Early Electric Fans of 1911-1917
Collecting antique electric fans is an interesting and challenging hobby, especially for fans made in the early years after its invention, c.1885, when companies' earliest designs made use of interesting open motors and brass blades devoid of any protective cage. My interests are with original and unrestored desk fans made prior to 1916. This blog will share my interests by including photographs, historic information and other details about these early fans.
This is truly a great read for me. I have bookmarked it and I am looking forward to reading new articles. Keep up the good work!. Desk Fans
Actually I am waiting for someone else to publish a large and lavish coffee table book with well restored and original fans in great settings. But, wait, wouldn't that drive up the price we all have to pay for fans? For now my blog will have to suffice for those hungry for information and photos of early fans. A dozen years ago I didn't know zip about old fans. I still have a lot to learn but wanted to treat others to some of what I know and the fans I have an interest in as well as have a web page where the information stays in one place to make it easy to find. Steve
Hi Greg, Your R&M predates the R&M List 1404 and is actually a re-badged Westinghouse "tank" model made from c.1907-1911 and, possibly, overlapping the first 1404 by a short time. Take a look at my Westinghouse tank blog where your R&M will fit right in. R&M was, from its inception until c.1907, a maker of strickty DC current fans. It would seem that, instead of designing their own AC fan, that they contracted with Westinghouse to provide their AC fans which Westinghouse obliged until Westinghouse came out with their drawn steel fans in 1912. R&M, probably seeing that Westinghouse would be discontinuing their cast iron motors and would no longer be able to supply a re-badged version to R&M, came out with their first AC fan of their own design, the 1404 which did not use a centrifugal starting switch as alll of the Westinghouse fan motors had. The later Styles R-134031 (and similar) models have a tiny "micro date" in the lower left corner of the motor tag dating to either 1910 or 1911 which would be the last years that Westingouse would make these fans for R&M and, probably, several other companies that they made fans for. The first of the Westy made R&M tanks used a different Style No. which did not have a prefix letter. Otherwise they appear the same as the later models with the only apparent differences through the 1907-1911 run of the fans being different voltages as well as being made in 12" and 16" sizes. These are all somewhat uncommon but not rare. Prior to 1911 R&M sold their "lollipop" and "feathervane" air driven oscillators which had Westinghouse Tank motors. For 1911 R&M had Westinghouse make a new geared oscillator. The 1912 version of the R&M geared oscillators looked nearly identical to the 1911 model save for the double ring cage used on later 1404 R&Ms but the motor was no longer made by Westinghouse. No start switch and a few other small changes set the 1912 and later geared oscillators apart from the 1911 model. R&M made fan motor have a "List No." on the motor tag but the Westinghouse made fan motors use a "Style No." on the motor tag. The R&M geared oscillator of 1912-c.1916 had a motor that looked exactly like the Westy tank motor. I presume it was actually made by R&M since Westinghouse had moved on to using drawn steel motors and bases. R&M would follow with their own stamped steel motors in 1916. I hope I have satisfied your curiosity. Regards, Steve
