The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Fan Blade for 216

My mechanic discovered a crack in my old fan blade of my 216 engine so he asked me to get a new one. When the new one arrived it was smaller ( please see photos ). So we determined that the fan blade on the truck was not the original.

However my mechanic said it still might be a good idea to replace the old cracked fan blade with another fan blade of the same exact specifications/dimensions. He thinks the larger fan blade will help cool the engine better in the summer than the small blade and it will pull in more air than the small blade.

So do you all think its a good idea to get a larger replacement blade or use the smaller original 216 replacement? Also can anyone identify the larger blade in the photos... i cant seem to match it to anything ive seen on the internet.

(Im willing to sacrifice authenticity for efficiency in this case. So that isnt an issue for me.)

Thanks!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/union4487/sets/72157623358606030/

If the older,larger fan blade measures approximately 17+ inches blade tip to blade tip, that would be an original size. And I think the shape indicates original also.

The old fan blade (larger) measures 18" tip to tip and 3 1/2" at its widest on the arm of the blade.
The new fan blade (smaller) measures 15 7/8" tip to tip and 2 1/4" at its widest on the arm of the blade.

I'd advise caution if you are re-using an original 40+ year-old fan.
I've owned 2 AD trucks that had the fans fly apart due to metal fatigue. One went through the inner fender, the other through the hood. Inspect it closely before you trust it. I feel that the modern manufactured ones are safer, but I have no facts to base that on.

regards,
Leon

Leon, thanks... we're trying to buy a replacement exactly like the blade in the photo... I just need some help identifying it so that i can find another one... do you know what it is? Thanks

That large fan in your photo is Chevy truck 216 or early 235 (early babbit bearing) thru 1953. I would NOT use that little fan you pictured, it's not going to pull enough air the radiator. That large fan is identical to one I had on a 1953 - 216 truck motor and a 1954-235 truck motor, and also on a 1951 -235 (babbit motor) that was with a Powerglide in a 1951 Bel Aire. You can't use a '55-'62 fan because the bolt hole spacing is closer. If you are ambitious you could build a radiator shroud. I've seen big trucks 1 1/2 - 2 ton trucks use radiator shrouds.

The larger fan is correct for your truck.I have looked for new ones and had no luck.Find a another used one and bead blast it and inspect for cracks.Post an add in the wanted forum,they are not hard to find.

That little fan is passenger car piece. Better get something as i've seen a couple old Chevs with a broken fan blade stuck through the hood. Lucky for the owner it wasn't his face. I'm running a NAPA fan on my 261 been there for 20 years.

There was a post years back where they used a plastic fan, I think from Summit. They can be trimmed to size.

I could be wrong about this, but I thought the older 216 fan blades were, in fact, 16-inches across. About the same time GM converted to the full-pressure 235 ('53-'54), the fan size increased to 18-inches across. There are many posts on this site regarding overheating with the smaller blade, so I would agree that finding a larger blade is probably what you want. I use a 19-inch blade on my 235 that I drilled to fit my water pump (not sure what engine it came from). I have no problems with overheating even in very hot weather.