Re: 50 Deluxe horn
Posted by HH56 On 2020/7/19 12:42:16
The usual causes of horn failure is with the electrical contacts or diaphragm. Water or debris can get inside the horn causing rust or a bind of the diaphragm so it cannot vibrate or else arcing, corrosion or wear on the contact points has resulted in their being open as the horn just sits. A poor or no contact point problem is the more likely issue. If the points are open or have a high resistance they cannot pass current to the magnet so it cannot move the diaphragm and start the vibration and tone.
You can check the horn contacts by disconnecting the wire at the horn and using an ohmmeter between the horn terminal and ground. There should be reading of almost a direct short as the horn just sits. If there is no reading or one that shows a lot of resistance then two possibilities. One is the contacts are not making a good contact. The other is if the car has been converted to 12v and horns are the original 6v units it is possible the horn winding has burned open.
Relays have also been known to fail but since only one of your horns is affected that is unlikely to be your issue. If it does turn out to be a relay with burned contacts not passing enough current to operate two horns, universal replacements are readily available. All wire about the same with typical terminal markings of B for battery, S for horn button and H for horns.
All the postwar horns operate electrically the same way and come apart in a similar manner but there are differences in the physical look and mountings between years. Here is a bit from the 55-6 manual with a decent photo of the interior. It mentions where the 55-6 slot will be. The slot may be in a different spot on yours but there is something similar that will allow you to pry the cover off. Just take note of where it is positioned so it can go back in the same spot when replacing the cover.
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You can check the horn contacts by disconnecting the wire at the horn and using an ohmmeter between the horn terminal and ground. There should be reading of almost a direct short as the horn just sits. If there is no reading or one that shows a lot of resistance then two possibilities. One is the contacts are not making a good contact. The other is if the car has been converted to 12v and horns are the original 6v units it is possible the horn winding has burned open.
Relays have also been known to fail but since only one of your horns is affected that is unlikely to be your issue. If it does turn out to be a relay with burned contacts not passing enough current to operate two horns, universal replacements are readily available. All wire about the same with typical terminal markings of B for battery, S for horn button and H for horns.
All the postwar horns operate electrically the same way and come apart in a similar manner but there are differences in the physical look and mountings between years. Here is a bit from the 55-6 manual with a decent photo of the interior. It mentions where the 55-6 slot will be. The slot may be in a different spot on yours but there is something similar that will allow you to pry the cover off. Just take note of where it is positioned so it can go back in the same spot when replacing the cover.
Attach file:
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