle and break near the hub area. On several occasions I've been driving it around and you hear a loud THUNK and see one of the blades laying on the ground. One hit directly under my seat and scared the **** out of me. When there was only one blade left the repair guy *finally* remembered to bring a replacement. It seems to be a common problem for these.... I would much rather have a metal one than plastic for the simple reason that the plastic just doesn't last under the heat and stress.

 

[Guns R Tools]

There is one manufacture that used variable pitch fan blade. My teacher called it widow maker. I guess it failed easier than solid designs.

 

[mark40sw]

My father had a friend that was killed when a fan blade let go. Back in late 50's to early 60's.

 

[rodm1]

Dad always said stay away from them fans and belts some times they grab stuff or fly apart.

 

[chico0511]

Couldn't see where this has been mentioned before :


COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Police say a Council Bluffs man working on his pickup truck died after a fan blade from the engine broke loose and struck hit him in the neck.

The Daily Nonpareil (http://bit.ly/QmHSIC ) says 50-year-old Roger Klein was working on his truck on Thursday. Police say he was apparently keeping the motor running with starter fluid and using the choke. When he bent over the engine, the fan blade dislodged and hit him, killing him almost instantly.

His wife came home and found him on the driveway next to the truck.

Authorities are trying to determine how the blade came loose.


Just a freak thing ? Or something shade tree mechanics should take aims to prevent ? I know I've never heard of it happening. My sympathies to the family.

___

This also happened a few years ago less than 5 years in Omaha neover by 32 street in south omaha he to died....

 

[APEowner]

I had a factory clutch fan on my late 70's chevy truck loose a blade. Fourtunatly I was driving it and not working on it at the time. It blew through the fan shroud and dented the hood. Unfourtnatly I was 200 miles from home on a Sunday night so I had to put up with the vibration the rest of the way home. I changed the water pump when I replaced the fan. It wasn't leaking but I was pretty sure that shaking the whole truck around by that little shaft didn't do it any good.

 

[bigbubba]

The non-clutch fans were full length blades that crossed at the center and all blades were firmly attached to the water pump. This style isn't going to throw a blade, even over 10,000rpms.[/QUOTE]

I had one of these on an '71 Olds cutlass with a fairly hot 455,One night i was street racing and was at the end of a burnout to heat my cheater slicks when there was a loud BANG! I saw a bulge in my hood but it was still running and there was no way in hell i was gonna punk out on a race. Finished the race and went back to my friends shop with the engine vibrating pretty bad,Found a blade stuck through the hood and it had shook the bearings out of my water pump.We changed the fan and pump with used parts out of our junk pile(we were both Olds nuts) and went back for more racing! The main frame of the blades are solid but they still have a wider/thinner blade riveted on.

 

[jimindm]

There is one manufacture that used variable pitch fan blade. My teacher called it widow maker. I guess it failed easier than solid designs.

These fans have quite the blade pitch at low RPMs. the best way to describe them would be a peice of spring steel. The faster they rotated, the flatter or uncoiled they would become. Always heard them called the widow maker, and seen many that were blown apart, but never actually seen one blow apart.

Many years ago I worked for a company that serviced armoard bank trucks. As I was driving one into the shop, there was a bang and a hole in the hood. We looked all over for the blade and could not find it. About an hour later the preist from the church across the street was opening the doors for a wedding. It was embedded about half way, into a solid core church door, about waist high. An hour later it would have been bad.

 

[RVDan]

One blade broke off at the last rivet on my 69 ford pickup. The bang scared the hell out of me, and the resulting vibration had me thinking I had lost clutch parts.

I've been paranoid about leaning over a running engine ever since

 

[Zeke]

Sad to hear. I think about standing in line with anything rotating. Fortunately nothing has ever broken while I was so close as to get injured. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[Torque1st]

There is one manufacture that used variable pitch fan blade. My teacher called it widow maker. I guess it failed easier than solid designs.

These fans have quite the blade pitch at low RPMs. the best way to describe them would be a peice of spring steel. The faster they rotated, the flatter or uncoiled they would become. Always heard them called the widow maker, and seen many that were blown apart, but never actually seen one blow apart.

Those are called flex-fans. There are a number of different designs made from both steel and fiberglass. Both materials usually cracked where the flex element was attached. Many times when one blade failed the rest of the fan exploded also taking belts, pumps, and radiators with it.

I have personally seen several instances where the fan parts shredded the radiator etc. Broken belts and broken water pump shafts were common occurrences back in the old days.

