Welp, I did it again guys! I restored another old fan! ...and to those following me on twitter, this is old news (but I took new and better pictures, so look below!)... But for those who don't follow me, all you watchers out there, I wanna show you a little project I took on for myself a few weeks ago~ <3
~~The Story~~ So, I went to an antique store a few months back and noticed a little GE Vortalex fan form the 40s. Here's the thing, I've always thought the Vortalex fans were neat. The blades, the body design, all of it. But this fan was in pretty rough shape. The cage was completely rusted, the blades would hardly budge, it was missing the nut on the oscillation arm. On top of that, when I plugged it in, it only worked on one speed. I decided not to get it...but...it was on my mind for weeks after...still. A few weeks later, the week before FWA, I was out in that area again. I decided I wanted to see the fan again and have another look. It was still there. I expressed my concerns to the kind, old ladies who owned the store. I told them I restored them, which really excited them. I showed them my past work, and they gave me an offer I couldn't refuse on the Vortalex. And I took it home!
Suspecting the speed issues might have come from debris and horrible lubrication for decades, I dropped a little bit of oil in. Turns out, I was correct. It was barely moving on Low speed, but it worked! However, the oscillating was another story entirely. When I took the fan apart and got the grease out of the gearbox, I found the oscillating gear's teeth were completely destroyed. That meant it needed a new part...which, on a 70 year old fan, would be a little tough to obtain.
Regardless, I went ahead. At least everything else worked, right? I sanded and stripped the paint off, got all the rust off all the way to a silky-smooth, metal surface. I busted out the black and brown tones for this one...since that's the color scheme of my bedroom. I chose a nice brown for the base and motor casing, a satin black for the cage, and a champagne color for the blades, finishing it all up with a black, braided cloth wire for a vintage feel. And lucky for me, I was able to locate an identical fan in an antique store last Monday, which I promptly bought and took the oscillating gear and arm nut from. The gear from that fan was in perfect condition, so I swapped them out.
After putting it all back together, it runs as smooth and as quiet as it was new...oscillating and everything. AND IT LOOKS SUPER AMAZING!!! I have to say, I'm so very proud of this fan...and I love it and cherish it for forever. Here's to another 70 years of service and beyond, GE Vortalex! <333
It took me a little over a week to do the whole thing. It takes a while for paint to dry, so it's a long process... X3 Overall, it was about a $90 investment. That includes all the supplies (most of which I can use again next time) and the prices of the two fans (the one I restored, and the one I used for parts). Wasn't too bad, and it was totally worth it! ^^
It took me a little over a week to do the whole thing. It takes a while for paint to dry, so it's a
Cool ^^ Heh, maybe you'll make a living out of it, like that other guy! Not many people do it well. This turned out very, very nice! : D And it even includes mechanical parts, which is even more tricky!
Cool ^^ Heh, maybe you'll make a living out of it, like that other guy! Not many people do it well.
Hehe~ Naaah. I love these things too much to sell them...at least now anyway... I'm still collecting and wanting to have certain models I think look neat. I love GE's fans. They have this really neat looking one that had an octagonal cage. I want that one next... X3
Hehe~ Naaah. I love these things too much to sell them...at least now anyway... I'm still collecting
I too love old fans and I collect old electric clocks from the 1940s. The things they made back then were so wonderfully made and so durable!! Gorgeous Job on the fan!! Tis looks like a job from Rick Dale on the television show, American Restoration! What's nice about these old fans and what not, ya could always interchange the parts. Lucky ya were able to fine another junkard fan to repair this one!!
I too love old fans and I collect old electric clocks from the 1940s. The things they made back the
Actually, the fan I borrowed the parts from wasn't really "junked." It was in pretty good shape, and taking the parts from it made me feel totally guilty. BUT...I'm happy knowing I have a friend who's going to take it off my hands. He helped me on some of my other restorations and will gladly take the fan, despite it not having an oscillation gear.
The fun thing is, he doesn't care as much about keeping the vintage look. He'll probably pick some neat colors to paint it when he restores it. XD
Actually, the fan I borrowed the parts from wasn't really "junked." It was in pretty good shape, an
