10 Jul
2009
10 Jul
'09
5:51 p.m.
On 10 Jul 2009 at 9:00, jd wrote:
There were a lot of Taiwanese PC/XT, AT & tower power supplies with
sleeve-bearing fans that would seize up at any time after they were
shipped from the factory. If you were lucky, you would hear the fan
fail but they often died a silent death, taking the whole power supply
with them. If you can, find one with ball-bearing fans or replace the
sleeve bearing fan. Personally, I like the US Toyo fans. I have a
whole bunch that replaced sleeve bearing fans and are still working
fine after 20+ years, some after running 24/7 for several years.
If I had to have a quick-and-dirty rule of thumb for selecting a good
fan, it'd be "pick one with a diecast frame". Alternatively,, it'd
be "pick a name brand". Your Toyo, Sanyo, Panasonic, Rotron, etc.
are all good bets. If you don't mind a slightly higher noise level,
an AC-line fan can often be had at a good quality-vs-price point on
the surplus market. Papst isn't bad either--you find them on a lot
of old commercial equipment.
--Chuck