Horns,what goes wrong in them when they die?

[mznyc]

Doing a full service and finally removed horns (FIAAMs probably 15 years old) that have been sounding flaccid for years,never knew if it was a bad switch or the horns so wired each one to the battery,one was dead and the other sounded weak and muted.Seems like aftermarket horns have a shelf life from reports of other owners.What goes wrong with them when they bite the bullet?...

[docc]

I was hoping someone had the definitive answer for this  . . .

I've been through a couple pair of FIAMM horns. Nice to sound like a pickup truck when necessary! They are certainly susceptible to gathering moisture and debris. I learned to angle them away from the tire spray:

 . . . using the FIAMM guards (secured with black RTV silicone).

FIAMM once offered to replace my horns when they quit. Worth asking. (They also sent me the guards, pictured, free of charge).

[Kiwi_Roy]

You must put those FIAMMS horizontal, any sort of an angle and water gets trapped rusting away the diaphragm

When wiring them use something like #16 direct from the battery with a relay, horns are like high quality speakers they benefit from robust wiring.

And last of all do not mount them to a rigid surface or it damps the noise out, the little metal plate they ship with them has a purpose. They look like they are fixed to the Aluminium plate but if you look closely you will see the thin steel plate below.

[docc]

Those look good on the V7 (along with the aux lights), Kiwi_Roy!

Not sure the V11 Sport has a place for horizontal mounting. Maybe the LeMans do?

[al_roethlisberger]

Yeah, mine are up in the fairing on either side of the tank, and as I recall are mostly horizontal.  They are attached to the rear fairing bolt & bracket, but they pivot and wobble too much for my liking since it is a single bolt.  It's on my list one day to find a better way to mount them, but the location seems good.  They are generally out of the weather.

[mznyc]

On 7/13/2020 at 2:00 PM, docc said:

I was hoping someone had the definitive answer for this  . . .

I've been through a couple pair of FIAMM horns. Nice to sound like a pickup truck when necessary! They are certainly susceptible to gathering moisture and debris. I learned to angle them away from the tire spray:

 . . . using the FIAMM guards (secured with black RTV silicone).

FIAMM once offered to replace my horns when they quit. Worth asking. (They also sent me the guards, pictured, free of charge).

No,not worth asking as they are so cheap on Amazon,... Literately my time is work more than the $15 bucks I paid for the replacement ,now if I was retired,....

[docc]

Here is a link to the Splash Shield at FIAMM.

https://fiammcomponents.com/en/europe/avvisatori-acustici/prodotti/mascherina-am80-(emea).aspx

Pretty sure the last ones i bought were from this US school bus parts supplier ($1.50US, each):

https://www.apartswarehouse.com/Product/Show/1286/splash-guard-for-horn

They do help the horns last longer, but add some adhesive to the clips or they go missing (at least on Guzzis . . .)