What tool / technique would I use to take the fan blade off this fridge motor (and re-mount it to a new one?)

fansrefrigerator

Fridge fan

Not the best picture as it's straight on – here's another from http://www.fan-and-blower.com/axial-fan-ebmpapst-bg2012/

Fridge fan

I believe the one in my Bosch fridge freezer is on its way out as it's sporadically making a loud grinding noise as if it's become unbalanced / started rubbing against something.

There is a spare motor available but I'm wondering, if I order it, how I detatch the fan and re-attach it to the new motor's shaft. The fan seems to be crimped on with a metal collar, but is in a recessed area in the centre of the plastic blade assembly that can't be easily reached. The collar isn't a continuous ring – it's a few mm gap short of a full circle.

I believe the plastic fan may no longer be available so I don't want to risk breaking it by jabbing around with bottle-nosed pliers. Is there a standard name for this kind of mounting? What do I use to do it neatly?

I appreciate that the answer may be "just pull it off, and push it on!"

EDIT: here's a (bad, but hopefully not too misleading) drawing:

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Best Answer

You need a pair of retaining ring pliers.

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  • Use the retaining ring pliers to remove the retaining ring.
  • Pull the blade off the shaft.
  • Push the blade on the new motor.
  • Use the retaining ring pliers to install the retaining ring.