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1937 120C horns
#1
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R Howe
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Hi. I had a short that caused my horns to blare for a few hours while I was not at home and it seemed to damage the smaller of my horns. The larger one still works but the smaller one does not. Does anyone know of someone who might be able to repair this horn for me or even purchase another one?
Thanks.

Posted on: 2023/10/22 11:32
Roger Howe
Whitewright, TX
1937 120C Touring Sedan
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#2
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JWL
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I can't recommend a horn repairer but do recommend a battery cut-off switch to prevent another electrical short circuit incident.

Posted on: 2023/10/23 12:00
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#3
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humanpotatohybrid
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I would imagine either the electromagnet is burned up or the diaphragm is toast.

Disconnect both horns and measure with an ohmmeter between the horn wire and the horn ground (be sure you have a good connection as you will either be touching paint or 90 years of corrosion/patina). If both horns have the same ohm reading, then probably the diaphragm is bad. I would expect if the electromagnet is burnt up then the bad horn will either read infinite or much higher resistance than the good one.

This will at least give you a start on what is wrong with it.

Posted on: 2023/10/23 14:30
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#4
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TxGoat
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I think the horns have a set of points that could be burned or stuck. It might be worth a look. Burned points might test the same as an open coil, but could probably be made operable by filing or sanding. Stuck points could be freed and filed/sanded. Stuck points might lead to a burned out coil. (Or maybe not)

Posted on: 2023/10/23 15:05
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#5
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HH56
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One other possibility might be the contacts arced or burned. Best case scenario is they burned and oxidized and can no longer conduct or possibly the gap changed enough the contacts lost the ability to close. The worst case option is they arced and welded closed and the electromagnet coil then burned open.

To make sound, the contacts must be closed when power is first applied. The diaphragm will move and immediately open the contacts and the cycle rapidly repeats as long as there is voltage present. The gap determines frequency along with volume and if the contacts cannot provide power to the electromagnet the horn will be silent.

I don't know which model horn is in your car but they all work the same way, just have different layouts of contacts and adjustment methods. You should be able to identify and check the contacts by following what part of the unit is connected to the wire terminal. Here is a bit from the prewar service manual showing a typical horn and adjustments.

Attach file:



jpg  horn.jpg (294.83 KB)
209_6536d3570193b.jpg 1906X1410 px

Posted on: 2023/10/23 15:11
Howard
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#6
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R Howe
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Thx. Duly noted and taken to heart!

Posted on: 2023/10/26 15:18
Roger Howe
Whitewright, TX
1937 120C Touring Sedan
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Re: 1937 120C horns
#7
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R Howe
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To all of you, my thanks. I'll definitely use this information that you so graciously gave to me.

Posted on: 2023/10/26 15:20
Roger Howe
Whitewright, TX
1937 120C Touring Sedan
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