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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Horns

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Posted By Discussion Topic: Horns     louganser 05-17-2011 @ 10:41 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 39 Joined: Feb 2010 My '47 super deluxe sedan coupe has the long trumpet style horns (2) mounted on the inside fender well. Recently, the horns occaisionally do not sound as loudly as before. I have checked the steering wheel contacts and wiring from there to the horns and all is good. The relay wire connecting screws had some corrosion on them so I cleaned them as well. The horns still are not loud. There is no adjument screw. The Ford Motor Co. parts catalogue shows the smaller sh*ll style horns for 1946-48 passenger cars. Rather than fighting this problem, does anyone know where I can get a set of working sh*ll style horns? Lou G This message was edited by louganser on 5-17-11 @ 10:44 AM supereal 05-17-2011 @ 11:55 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Lou: The change from trumpets to sh*lls took place about mid-'47. The usual problem with all horns is that the high current draw causes the contact points to become burned and pitted. They can be dressed with an ignition point file or similiar tool. If there is no adjustment screw for the point gap, the point arm can usually be bent enough to restore the sound. Check the horns to be sure they are well grounded, and be sure that full voltage is being applied. A jumper wire from the battery to the horn input will tell you if there is a problem in the circuit, such as a bad bullet connector. The high current flow required can also cook the contacts in the relay. As long as the relay is pulling, the circuit from the horn ring to the relay is OK. Johns46coupe 05-17-2011 @ 8:58 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 68 Joined: Apr 2010 I had the same problem and tried the jumper from battery to horn as Super suggested (after first making sure the horns were grounded well). The d*mn things were so loud I hit my head on the hood good. Problem was a bad horn relay. BTW, the trumpet horns are not that easy to find. Hang on to them if you can. John louganser 05-18-2011 @ 7:06 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 39 Joined: Feb 2010 Thanks for the tips! I'll try them. Lou G TomO 05-18-2011 @ 7:48 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7386 Joined: Oct 2009 Lou, the problem is most likely in the horn relay. If you have the original relay, do not replace it until you have tried to clean the contacts.The after market relays are not as good as the original ones. If the problem is in the horns, update your post and I will try to help you solve the problem. If the horn diaphragm is not rusted away, they can usually be made to work. Tom swmddo 07-14-2011 @ 10:34 AM reply profile send p.m. New Member Posts: 111 Joined: Oct 2009 I am curious, as I have seen this many places in discussions relating to grounds: "such as a ground-color: yellow; color: #000000;">bad bullet connector." what does that mean? Steve ford38v8 07-14-2011 @ 11:09 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 2883 Joined: Oct 2009 A bullet connector joins leads from one harness to another. They were used on the assembly line, but over time, they allow resistance in the circuit. When replacing harnesses today, it's best to solder the bullets rather than just plugging them in as original. Alan supereal 07-14-2011 @ 2:01 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Alan covered the bullet connectors. When we solder them together, we first put a piece of heat shrink tubing over the wire, then slip it over the joint and shrink into place. It looks like the old rubber connectors, but the joint will not part as before. As for ground color, the usual color for a ground wire is green. However, it varies in some cases. Anyone working on their car's wiring needs a diagram listing the color code. They are given as the base color of the wire and the "tracer", or color spots on the wire over the base. Uiversally, car manufacturers used the car body as a handy ground. Over time, rust, corrosion, and other products of age, caused these grounds to become compromised. When we rewire a car, we add a ground wire to each component which returns to a central point, such as the battery ground cable, At six volts, 1 amp times 6 ohms causes complete loss of power. That is why so many vehicles were converted to 12 volts, instead of fixing the problem of poor connections in the first place. swmddo 07-15-2011 @ 3:59 AM reply profile send p.m. New Member Posts: 111 Joined: Oct 2009 I'm familiar with the bullet connector problems, as well as the wiring color, but the #000000 baffled me...I guess that is the "color sequence", i.e. all yellow, with no tracers. Steve supereal 07-15-2011 @ 6:29 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 All battery (power) wires are usually yellow, and somewhat larger than most. Typicially, they connect the regulator to the battery after passing thru the ammeter. I don't recognize the number, either as a wire gauge or part number. Where did you see it?

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