Eagle Fan "Grand Duchess" bird-wing fan

[Cole S.]

Aug 10, 2012 9:14:15 GMT -5 JW said:

I think he said in the description that it had one... although the box shows a lady turning what might be a variable speed wall control

That's what it says, one speed. I assume by that point in time you could get a variable speed control if you wanted it, but then you can only slow it down so much before the blades pop back in.

[jonasclark]

One speed only, just like the old ones. The lady on the box is operating a c. 1900-style wall switch: rotary. Think of the porcelain switches you'd see on the nose of an antique cast-iron ceiling fan. I love the mixed eras/styles used here: the LeVelle Fan-Lite is a 1920s-30s fan, but this is specifically a copy of a 1930s model in a style that only appeared in the 30s (slipper shades). The box shows that and a matching Deco sconce with a turn-of-the-century wall switch, a late-Victorian door frame, a lady in Victorian dress, and Art Nouveau details on the borders. It's a great big (beautiful) mix!

[Deleted]

It is. I want it BAD.

[jonasclark]

I've checked some selling prices... for anyone who finds these interesting. The plain (1930s) model with lights sold recently, in good, restored shape, for $1,000. The same model without lights (the exact one picture above) went for $700. I couldn't afford one of those if I tried!

(Wish I'd gotten that one for $125 a few years ago...)

[Jean Lemieux]

I'm not really into theses fans but it's really cool to know they made some reproductions in the 1980s. It resembles very much to the original ones and I actually prefer that 1980s version over the 1930s version.

What kind of bulbs are you using in your 1980s version?

[jonasclark]

Thanks, Jean! As far as I know, Eagle copied only this one model, which was Fan-Lite No. 16. It's one of the models of which I've never seen an original. I've seen nine 1930s models in photos: brass pan, no light; brass pan, four bulbs; white pan w/ plain bottom, four bulbs; brass pan with filigree edge, five suspended bulbs; two variants of a slipper-shade model with five conical, honey-colored shades (one of these is Fan-Lite No. 3); bronze bowl with five angled shade holders & ornate band; another slipper-shade unit with five flat square shades; and the Art Deco model (Fan-Lite No. 5). The only ones of which I've seen more than one are No. 3 and the brass pan w/ four exposed bulbs. Another detail is blades: some are bare silver metal, some are painted brown, a few are black. Mine has black blades, but the other Eagle copies I've seen had brown ones.

I started with tubular, clear 25-watts, since I have a stock of those. I use them in lots of things. The amber glass ensures that the down-light will always be golden, as is the light reflected off the flared brass pan. But indirect light off the ceiling was dim and yellow.

I replaced them with frosted 40-watt appliance-type bulbs, and moved the sockets closer to the shades about half an inch. There's more, brighter and whiter reflected light now.

I also cut a template (took a lot of trial and error), then traced and cut out five pieces of cardstock paper in a parchment color and laid these behind the filigree brass panels between the glass shades. This keeps the bulbs from being directly visible from the floor - you can still see them through the transparent glass or reflected off the brass pan - and also hides glimpses of the wiring. It also makes the filigree patterns more visible. We'll see if these work; I may remove them, or replace them with very thin frosted or white glass.

[jonasclark]

Is this sufficient hanging strength?

The box IS secured to the wooden joist, very well - I'm certain of that. The fan came with this plate with a U-loop; I attached the plate to the metal junction box with two long screws and washers it came with. The fan is bolted through a rubber hanger that sits in the U-loop.

My concern is: Are the two fine-thread, LONG screws with washers that secure the plate to the junction box enough to hold a fairly heavy fan? It isn't Hunter Original heavy, but it's, say, NuTone 52" Verandah Deluxe heavy.

I don't think it's getting a big work-out aside from downwards; the fan wobbles very slightly during speeding up to full and slowing down from, has a barely-noticeable slow, quarter-inch sway when it's been running for a while, and I can only feel a gentle vibration in it while it's at speed.

[Deleted]

It's fine, Jonas! I've hung much heavier fans that way.

Wait, no, I meant, it will fall and crash to millions of pieces. Better to give it to me where it will be safe.

[Cole S.]

Aug 13, 2012 12:36:48 GMT -5 @spiffy said:

Wait, no, I meant, it will fall and crash to millions of pieces. Better to give it to me where it will be safe.

LOL. But yeah it'll be fine, I've had Originals hanging on those screws before, not for prolonged periods, but if they held up for 2 days they'll be fine for years.

[jonasclark]

*chuckle* If I ever find another bird fan, even if it's a cooler one than mine (like the Art Deco No. 5) I know who's getting it.

Assuming you did have this Eagle Fan, where would you hang it? Got a spot it'd go well?

[Deleted]

That's a valid question. I was thinking my spare bedroom/office, but I do love the Verandah in there. It'd be perfect for a foyer, I dont have one at the moment.

[jonasclark]

It'd look great as the focal point in even a medium-sized room, small as it is. Hung in a small foyer, it'd be a great thing to see upon entering, a nice welcome. It's the perfect size for its spot here, replacing a 36" Slimline.

The other kind of oddball 1930s ceiling fan I love is the "Guthfan Conditionaire" made by Edwin F. Guth. They also combine a light fixture and a fan, and also came in no-light models. These use a unique turbine-like blade that gives a unique airflow: air is pulled up into the blade and thrown outward and downward in a full circle, which only circulates the cool air and allows heat (including that from the fan's motor and lights) to rise to the ceiling and stay there.

Wonder where Marilyn Monroe got her "Seven-Year Itch" gag, 'cuz a 1930s Guthfan catalog shows a similar image on the cover - an embarrassed woman trying to hold down her dress as the updraft under the fan pushes it up! Guth made all sorts of lighting fixtures for these, ranging from simple glass or metal bowl uplights to Deco slipper-shades and German, French Empire, Nautical Deco and Colonial-themed chandeliers.

Here's a very Art Moderne Guthfan that runs on 24v DC, made for railroad coaches; it was also available in 110v on a downrod:


A slip-shade Guth based on a chandelier made by Consolidated:


One more in the collection of a guy named Chuck Abernathy, who's got one of just about everything that's cool. This is a more classical design, and an earlier model - note the narrower blades, with less angle too:

The earliest ones had even smaller blades with a thin metal hoop connected to the inner and outer tips of the blades.

I have almost zero chance of finding one of these that's both affordable and in reasonably good condition.

[Deleted]

I much prefer Bird fans to Guth fans.

[jonasclark]

I do, too, but Guth put their fans inside a staggering number of different lighting fixtures, some of them really imaginative, and I like their unique airflow.

An odd note about the Guthfan is that Edwin F. Guth Co. has continued to renew the Guthfan patents, despite halting production in the 40s. A couple of people have approached them about doing replicas, and the official word is, "We will never again make the Guthfan, and neither will anyone else."

[jonasclark]

I've just run by complete accident into a scan of an Eagle Fan Corp. catalog page. I won't post it here as I don't have the original poster's permission, but it depicts all four fan finishes as well as the wall sconce-- and, better yet, it has PRICES!

The page is stamped with the address of The Fan Man (Phil Frey), former antique fan restoration guy in Dallas. It also says that the fans are no longer in production and are available while supplies last. I would guess the date at around 1984-1985.

The wall sconce costs $100. The antique brass, black enamel and off-white enamel fans cost $500! And the polished brass model I have cost a whopping $700!! Yikes! I could never have afforded that, then or now, but I think the fan looks good enough to justify a high price. It's well-made and puts out a nice breeze, and the light fixture is gorgeous. It's the jewel of my entire (mostly non-fan) collection.