Sapphire 5850 Fan Dead

[_Vince_]

OK, Maybe I need to disassemble one dead fan to get more info

[1715318710]

1715318710

[Tim the Magician]

OK, Maybe I need to disassemble one dead fan to get more info

Please post picts if you do 

[abracadabra]

I've had good luck repairing 5 sapphire fans by using SlaveInDebt's idea to drill a hole just off center (thru the front) about 2mm off center with a drill bit the same size as the straw on the spray can of teflon I use.



I run them overnite.  Then spray them once more.  They run better than new.

[Tim the Magician]

All right.. It’s done  and so far it looks like Great Success!..

I unfortunately, I didn't read my PMs first because SlaveInDebt got back to me and said he drilled 8mm-10mm from the center.. I was closer to 3mm.. but hey.. whatever works right?

Drilling..  I went about 6mm down.




It seems like I drilled through a top level and a bit into the level below.  I can tell because when insert a needle into the hole and rotate the fan it catches a bit where the hole was initially drilled.

Next I tried to inject as much lubercant into the hole as I could.  I inserted a needle and rotated the fan to try to spread the grease around.  Repeat x2..

Fan one complete:




Zoom! 100%




Fan 2 complete: (more confident this time)




It was a little difficult to get the stickers to stay on.  After wiping the excess grease off of the top of the fans the stickers didn't like staying put.. I got them on but I'll be watching to be sure they don't fall off later.

The second fan didn't want to start at first so I had to kick start it with my finger.. after a few tries it started up and is running solid at 100% like the other.

Back home again:




I'm planning to run them both at 100% overnight and then set them back on automatic sometime tomorrow..

I'll post a status update this weekend..

[SlaveInDebt]

Nice work Tim. I suggest sealing/covering the oiling hole with something to prevent spray, reduce dirt oil, and faster drying of oil.

[Tim the Magician]

Nice work Tim. I suggest sealing/covering the oiling hole with something to prevent spray, reduce dirt oil, and faster drying of oil.

Thanks and I agree.. I only ran it for about a minute as a test and to get the pict.  I ended up getting the Sapphire stickers to stay on (for now).. if they end up falling off later I may have to clean the fan tops to remove the grease remnants and use a new sticker (or tape).   

[Tim the Magician]

I'll post a status update this weekend..

As of this morning both fans have failed.

The theories I'm working on are:

1. Grease was too thick/hole too small so not enough actually got where I wanted it

2. Hole was in the wrong place.

3. Debris or damage to the sub-surface layer is creating additional drag.

4. Both fans are DOA and not resuscitatable.

1 and 2 I can work with.. 3 I can’t do anything without breaking the fan open and I’m not confident that these are able to be reassembled in working order.  And 4 doesn’t really have a good solution given the lack of replacement parts.

Plan of attack: (fails cascade to next letter)
A.   Buy some Tri-Flow as suggested by abracadabra and apply to existing holes.
B.   Drill new larger holes at the 8mm-10mm offset suggested by SlaveInDebt and apply SuperLube
C.   Tri-Flow on the new holes
D.   
E.   Profit!?

[Tim the Magician]

Wow is Tri-Flow hard to find..

I went to like 4 different auto parts stores and a big box hardware store and no dice..

Granger and a local bike shop both seem to have it but neither will be open until Monday..

[Photon939]

All you have to do is pop up the fan hub and apply oil directly to the fan shaft, that way you don't need to drill holes in the plastic. Also probably helps prevent dust from gumming things up. I've oiled my Sapphire 5850 fans this way and they've been running for several months now.

[Tim the Magician]

All you have to do is pop up the fan hub and apply oil directly to the fan shaft

I did apply some force to attempt to pop the hub off but it got to the point where it felt like it would break and I went the hole drilling path..  Can you give a little more detail?  I have 9 of these cards so I expect I'll be doing this again at some point.

Thanks,
Tim

[Tim the Magician]

Ok..

So I found Tri-Flow at REI in the bicycle section.. Unfortunately, there isn’t an REI very close to my house but they are open to 8pm so I drove out and bought it.

Tri-Flow is pretty cool, it is rated to 475F and the cards will shut the system down at less than half that temp so it seems like a good match. It’s a 4oz Aerosol spray can.. The tube which attaches to the sprayer is too large for the 1/16” hole I drilled (the tube seems to be about 3/32”) and the propellant was way too energetic so I filled a needle oiler and used that to apply the lubricant.





