Can I lube Gigabyte windforce fans ?

[anotherhardwarenoob]

Recently my gtx 970 started making rattling noises, so I am thinking about lubbing it, but I have not found any tutorials to open Gigabyte's windforce fans to ube them.
Has anyone here lubbed a gigabyte fan or can help me?

 

[P4-630]

Recently my gtx 970 started making rattling noises

Are you sure that the fans are turning freely without touching wires and such?
Seems bearing(s) gone bad, needs fan replacement.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

Likely the bearings have worn out, or, less likely, screws have come loose. Fans for that are cheap, but a new/used card can be just as cheap.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

When the fans start rattling, It means the bearing is shot. No amount of lube is going to fix it. Youre better off either emailing Gigabyte and seeing if they would be nice enough to send you out a fan assembly if its under warranty, source one off ebay if they arent willing or go with an aftermarket cooler Like an Accelero III.

Sometimes you can also find the fans themselves on ebay too and just swap them on when you get them.

Which ever is the cheaper option. Though do contact Gigabyte first if your card is still under warranty before going the alternative routes as messing with the card yourself will void whatever warranty you may have left depending on your region.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

When the fans start rattling, It means the bearing is shot. No amount of lube is going to fix it.

I've been rattling for years, this is so true.

 

[Vya Domus]

You can try, I have "fixed" many fans by adding a bit of oil. The problem is that I don't think those fans have that little rubber gasket that you remove like case fans do.

 

[pavle]

Ha. These Gigabyte windforce fans - these are ordinary sleeve "bearing" fans and to top if off, on the backside there is no lid to remove to access the axle. Anyhow - take the fans off of the cooler, drill out that plastic that covers fan bearing and then take out the plastic "keeper" to be able to take the fan out of the bearing.
It's a really annoying process but once you got the fans able to be pull out of the bearing, just put some lithium or better grease on the axle and put the fan back in, no keepers this time, because you'll likely have to do greasing every so many months; just put some electrical tape over the drilled hole in the back and put the cooler+fans back together.
This way you can every so often pull fans out of their bearings even when the card is mounted in case and powered off to grease the axles.
I hate those (gigabyte) sleeve fans, but their life can be prolonged if no other options exist.