Introduction

I've always loved the idea of putting LEDs on fans to make them have that bright glow, but none of the other pre-made or modded fans seem to utilize the full potential of the LEDs. They're no more than mounted and stationary lights fixed in the position of the spinning fan blades. There are only a few other ways to make the LED fan more appealing and unique, and one solution is mounting the LEDs directly on the blades to get a ring of light. I admit this is not the only way to accomplish this modification; rather it is simply an innovation. I call this mod the Single Contact LED fan.

Parts

• DC Fan (preferably 80mm)

• Copper Wire

• Two or more LEDs

• Resistors (See a LED calculator for appropriate resistance)

• Epoxy Glue

• Metal Plate (I used a penny)

Tools

• Pliers (preferably Needle Nose Pliers)

• Dremel Tool (optional)

• Drill

• Soldering Iron

• Sand paper

Preamble

For this guide, I used a generic Crystal Clear 80mm Sleeve Bearing Fan. The reason why is mainly because I needed to show the insides of the fan from any angle. But any type of fan will work including single and dual ball bearing fans; refer to the later steps to utilize a ball bearing fan. The ball bearing fans are the easiest to work on, but they are usually more expensive. I recommend using the least expensive (sleeve bearing) fan because this mod will void any warranty of the fan, plus it might be wise to experiment on an old fan.

The reason why the mod is called the "Single Contact LED Fan" is because there is one visible contact for the electricity to travel through. The other contact is hidden within the base of the fan. This is the innovation from the older "Slip ring" design, which has two contact brushes on the surface of the fan. Another newer LED fan design similar to my design, also uses the hidden base contact. But it's other contact causes a severe problem of noisy scratching and improper contact. Just like the "Slip ring design" where the contacts brushes scrape along a spinning surface area, causing a lot of scratching and grinding noises. It's the type of sound that makes a person who likes high rpm fan noise go insane within a day. My innovation is meant to cease all scratching and grinding around the contact brushes. The solution is simply to reduce the amount moving surface area between the contacts.

• From the Flash animation you can see to how the contact is in the center of the fan where the amount of moving surface area is minimized. The tip of the contact isn't sharp; instead it's a blunt loop.

  
  

• The LEDs get their 12+ volts from the contact between the sleeve bearing and the fan axel.

  
  

Let's Get Started

First step, remove the sticker on the back of the fan to reveal the tip of the fan axel. Make sure not to loose the sticker because the sticker was designed to prevent dust and other junk to build up in the bearings. You'll need it again to finish this mod. Once opened, remove the small plastic clip which holds the fan in place.

Use pliers to remove the electro magnets from the base of the fan. Do NOT grip the electro magnets; grip the circuit board just like the picture. Gripping the electro magnets will damage them; the circuit board is far more sturdy.

I used a predrilled metal plate with clamps to help drill a prefect hole through the fan, but this method is completely optional. The object is to create an opening for the soldering iron to attach a wire to the sleeve bearing. If you are using a Ball bearing fan, remove the ball bearing and solder a wire to it. Remember to clear an opening where the solder is. Mark the places you want to cut open to give you an easy opening to the circuit board.

Solder a wire to the sleeve bearing, but be sure to make enough room for the fan axel to move freely. (Note: Putting the plastic clip back on the axel will cause a problem if you don't give enough room for it. Either solder on the side, or simply do not put the clip back on. The fan will still be pushed back into place by the contact brush). Mark the places you're about to cut open, and solder the wire to the 12+ volt line. Make sure not to solder 12+ together with the ground. If you do something bad will most definitely happen.

Now that the bearing is connected to the 12+ volt, you need to connect a wire to the fan axel. But for every fan out there, there are small differences which you'll have to cope with. Some fans have a spring on the axel, others like mine don't. If you have a spring your in luck, you only have to solder wire to the spring. In my case, I had to drill some plastic off to make an electrical connection with the axel. Finally, drill a hole through the top of the fan to lead the wire out to the surface.

Drills holes in the fan blades for the LEDs, and make sure to balance the weight evenly. Otherwise the fan will vibrate due to the uneven distribution of weight. Solder the LEDs to the 12+ volt line.

Almost Done

Believe it or not, pennies aren't completely made of copper! This next step uses a penny as a plate for the brush contact. Temporarily glue the penny to a piece of sheet metal to speed up the lapping process. For those who never heard of lapping, lapping is a process of flattening and smoothing a surface. In most cases, lapping is done to heatsinks in order to get the best contact with the CPU core. Use sandpaper mounted on a level surface, and sand in a consistent motion. Using water to lubricate the surface, this helps get a smoother finish. (Use 150 grit to quickly level the surface, but finish with a super fine grit like 300-1000)

Use the epoxy to firmly glue the metal plate (penny) to the top of the fan. Solder another wire to the ground (-), and add the appropriate resistor(s) for your LEDs. Solder the other end of the LEDs to the metal plate (The metal plate is the ground (-))

Finally create the contact brush with the copper wire and secure it firmly to the base of the fan. Connect the contact brush to the ground (-) wire along with the resistor(s). Important: Make sure to make the tip of the contact brush a loop instead of a sharp tip. The purpose of the loop is to have a smooth surface on both the contact brush and plate. Otherwise, it will scratch the plate and make a lot of noise.

The last thing you have to do is position the contact brush so that it no longer scratches. You can use a little bit of motor oil to lubricate the contact. To my surprise, the oil actually helps the conductivity.

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