The fans move way more freely than they ever have so I reinstalled them and they are running great (so far at least) with no kick starting required.

I plan to run the fans overnight at 100% and then set them to Automatic tomorrow.

[SlaveInDebt]

I used ATF additive if it matters to the discussion.

[abracadabra]

I would not try to "pop up the fan hub" as Photon939 says.  I tried and broke the fan.  You are trying to get lubricant to the shaft. That's the reason for drilling 2-3mm off center.  I beleive at 8mm you are way too far from the shaft and you now risk drilling into the armature of the motor. If you nick an armature wire, motor is done. I showed Tri-Flow but I believe any teflon based aerosol spray will do the trick.  I wasn't worried about the spray being "too energetic"  I want some lubricant getting in there. After running them overnight, hit them with another couple short bursts.  Forget about trying to reinstall the same sticker.  It'll eventually fall off unless you clean off the fan hub nicely and apply new adhesive.

[Tim the Magician]

12 hours and still going strong.  It looks like the Tri-Flow did the trick.  I plan to reapply at the 24 hour mark as abracadabra suggested.

My issue with the "too energetic" propellant involves the hole being too small for the tube to enter so I ended up with most of it just spraying all over the place.  Next time I will drill 3/32 holes so I don't have that problem.

My Tri-Flow does not say anything about Teflon.. In fact I don't see any current Tri-Flow products which mention Teflon.  They have something called P.T.F.E. which is considered a hazardous substance.

Here is the Material Safety Data Sheet which lists the contents: [MSDS]

Here is the product info: [Tri-Flow]

[UPDATE] P.T.F.E. (Polytetrafluoroethylene) IS Teflon.  Teflon is a brand name owned by DuPont.  They must have gotten tired of paying to use the name.

[Photon939]

All you have to do is pop up the fan hub and apply oil directly to the fan shaft

I did apply some force to attempt to pop the hub off but it got to the point where it felt like it would break and I went the hole drilling path..  Can you give a little more detail?  I have 9 of these cards so I expect I'll be doing this again at some point.

Thanks,
Tim

You should try to use multiple screwdrivers to pry up evenly on the hub, maybe next time I have to do it I can make a video. It works on the squirrel cage centrifugal fans on the reference cards too.

[Haku]

Anyone has tried this fan for a 5850 xtreme?

http://www.ebay.es/itm/170671202120?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649#ht_2233wt_1163

[Miner612]

I do not support Sapphire for that exact reason.  EVERY one I have ever had ... the fan breaks.

[Tim the Magician]

Anyone has tried this fan for a 5850 xtreme?

http://www.ebay.es/itm/170671202120?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649#ht_2233wt_1163

It looks like it would fit.. The listing specifies 72x10 and the original fan is listed as 80x15 on the Polish website which seems to have them: Wentylator FD8015H12S 80x15 12V

I'm not sure about the mounting placement and I don't have a ruler in mm to measure one.. if you are trying to replace one you should be able to do the measurement yourself (please post your results)

[Tim the Magician]

Anyone has tried this fan for a 5850 xtreme?

http://www.ebay.es/itm/170671202120?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649#ht_2233wt_1163

This other fan on eBay has the same fin structure but the wrong mounting and only 3 wire power connector:
New ASUS HD 4870 GTS 250 Video Card Replacement 75mm fan YD128015EL

Here is one which has similar mountings but with 43mm hole spacing and it has a 4 wire power connector.. who knows if the pinout is the same though..
75mm VGA Video Card Fan Replacement 43mm

The inability to find a replacement part is what pushed me to go the repair route..

[Tim the Magician]

I do not support Sapphire for that exact reason.  EVERY one I have ever had ... the fan breaks.

These 5850 Xtremes were the right card at the right price at the right time.. They came out during the Bitcoin bubble last year and for what? $140 each? With 1440 Stream Processing Units they are hard to beat.  I like them better than my 5970s for thermal reasons.. I ended up underclocking the 5970s and overclocking the 5850 Xtremes and I end up with about the same output for $140 / core instead of $300+ (the average / core price I paid for the 5970s)