When it comes to software I can figure out almost anything, but when it’s hardware i am a total noob. Do these fans have some sort of lubricant that can dry out? It spins for a bit and then stops, b...
Yes — most of these small DC axial fans use a lubricated sleeve bearing: a sintered bushing soaked with oil. As that oil dries out or migrates (heat speeds this up), friction in the hub rises and the fan can start, then stall.
That matches what you described, and what the stills from your clips show: dual wire-guard fans on a NerdQAxe-class board (the silkscreen reads NERD / QAXE and “For 15.2V Power”). If it also stops after a short spin by hand, that’s mechanical drag in the bearing, not a PWM setting or a weak PSU. A blade rubbing the shroud usually scrapes or wobbles; you said it doesn’t look like that’s happening.
Sunon (a major DC-fan maker) specifies a “lubricated sleeve bearing system” and rates life at 40 °C / 65% humidity — a 24/7 miner sitting on a hot heatsink is a harsher environment than that lab number. Noctua’s bearing write-up is blunt about ordinary sleeve bearings: quiet at first, then poor long-term stability and rising noise as they age.
The reliable fix is to replace the fan. Match the frame size, thickness, airflow direction (usually into the heatsink), connector, and the voltage printed on the fan housing itself — the board’s 15.2 V input is not necessarily what the fans run at. Some people peel the hub sticker and add a drop of light machine oil as a temporary revive; sealed bearings aren’t meant to be opened (Noctua voids warranty if you pull the impeller), so treat oiling as a maybe-it-helps stopgap, not a repair.
Sources:
https://www.noctua.at/en/sso-bearing
https://www.sunon.com/en/PROSEARCH_FILES/D04121080G-01.pdf
That matches what you described, and what the stills from your clips show: dual wire-guard fans on a NerdQAxe-class board (the silkscreen reads NERD / QAXE and “For 15.2V Power”). If it also stops after a short spin by hand, that’s mechanical drag in the bearing, not a PWM setting or a weak PSU. A blade rubbing the shroud usually scrapes or wobbles; you said it doesn’t look like that’s happening.
Sunon (a major DC-fan maker) specifies a “lubricated sleeve bearing system” and rates life at 40 °C / 65% humidity — a 24/7 miner sitting on a hot heatsink is a harsher environment than that lab number. Noctua’s bearing write-up is blunt about ordinary sleeve bearings: quiet at first, then poor long-term stability and rising noise as they age.
The reliable fix is to replace the fan. Match the frame size, thickness, airflow direction (usually into the heatsink), connector, and the voltage printed on the fan housing itself — the board’s 15.2 V input is not necessarily what the fans run at. Some people peel the hub sticker and add a drop of light machine oil as a temporary revive; sealed bearings aren’t meant to be opened (Noctua voids warranty if you pull the impeller), so treat oiling as a maybe-it-helps stopgap, not a repair.
Sources:
https://www.noctua.at/en/sso-bearing
https://www.sunon.com/en/PROSEARCH_FILES/D04121080G-01.pdf
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