We used to use Simple Green BITD but I think there are better and safer products out there now.
I was going to suggest Simple Green. Cuts through gunk quite effectively when used straight (not diluted), I’ve used it on my commercial vent hood baffles.
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Follow up. I simmered it a few hours last night in a water solution heavy in Dawn and TJ’s “Cedarwood” cleaner. Shut it off overnight as my wife has this thing about overnight simmering (before I started using the instant pot for all my broths, she’d insist on me shutting down bone simmer pots overnight).
I simmered a few more hours this afternoon when I got back from some errands and with a couple of old toothbrushes got all the loosened gunk off. It looks good. Reinstalled and it’s well-balanced and working right.
Thanks again all for all of your thoughts on this. If the TJ’s cleaner + Dawn hadn’t cut it (pun intended) I’d have moved on to some of the other suggestions.
I also took an old knife to the fan motor and scraped off an amazing amount of thickened gunk there, too.
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My go to solution is industrial strength ammonia and chain scrubber or steel wool.
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Score one for the Dawn, woohoo! I’m pretty sure Dawn would have done the job solo if you ever have a need for further experiments. (I use that same TJ’s cleaner on windows and like it a lot.)
Of course because you succeeded, your family will probably expect you to work similar magic in the future—says the person who “gets” to deep clean the outdoor grill here every season. 
P.S. Off topic, Dawn is also handy for getting soap buildup out of sinks and tubs, if you apply a layer and allow it to sit before wiping away and following up with a rinse. Oh my, I feel like one of those old-timey household hints columnists.
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In a wasp waist stiffly starched shirtdress and spike heels.
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BS and vinegar, bud. Old school!
Doh!
Take out, down, apart and steam clean it. Melts right off.
Boiling a half gallon or more of white vinegar under it while it’s running will free it up and deodorize the whole affair, but of course is not as good as a real take down and cleaning.
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