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TR2/3/3A Installation of a Macy's Hurricane Fan

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jfarris

jfarris

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I've asked Macy's to explain their installation instructions, but I'm anxious to get this car back together and drive it.
The kit has eight rubber grommets and four steel sleeves to put into the fan hub and spacer, plus flat washers, and two locking devices. I can't seem to get the rubber grommets and steel sleeves put together with the fan and spacer - they are really a tight fit. I first tried WD40, then putting the rubber grommets in hot water, no go. The whole unit put together is too thick for one of the locking devices (the one with the hexagonal hole) to work. As per the instructions, the fan is thinner than the stock fan, thus the spacer, but it goes in front of the fan, why not use shorter bolts (but it doesn't appear that the bolts will stick out too far in the back of the fan extension.
So - who has put one of these onto a TR3/4 engine and can explain how to do it?
Thanks, in advance,
 
SS100_1691crop.jpg

Does the picture help?
 
Not really JP and the diagram in their instructions is of a stock fan, not the installation of their kit.
The fan is very high quality, just having a problem deciphering the instructions to install.
 
Jim,

I have one on my TR3, I don't recall having any issues. I'll look for pictures.

The installation of the Macy's fan, in my opinion, is one of the most functional upgrades I've done to my car.

Bill
TS63273L
 
Does this help? I've got a couple more of the installation if you send me your email address - but most are similar to this.

IMG_0359.jpg
 
Bill,
You can send pictures to farris.jd at gmail.com - thanks.
My problem is getting the rubber grommets and the steel sleeves to all fit in both the fan hub and the spacer. It appears that the grommets go in from the back of the fan and the front of the spacer and meet in the middle with the steel sleeves spaced in the middle, not extending to the end of the grommet at either the back or the front, ie the length of the two grommets together is longer than the steel sleeve that goes inside of them. They are all such a tight fit that I can't get them all to the correct place at the same time. Like I mentioned, I've used WD40 and also soaked the grommets in hot water. I included a very rough drawing as to how I "read" the instructions that they fit together. Any help is welcomed!

View attachment Hurricane fan.pdf
 
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Eureka! I got a great email from Macy's explaining that they use Moss parts for the rubber grommets and steel sleeves for the fan. The sleeves are good for the ID, but a shade bigger for the OD, thus my difficulty putting everything together. I used the original steel sleeves for the fan and it went together in 10 minutes versus the three attempts taking a total of about an hour. That allowed me to get the radiator in and start the car after four months. I'll hook up the throttle linkage and choke tomorrow and may go for a drive in the neighborhood - the front apron is not on yet.
I'll post a post, minor-rebuild thread to highlight the mistakes I made or things I wished I had known before I started this journey.
As usual, this forum has been worth it's weight in gold!
 
Jim,

Glad you got it sorted out. Sorry I didn't get out into the garage this weekend to take more pictures, my daughter got married ;-)

Bill
 
I see that the latest of these threads goes back to May of 2017. I hope you’re all satisfied to date. Since I have the front apron off my 62 3B, I have been contemplating adding this in lieu of the original and electric fan I’ve been using.

1. Is there any balancing required.
2. Can the blades be used to turn the engine when static timing the engine?
3. Can the white plastic blades be painted? (Thinking of painting them black, but not likely since that would probably mean
periodic repainting).

Thanks for any advice you can provide.

Tom.
62 TR3B
 
Tom,
What a surprise to see this old thread pop up. What led me to improvements was my car starting to heat up in slow moving traffic in Alabama summers. I first tried getting the old radiator cleaned, but had only minor improvements. The Macy's Hurricane Fan and an aluminum radiator, no starter crank hole, from Brice Thomas Radiator in Gadsden Al cured my ills. The car runs right on mid-gauge at 185* once it has warmed up. No balancing required. You can use the blades to turn the engine if the spark plugs are removed. The blades are very sharp, I use my leather garden gloves. You can probably paint them and there are many "plastic-approved" paints available. The radiator was a work of art and cost less than any others I found for sale. I had seen his radiators at local car shows. https://cgj.com/
Good luck with that front apron, it's a bear to get on. I finally used painter's tape to hel hold down the chrome beading.
 
Jim,

Thanks for the response. I sort of figured since the last thread was in May of 2017, that It would not get any attention.

While I really haven’t had any overheating issues, I decided to be proactive while the apron was off. I have been using an aftermarket (ie. Chinese) Repro radiator with a crank hole and this is the second time I’ve removed it to have a leak repaired. Even though the leaks were minor (where the filler neck meets the top reservoir), it was still annoying me. I even used some JB Weld this past year after cleaning the area, but even that began to leak slightly. This time, the radiator shop added some support brackets on either side of the filler neck. If this doesn’t work, the next step is the aluminum radiator - thanks for the link.

I have taken that apron off a few times and have become used to it. Just make sure to remove and to re-install while the car is sitting on its own suspension. As for the beading that was also a problem I encountered (and used painters tape) until I pop-riveted the second or third beading tab to the fenders.

Thanks again,
Tom.
 
Hello Jim

I believe Randall reinforced the neck to tank area with a piece of copper pipe.

I have the yellow multi blade fan that TRF sells.

What is the thing about having the car sitting on its suspension while removing and replacing the apron?

David
 
I see I responded to this post back in 2017 but can't say I remember doing so!

I will repeat though, the Hurricane Fan from Macy's is probably the best thing I've bought for my car (followed closely by the Bimini top!). I no longer watch the temperature gauge because it is no longer an issue. I bought an electric pusher fan right before corresponding with Mark Macy and he told me I wouldn't need to install it - he was absolutely correct.

Bill
TS63273L
 
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