Description
The initial checkout of a pair of SMC 12" oscillating table fans model TR-12. The units date back to the early 2000s, these 2000 and 2002.
I acquired both of these units at the thrift store on the same day. While it's not inconceivable that 2 happened to be donated that week, I'd expect under those circumstances the units to have come from the same household. Aside from being together, they don't really seem to have come from the same owner. The cleanliness of the fans is different, the type of dirt on them is different, and the yellowing patters are different. They seem to be products of different environments.
Most oddly, the motor inside the cleaner fan is filthy, while the motor of the filthy one is relatively clean. And in typical fashion, the dirty, more heavily used one seems to run better.
These SMC oscillating fans from the 2000s are very nostalgic to me. I have more nostalgia to the TH series fans, and generally like the aesthetics better. I remember seeing these fans around as late as in the 2010s; there was a math classroom that had one of these in the front of the room.
Many of these were sold at the The Home Depot for very low prices. These were economy products, and I'd say they were overall objectively very good. They move a decent amount of air on high, have a good variance in speeds down to a quiet gentle low, and last a long time. These have steel bearings, which work very well as long as there's lubrication. Once a lubrication failure takes place, they're harder to revive than other types of bearings.