Flex too Humid? Fan it Yourself! - Page 3

Kreno · 02-07-2002, 02:52 AM

Should be able to use this mod on just about any mask... just some may require a little more modification than others....

jeffgorc · 02-22-2002, 05:55 PM

I have always had trouble with fogging up. I bought the X-Wind fan, but it just didn't have the power to effectivly clear the fog. When I saw this post, I wanted to try to make my own. The problem was I couldn't find any fan that was small enough.

Later, my X-Wind fan was damaged and got another one. It was then that I got an idea: If the X-Wind worked so-so with one fan, what about with two fans?

So I took the fan out of the damaged X-Wind and worked on getting a second fan in the new one. The first thing I saw was that there would be no room inside the X-Wind for batteries with two fans inside. Any battery would have to go outside.

The next thing I noticed is that each fan is set in a piece of molded plastic so that it will only fit on one side of the X-Wind. To have a fan on the right side, I had to make a few modifications. I used a Dremell tool to cut away the little plastic flaps attatched to the fan. Then I took the old plastic piece that used to cover the battery and cut two little flaps out of it. Then I superglued the little flaps to the fan. Now the fan is a mirror image what it used to look like. Now it can be placed in the X-Wind right next to the other fan (after a little more shaping of the body with the Dremel).

I then wired the two fans in series using the existing switch and a 9 volt battery. I taped the battery to the top with some electrical tape. It fits in nicely behind the visor of the mask. Now I have two fans running with the power of 4.5 vots each. They are only 1.5 volt motors so they are really humming! It's pretty damn loud when it's running, but this baby's got power! The motors have not shown any ill affects of running under the increased voltage and I've used it for several months. No more fogging problems at all. All it usually takes is 5-10 seconds to remove the worst fog. It has about the same sound and airflow as a dustbuster, so you can't use it if you're hiding.

It was a little bit of work, but I had fun doing it and I'm happy with the results. Sorry I don't have any pictures.

MOOSEontheLoose · 02-23-2002, 07:18 AM

Ive got a pretty DOPE setup.

listen to this boys, its basically the same setup all of you are using.

ive got 2 12v computer fans running off 1 9v battery. All are under visor, nothing on strap or anything.

The real kicker is ive got this tiny momentary on/off normally off switch i rigged up. (its from radio shack) I rigged it on the bottom left of the mask, in one of the holes of the flex 7 bottom part. You can hardly see it, but all you do is push switch for 5 seconds and fog be gone!

jawpaul · 03-01-2002, 12:02 PM

I just rigged up my X-Fire with a 80x80m Sunon fan I ripped from a computer psu. It is designed to run off of 12volt dc which Is what I am gonna run it at.
Since I play woods all the time and am not a speedball guy I didn't care about size mainly how loud it is and good air flow.
I have the fan stuck in front of my mouth sucking air out of the mask. I then have some quick disconnects wired to the ends of the wires of the fan. To whose I hook up about a three foot long wire that goes to my "black box" which is on my belt. My black box is a 7"x5"x3" black project box available from radio shack. I have two switches on the outside and two outputs. One is for the fan and the other is for any 12volt accesory if I need one.
I am powering this off of 8 D cell battery wired in series to produce 12 volts DC. I don't have any exact numbers about the run time yet but my fan is rated at 1.2 watts at 12vdc, so it should last a long time. I'll probably have to change the batteries once a year since I don't go paintballing much.
I way over-enginered this project and went over my budget but it will be very easy to upgrade in the future if I so need to.
Also it will take all of 15 minutes or less to wire up an extra switch for 6 or 12 volts for my fasn or accesory.

ultimatetaba · 03-01-2002, 02:51 PM

hey, all this sound cool. does this sort of thing works on all masks? I just got a mask about two days and it fogs up sometimes. besides, i like to work on electronic projects. please reply because i dont want to screw up my mask and waste my money for nothing. oh yeah, can somebody email me plans at ultimateaba@aol.com
thanx

Havoc45 · 03-01-2002, 04:38 PM

Its a little hard w/ a Nvador, I have a 1 1/8" inch fan I took off a broken geforce 2. I dotn know if its possible to fit it in. Anyone have any tips?

redeye · 03-11-2002, 07:38 PM

any ideas were somebody would be able to find some small fans online? Like those 25mm 5v ones.

Guillotine · 04-01-2002, 04:58 PM

hey I just found this post, went out to radioshack, and rigged up my mask, this mod works awesome.

thanks Killer Kat

joshthefrosh · 04-13-2002, 06:00 PM

i hate radio shack, those stupid employees said i make bombs and the manager talked to me about that, it freaked me out but they all were jokeing. it made me look bad in front of all those soccer moms. i buy all my electronic parts from supertroix in kent now.

Land Shark · 04-15-2002, 07:54 PM

Instead of bolting the fan down, I just used zip ties to hold it to the top of the mask at an angle. It works great for me and my buddies mask. The fans and everything are from RadioShack too. The people at my RadioShack are excellent, you just have to find the right location. BTW I used a 12v batt that usually goes in the handheld remotes for car alarms and a battery holder for an "N" battery. It works good. I'm thinking about swithching to a 9v setup though. The 9v's are cheaper.
Will a 9v batt run a 12v fan for very long, or should I stick with what I have?

iamaperson · 04-27-2002, 03:39 PM

Killer Kat. Is that a Moss green flex 7 Ize? I am just curious because I might buy one.

mikek2111987 · 05-18-2002, 11:16 AM

I tried putting the same type of computer fan in my nVader. Didint work out. There isnt enough space up there.......

reno-man · 05-18-2002, 02:28 PM

it worked in mine.check the pics.(back a couple pages)

mikek2111987 · 05-18-2002, 05:00 PM

reno - How does that work? It just looks to me like it fans the top of your head. you want it to get down in the goggles themselves. (that what those holes are for)

reno-man · 05-20-2002, 04:38 PM

Look close.Theres clear plastic wings attached either side,with elec. tape on the top to seal.Vent directly behind fan is taped off,so it sucks air out of the holes ontop of your goggles.Its worked well over a year now,even after a direct hit.It was a little fiddly to install the first time but after that its been great.

reno-man · 05-20-2002, 04:42 PM

the visor still fits too.

Kamotz · 07-02-2002, 11:45 PM

I've got an X-Wind fan to defog the lens, plus I have another fan to keep my face cool on those really hot days. The second fan runs off of two 9v batteries in a belt mounted box. The batteries made the mask too heavy to be comfortable. If I have them both on at the same time it gets pretty noisy.

Here's the switch and the connectors for the battery box. (The gunk on the switch is dried contact cement from trying to attach the rubber switch cover)

Here's the battery box itself.

money&skill · 07-08-2002, 05:47 PM

crank yankers are the best , "i got your ***"---"you do?"

mikek2111987 · 07-08-2002, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by money&skill
crank yankers are the best , "i got your ***"---"you do?"

you posting in the right thread there buddy?

shufflefield · 07-23-2002, 08:18 AM

Could I put a fan in a Vforce? And is there any less "bulky" power supply than the eyeglass case?