 

[srmofo]

those flex fans come with giant warning labels all over them concerning their lifespan and the risk of injury. IIRC its some incredibly short life span.Something like 24k miles or 2 years

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I don't know about the other manufacturers, but GM made different fans for different uses. The non-clutch fans were full length blades that crossed at the center and all blades were firmly attached to the water pump. This style isn't going to throw a blade, even over 10,000rpms.

You wish!!!

Employee of my father's many years ago had a late '60's Chevy 327 V8 pickup with the four blade solid fan, two pieces riveted together and then bolted thru both to the water pump. broke off one blade and came right thru the hood.

Never seen any other fan come apart, and I've owned 5 and 7 blade flex fans (Fords) and 5 blade (metal blades) clutch fan (Ford) and plastic fan with clutch on my Ranger, which I found cracked and did replace. (the way it was cracked and the way it was molded onto the steel center, it was all but impossible to come apart even cracked) Apparently common to find this on the Ranger 2.3L however.

Charles

 

[lt1driver]

all the toyota's I have had have plastic blades and have had them break, but never come off as I heard them before total failure....will watch closely from now on when working on running engine. had to be horrific for the wife to find him that way, or any way for that matter.

 

[Steroblan]

I saw my brother inlaw one day and he looked beat to hell. He said he and the wife were on vacation and pulled over when the engine started vibrating. He opened the hood and reved the engine with the carb linkage and a fan blade came off and smacked him flat side in the jaw. Knocked out a couple teeth. He got real lucky I'd say.

 

[boostedgt]

this made me remember my old auto shop teacher warning us about aftermarket flex fans that would break

 

[Tim The Tool Man]

...and I just bought a flex fan for my pick up. Guess I'll be sending it back this afternoon!

 

[NUTTSGT]

Those fans don't need to come off to cause damage. A fellow racer, while at Pacemakers, had a finger cut off when he was climbing into his car to make an adjustment. He had the electric fan running after his pass.

Luckily his finger did get reattached after he drove to the hospital, which was after he loaded his car and all his stuff at the track.

 

[McFarmer]

So are there any precautions a fellow could take ? I imagine the stress cracks and such could be seen if a person looked every oil change or so.

 

[NASTYZEN]

I had a room mate who had a near death experience with one of those flex fans 18 years ago. He had a hopped up 350 v-8 engine he would swap out from vehicle to vehicle.
He had recently put this engine into a side step GMC truck that he endoed in our driveway while moving in. A 1 mile trail to the farm house. Hit a short stump on the edge of the driveway at speed. Was quite spectacular to see all his stuff go flying all over!
Any how,he stored it in one of the out buildings while he was looking for another one to swap the engine into. From time to time he would go out and start the thing up to keep things oiled up.
He had the habit of throttling the thing by hand with the hood up. One day he was out there giving it some gas and BANG!
We all ran out to find him on his *** and all blooded up. The fan blade had exploded the plastic fan cowling into his face and kept going and stuck into the open hood...
If his face had been any closer, I'm sure it could of stuck into his head. It takes a lot of energy to lodge a fan thru a 76 pickup truck hood.
At the time we all thought the fan had been damaged in his shunt prior, but I guess this kind of thing is more common than I thought.

 

[Kevin54]

So are there any precautions a fellow could take ? I imagine the stress cracks and such could be seen if a person looked every oil change or so.

Never stand in the line of fire with any rotating object on an automobile.

I learned that lesson when I was very small and my dad was working on the car with the enging running. He had a wrench laying on the radiator support and if vibrated off and hit the fan, shooting it back up. No one got hurt, bet scared the hell out of me.

 

[Capt Chrysler]

I swap out a few hood in the late 70's and early 80's with funny little slits in them from fan blades. Most of the time the folks had been stuck in mud or snow and were working to get out. (high RPM) I my 25 years in automotive, I try never to stand in front of a car beening started or running. Seen to many things happen!

Capt. Chrysler

 

[Falcon67]

I used to run Flex-a-lite 6 blade deep fluke fans on the race cars. They work well, but I called them "salad shooters". The stainless blade would hurt you quick. I used 10,000 RPM rated fans (and if it's not rated by the MFG to go 10K, it's should not make it anywhere near there) and now I run only electrics. Too damn scary.

 

[tuner4life]

Always convert to electric fans!

/thread.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Always convert to electric fans!

/thread.

What got my friend was an electric fan.

 

[KPSquared]

I've had electric fan blades let go in the same fashion. . .definitely not the end of the thread. . .

 

[mrpowderkeg]

Had a friend loose a flex fan blade, went through the hood of his car while driving. Those flex fans are dangerous, and friggn sharp to!