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| FELT the need to ask... | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 09:56 am |
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1st Post |
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Shane Hunt Guest
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More of an asthethics question than a mechanical one this, but do people out there know... Which colour of felt was used on the base of fans and was this colour used exclusively by each manufacturer? eg Did GE always use green felt? Did Westinghouse use yellow? Emerson? When did felt first begin to appear on fans and when did it get phased out? Just curious.
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 03:16 pm |
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2nd Post |
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Ron Powell Guest 
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Well, Shane I'll take a stab at your question, I'm sure if I'm wrong in any way one of our kind members will point it out. I would say most of your manufactures used green, brown and even grey felt from what I have seen, of course I'm color blind. And Emerson started using felt bases when they went to bell or horn bases, 1920's or there abouts. GE I would say around the same time when they went to a similar base. Never seen a yellow base felt except on one sorry fan someone had restored and one that a member had posted that I believe was very faded and bleached by the sun. A lot us here put green, brown, grey or black felt on our fans some even red if it matches the color scheme . I believe it won't hurt to put any color felt you want on your fan as long it's not to outrageous and goes with the color of the fan. A fan that had originally green felt on it with now black felt on it hardly matters. The value of any fan is not in it's felt base.
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 03:56 pm |
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3rd Post |
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Steve Stephens Guest 
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As Ron said, lots of colors but predominantly green. For the brass blade fans it was mostly Emerson very dark green, GE maybe a shade lighter, R&M lighter green, maybe tending toward a yellow-green on faded felt? Westinghouse dark green. GEs in the 30s painted black used black felt while the green fans stayed with dark green felt. Emerson had a lot of brown in the 30s and later I think but, sadly, my brass fans have kicked most of those later fans out of the house. Other fans in the 30s and later probably changed to other colors; I'm not sure what or when. I don't think I've ever seen an original fan with red or yellow felt but you do see them in so called "restorations". Due to fading of the old felt and different dyes and that a company could have any color and shade they wanted, you'll probably only come pretty close to the original color, etc. Stay away from using polyester felt; there was no polyester back in the day. Look for a wool or wool-polyester blend. Hunt through a fabric store and ask them for what you want. The wool and blends may be in a different place than the common new felt. Below is a 1920s R&M that Dale Keever just posted on another thread. Note the difference in the green from the exposed outer part and the inner felt protected from light and wear. Attached Image (viewed 679 times): Last edited on Sun Nov 1st, 2009 04:35 pm by Steve Stephens |
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 05:16 pm |
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4th Post |
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Russ Huber AFCA Member 
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I have seen Emerson in green, black,red, and yellow for what it's worth. 
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 06:21 pm |
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5th Post |
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Joe Bourn Guest
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Steve Stephens wrote: Stay away from using polyester felt; there was no polyester back in the day. Look for a wool or wool-polyester blend. Hunt through a fabric store and ask them for what you want. The wool and blends may be in a different place than the common new felt. I was able to obtain some first quality felt from a place that recovers pool tables. Different colors and it was all was being thrown away so was free. Hardest part was taking the large pieces being discarded and trimming them down to something manageable in size that weren't damaged. About 12'' square is what I settled on. Last edited on Sun Nov 1st, 2009 06:25 pm by |
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| Posted: Sun Nov 1st, 2009 11:12 pm |
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6th Post |
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Steve Stephens Guest
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Russ Huber wrote:I have seen Emerson in green, black,red, and yellow for what it's worth.Factory felt job Russ or re-felted by someone? I've seen all kinds of colors and shades on re-felted fans. Pool table felt: From what I've seen of that felt it's pretty thin stuff and doesn't look much like the original felt used on fans.
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| Posted: Mon Nov 2nd, 2009 01:53 am |
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7th Post |
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Russ Huber AFCA Member
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Steve Stephens wrote: Russ Huber wrote: Pssssst....Steveo...think about this dude. When you replace the green felt on the fan it is still not original. Somewhere out there more than likely in the backroads of Iowa some eccentric packrat has a unopened box of green Emerson felt.  Until we find that box, many fan collectors WILL have to deal the horrible realization that their green felt replacement is just a cheap imitation. Amen fan brothers. 
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| Posted: Mon Nov 2nd, 2009 07:22 am |
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8th Post |
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Shane Hunt Guest
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Thanks for your thoughts. So, would 'many colours but predominently green and used mainly between the teens and thirties' be a fair summation?
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| Posted: Mon Nov 2nd, 2009 07:25 am |
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9th Post |
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Steve Stephens Guest
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Mostly a shade of dark to medium green on most fans of the 20's. Oh, Centurys in the teens were darker green too. Not "many" colors used over the years but just a few times 2 more or less.
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| AFCA Forums > Antique Fan Collectors Association > Pre-1950 (Antique) > FELT the need to ask... | Top |