Rebuilding a JT Vortex Goggle Fan

[mikew]

I've just completed is rebuilding a JT Goggle fan. I've owned this unit for many years and it finally gave up the ghost a couple of months back. Since they are no longer available I thought it was worth while attempting a repair.

After a tear down I discovered that the electric motor was no longer operational. Fortunately these micro motors are available from China via eBay for only a couple of dollars so I ordered a couple. They are listed as an M10 Micro Motor, 3 - 6v, 11.5mm long, 8 x 10 wide with a 1 mm dia. 5mm long shaft.

Replacing the motor is quite straightforward. You first remove the four screws to separate the two piece housing and then pull the fan motor out of the rear with a pair of needle nose pliers. The fan blade will pop off during this process. Just take care not to lose the small plastic washer that sits under the fan blade.

Now remove the soft plastic anti vibration sleeve from the motor and unsolder the two wires. Next solder in the new motor, slip it into the sleeve and reinsert it into the frame. Then place the plastic washer onto the shaft and press on the fan blade.

Finally, reassemble the fan housing replacing all four screws and you are good to go.

I've found these fan units to be very effective as a glasses wearer but the biggest downside to them is the noise. In that respect my home built version is a lot quieter.

[SETHZILLA!]

Great info! I used to wear glasses and had to have the fan. I have a few to rebuild and will love for them to be quieter too! Thanks

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[DocsMachine]

Always wondered if somebody couldn't design a more efficient impeller, and 3D print it, in an effort to cut down on the noise.

I mean, we have computer fans that are damn near silent, and I can't imagine a lot of flow and efficiency designwork went into the original impeller... 25 years ago.

Doc.

[Chuck E Ducky]

These work great mine blew into a million pieces when it took a direct shot. Should have left my visor on. I had to solder the battery terminals on a few of them. After doing that they work great.

Liquid graphite on the fan shaft will quite these down a lot.

[mikew]

I've also built my own fan setup and it's a lot quieter than the Vortex. The total cost of the parts was around $15 AU. The fan is a Sunon 20mm 5 volt Maglev model which is very quiet running on 4.5 volts and moves a decent amount of air. The switched battery box is an off the shelf item and holds three AAA batteries. I tried two AA batteries but the air flow was barely adequate. The battery box looks a bit fragile but they're cheap so it's not a real problem if it gets broken.

Fitting and wiring the whole setup took around 15 minutes. I used cable ties to mount the fan to the top of the goggles. The battery box was a bit more of a problem but I ended up using velcro to hold it in place. Then it was simply a matter of running the wiring in some heat shrink, soldering the connections and the job was complete.

The photos show the setup fitted to a rather decrepit pair of JT Spectra goggles. I do have a better pair but I thought I'd try it out on these first as a proof of concept. I'm very happy with it so far. It generates very little noise (think mosquito) so you can still hear what's going on around you and it's quite effective at keeping my glasses fog free. The next improvement I'm going to try is a 3D printed fan base which would improve the air flow significantly.

[JeeperCreeper]

Me too ^

https://www.mcarterbrown.com/forum/custom/custom-projects-custom-questions/187536-anti-fog-fan