Chex Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 If anyone could, post pics/tips/info on the fan set ups you have in your buckets. I think it would help all of us newbs out a great deal. Like, what parts, where to get them, cost, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dart Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Here's my fan setup... I've got a hollow MC snout which I've drilled a hole in and put the squirrel fan behind. I actually got a kit from a guy on ebay that was selling the fan, switch and battery harness for around $17 USD. I picked up a better battery box (as seen above) for maybe $2 or $3 somewhere. I'm actually thinking of re-wiring this setup. Not digging the switch (it's a push-button) as it's sometimes hard to know if it's on or not. I'm also thinking I need to redo the wiring as my crappy soldering job might be why the battery gets a bit hot and why it doesn't last tremendously long, hahaha! Also need to fix how the switch sits. I just threw together the current mount and while it's stable enough, it's not good enough for me. I also have to figure out how to route the wire from the fan so that I don't always have to tuck it in underneath the edge of my lens when I pull down the visor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acrylikhan Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Dart, you may need a resistor somewhere in-line to control power from the battery to the fan, depending on the fan's voltage and amp rating. If I am looking at your pictures correctly, it looks like you have both sets of wires set up into the switch (which is forming a "parallel circuit.") That is causing some of the power from the battery to divert right back to itself. That will cause the battery to get hot, and kill the battery quickly - two symptoms your currently experiencing. This can also cause the battery to leak, or worse, POP!! And the effects of battery acid on skin is not good. Battery Incident with UK 501st Member The black wires from the battery and the fan should be connected together. The Switch, however, should only be connecting the red lead from the battery with the lead to the fan. That should be the only wires the switch is connected to. ---- Mounting a Fan ---- This link here should help out a little: Mounting a fan The key is to make sure that the fan is a little off the surface of the interior of the bucket (helmet) so that it can actually circulate the air within the helmet. The above link has a great picture of Witness' interior of the bucket. He attached thumbtacks onto the the fan, and then hot glued the fan in place. Check it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dart Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Thanks for the links, Frank. I'm not overpowering my fan with the battery but now I'm definitely going to rewire the switch. I've got a troop on Saturday but I don't think I'll need my fan then. As for the black wires, should those be soldered together or just twisted together with a marette? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acrylikhan Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Thanks for the links, Frank. I'm not overpowering my fan with the battery but now I'm definitely going to rewire the switch. I've got a troop on Saturday but I don't think I'll need my fan then. As for the black wires, should those be soldered together or just twisted together with a marette? Yes! A marette would be fine, just make sure you have the right size marette. Just for safety, I would also wrap it with a little electrical tape around the wires before twisting on the marette. I think the 9 Volt should be enough... I double checked you picture! From the voltage and amp rating, you should be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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