Right now you'd never know it had failed. After that re-oiling with
3-in-One, and a bit of Sellotape to seal it (the original label was
losing its adhesiveness), it now seems to be running OK.
It's possible to continue using a fan for several years
after being relubed, though it depends on the balance of the
fan, orientation, RPM, viscosity of lube, how badly the
bearing was worn (quite a few variables). For a short term
fix the cellotape will be ok but in the longer term it is
best to use a tape that doesn't have a petroleum based
adhesive (as those usually do) since oil will dissolve it,
contaminating the oil and possibly making tape come off too.
After recommendations in alt.comp.hardware, I've now installed MBM 5.
It report my CPU a steady 50°C. That sounds a bit warm, but I assume
it's OK? (CPU = AMD Athlon XP1800+ on ASUS A7A266-E m/b) The case is
at 31°C. And the fan is typically at about 4750 rpm.
For a 'sink using a small/thin 60mm fan that temp is to be
expected, though with a larger 'sink and fan the temp on an
XP1800 would tend to be lower. 50C is not hot enough that
you should expect stability or heat-damage problems and your
board may actually estimate the temp a little higher than
actual, BUT if this is an idle temp it isn't as useful as
the temp at full load.
A system should remain cooling enough with the CPU running
at full load for extended periods. A popular way of
achieving this is to run Prime95's Torture Test, large
in-place FFTs mode, for at least 30 minutes, even longer for
a system making critical calculations. That can be expected
to significantly increase heat production and better gauge
the adequacy of the cooling.
I'd prefer it to
be quieter, and if I eventually succeed in *finding* a 25mm x 60mm
replacement, I'm hoping it will be. Mind you, it's possible that
having recently added another 2 HDs (making 3), there's a minimum
sound level I'll have to accept.
A worn out fan with thin oil relube will tend to be louder
than it was new, and when new it will be louder than a
thicker fan at significantly lower RPM. It's a safe bet
that any 25mm thick replacement fan running under 2800 RPM
would be quieter, including the one you linked previously.
Any of the 60mm Panaflo/NMH/NMB-MAT fans in the "L" or "M"
speed range (letter in the part #), opposed to the "H"
should be quieter.
I'm pretty sure the other label on this says 'Ball bearing'.
If 12mm, likely only one ball-bearing. WIth thin fans the
problems are multiple, not only the higher RPM and lower
likelihood that it's as well balanced, but also with such a
short bearing, any imbalance will be worse wear on the
bearing. There are so many benefits to a thicker fan that
it's sad how few heatsinks from yesteryear used them.
BTW, the other reason for removing that sealing label was that it says
"5 Years Warranty; JUST COOLER; CE"; the PC is 3½ years old, so I may
try tracking down the supplier and exercising that warranty!
I doubt it'll be time-effective, at most they might send you
another cheap fan worth $1... what use would you have with
another fan known to have poor lifespan and high noise?
