The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Interiors 1955.1 - Aftermarket heater recommendations?

I started my recirculating heater disassembly today. Tomorrow I'll get back to it and try pressure testing the core.
Still waiting for the new 12v motor to arrive from Classic Parts.
Thanks for the help.
I will look for a lit heater switch like Otto's.

Here is the 12v version on Standard's online catalog. It doesn't explicitly say 12v but everything that's 6v is labeled as such.

https://www.standardbrand.com/en/ecatalog?part=HS572%20-%20A%2fC%20%26%20Heater%20Blower%20Motor%20Switch&type=p

Update...

On my Ebay/ Harrison recirculating heater, I can't remove the fan.
If I could remove the fan...
the shaft is THINNER than the shaft of the new 12v motor from Classic Parts.
Any ideas?

Forgot to mention that it's an old school 4 blade fan.

My heater has a 4 blade fan, too. There's a set screw on the side of it that holds it to the shaft on the flat edge.

Are you saying that the 12v motor you bought did not come with a fan?

I completely removed the set screw. Then I tried twisting off the fan.
Also tried twisting off the collar holding the set screw.
The collar has been soaking overnight in penetrating oil and I haven't retried today yet.
No fan came with the motor.

Take your time maybe a little heat . The original fan motors had a thicker shaft on the motor yours may have been replaced or maybe 12 volt take a look on the housing when you get it out.your fan may be hard to get out due to the screw being all the way in due to the smaller motor shaft

Kevin, heat and patience worked, along with a long needle nose to remove the fan, BUT....
The old motor shaft is 1/4" and the new 12v motor shaft is 5/16".
This is getting complicated.

That sucks. Is there enough meat on the fan to drill it out to 5/16"? Do you have a drill press?

If your fan is like this one should fit .Also look closely I see some blower motors come with a extra piece to adapt the shaft bigger if so maybe it is stuck in the fan portion .

Also check to see if maybe there is a piece like this possibly stuck in the fan .

My fan is like the one in Kevin's photo.
So, there is enough meat to drill it out 1/16".
I'll take it to a friend with a drill press and go from there.

Meanwhile, submerging the core in water and pumping air into it with a bicycle pump produced no bubbles.
But, the visual condition of the core does not raise confidence. I don't think I should trust it.

Does it look anything like this? If it's streaked with green corrosion, its been leaking.

I did not drill the fan out ,you would have to check the side were it is crimped on to see if it would affect how it is held on when you drill .If you could it would be better to drill 7/8 through and leave the end we’re it is crimped.

My heater (different style) had a 5/16 motor shaft, the replacmeent 12v motor I ordered indicated it came with a 1/4 - 5/16 sleeve but it was not included so I returned it and bought one with a 5/16 shaft. I am guessing that the blade type fan used a 1/4 shaft and the squirel cage type fan used a 5/16 shaft and some of the 12 v conversion motors came with the spacer to make them viable for both. rather than drilling out the fan for the 5/16 shaft I would replace the motor with one with the 1/4 shaft.

I like that better WICruser mine was messed up by the previous person trying to adapt also ,a little patience and less work also. I am curious ,pictures would be nice to see the fan from DonBolt .

What if I spot welded the collar on th fan and then drilled it out to 5/16? Or just drilled it carefully?

When I restored my fresh air heater I tried to fix the centre hub on the fan and thought it would be okay but I could not get the fan to balance and it would wobble . These fans are different and it may work .I don’t know what you paid for your fan motor but you could most likely find one at your local flaps that is the same except for the smaller shaft size .Might be worth it to take the motor and fan down to see if they have one then you could return the one with the bigger shaft.

This is what I had tried and it did not work

i would braze the riveted center collar onto the fan before making the hole larger, there might not be enough wall remaining to hold it tight in the long run if you successfully expand that hole
also, use a reamer not a drill bit if you can/have one.
also have you considered just turning down the motor shaft?
clamp the motor in a vise, power it on, and use a file on spinning the shaft to make it smaller until it fits the collar hole,
i've turned down many small objects that way with a power drill
it works like a charm.
-s

One other thing to check is we’re the motor attaches to the core the two studs may be spaced different and may need modification.There is a write up called using a napa heater motor on a Harrison heater ,sorry don’t know how to link but here are a few pics

Pics

Good ideas Kevin and 2. Thanks.
Otto, no green stains on the core, just crud.

More to come.

Don

It might still be good. Flush it out and put it under low pressure. My truck uses a 4 lb radiator cap. Are you going to run a pressurized system?

I have a new radiator, water pump, thermostat and 7lb cap.

I will be returning the heater motor. Its dimensions as well as the shaft are way off.

The Harrison heater has studs at 2-1/4" apart, shaft 1/4" dia x 1" long, motor length 3-1/2", motor width 2-1/2".

This is why the title of this thread asks about aftermarket heaters!

Here is the heater motor from Napa .the dimensions are listed .

Here is a older thread that might help.I really need to have to learn how to do the link thing. Kevin

After swapping PMs with Kevinski & Otto, I did a thorough comparison of measurements between heater motors.

I measured the original 6v motor from the recirculating heater I got from Ebay. Then I measured the 12v motor from Classic Parts. I compared them on a chart against a motor that Kevinski found at NAPA.

I'll be ordering the NAPA and returning the Classic Parts unit. See attached photo.

You'll have heat in your cab by July, I'm sure of it!

Average July temperature in Southern Oregon is 90 degrees! Perfect time to test the heater!