Reviews of Hunter 28461 52" 5 Minute Fan, Antique Pewter Finish

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List Price: $114.54
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This was very easy to install (my second ceiling fan) if you are replacing an existing fan. It took me more like 30 minutes though (not 5), but I double-check everything I do. The motor is a little louder than I would like but for the price you can't beat it. No wobbling or strange movements whatsoever.

Edited 6/02/10: Motor loudness was cured shortly after I wrote first review...not related to fan and problem soft. Fan is so quiet now so I changed my rating to 5 stars.

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First off, let me just say that once installed this fan is very nice looking, quiet, and I had no issue with it not being bright enough (I read this was a problem in reviews outside of Amazon). I don't regret my purchase at all. Unfortunately, the installation was a nightmare. I installed two fans this weekend. Both were Hunter, one was a "Five Minute" version and one was not. The only difference was that the "Five Minute" version has blades that snap on whereas the other had blades that screwed on. Start to finish, this fan took two hours and 21 minutes to install. Why? Because the screws Hunter provides are brass and more decorative than functional for key steps like hanging the bracket on the ceiling where you are supposed to screw three inch screws into a 2X4. Good luck. Both my fans had these same screws. I followed the directions and pre-drilled with the correct size drill bit. I was able to get less than 1/3 of the way screwed in before the entire top of the screw was completely stripped out.

I tried using a drill. It stripped out.

I tried by hand. It stripped out.

I tried using a flat head screwdriver (it is the kind of screw that allows you to use either screwdriver). It stripped out.

It is pretty bad when I'm screwing in a screw with a flat head screwdriver and in a matter of seconds have sliced the top off the screw. I'm a girl and nowhere near that strong. I attached a picture of one of the screws. All four looked like this. Lucky for me, I had some nice quality three inch wood screws in my garage and was able to use those. I also had a lot of issues with places where the threading on the fan was off and putting small screws in was next to impossible because they too were the cheap brass and stripped out within seconds if I put any force behind them.

Aside from the really cheap hardware and the issues that caused, the fan is very nice and is a huge upgrade from the horrible, noisy one we had before.

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We just put this fan up on Saturday and it looks Great and also it is Very,Very Quiet! I would like to inform you though that it does take longer than 5 minutes to install. And it goes a lot faster if you have an extra person to assist. I also want to give you a heads up that the blades are not solid black, they are mixed with a very dark cherry or brown & black the other side is more cherry. I have a black dining room table with a dark cherry top that this fan was going over so I wanted black blades but once the fan was up the blades (picked the black/cherry sides) look black so I still ended up loving the look of the fan. Hope this helps!

Honest reviews on Hunter 28461 52" 5 Minute Fan, Antique Pewter Finish

As a preface, I have installed many ceiling fans over the years. This fan has some innovative design, but is of average quality overall. For the price, I certainly recommend it.

Some of the features of Hunter fans, do save steps and time. However, this 5 Minute Fan claim is nothing but hype. Even Hunter states that the installation of the mounting plate is not included in the time. I would also subtract such unnecessary steps as taking the fan out of the packaging, reading the instructions, going up and down the ladder, grabbing needed tools, and screwing in the bolts.

Watching Hunter's video, people are literally standing on the floor, hanging an assembled fan, screwing on some wire nuts, and snapping the fan blades on. I wish it were so simple.

Hunter is doing itself a disservice with this ridiculous 5 minute claim, and needs to get back to reality. They produce a decent ceiling fan, with a few time saving features. Leave it at that.