The Ford Barn

drolston · 08-22-2021, 02:43 PM

The horn ring on my '41 has 12 volts on it. That can't be right. Guess I am missing something that electrically isolates the metal horn ring from the grounding ring underneath.

Suggestions?

supereal · 08-22-2021, 03:13 PM

What you are feeling is caused by the horn(s). The horn relay produces the charge as it open and closes. Manufacturers fixed it by using a resistance wire between the horn relay and the horn ring. A low resistance from a small radio type resistor will do it.

Kube · 08-22-2021, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drolston

The horn ring on my '41 has 12 volts on it. That can't be right. Guess I am missing something that electrically isolates the metal horn ring from the grounding ring underneath.

Suggestions?

There is a sponge rubber ring beneath the horn button on your car. well, um, there should be...
Carpenter has them.

drolston · 08-22-2021, 10:43 PM

The sponge thing is there and it was not a good fit. I could not get the horn ring twisted back on with the full thing in place, so I trimmed it down some. I believe the function of that sponge thing is simply to give some spring-back to the horn ring, not to electrically isolate it from the 12v power of the horn relay.

Can somebody with a '41 check voltage between the metal horn ring and a good ground?

fortyonerag · 08-23-2021, 05:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by supereal

What you are feeling is caused by the horn(s). The horn relay produces the charge as it open and closes. Manufacturers fixed it by using a resistance wire between the horn relay and the horn ring. A low resistance from a small radio type resistor will do it.

I was wondering what that was for. I recall years back putting diodes (?) across relay coils. I assumed it was for a similar reason.

Bob C · 08-23-2021, 11:03 AM

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

If you look at the wiring schematics it looks like the power is feeding back through
the horn relay coil. A diode would stop that.

drolston · 08-23-2021, 11:25 AM

Checked the wiring diagram and the wire to the horn ring is connected to the "ground" side of the horn relay. When the horn button is not contacting, that will have battery voltage on it. The horn ring is insulated from the round three prong mounting bracket.

What started this investigation is that I got a little tingle with my sweaty arm on a window frame with some scratches, and touching the horn ring with my other hand. I converted to 12v; may not be noticeable on a 6v car.

To finally convince myself, I jumped a wire from the horn ring to ground, and sure enough, the horn blew. '41 owners, - try it!

JSeery · 08-23-2021, 09:43 PM

There have been several past threads on this topic on various years.

08-22-2021, 02:43 PM	#1
drolston Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Williamsburg, VA Posts: 1,627	Shocking Horn Ring The horn ring on my '41 has 12 volts on it. That can't be right. Guess I am missing something that electrically isolates the metal horn ring from the grounding ring underneath. Suggestions?

08-22-2021, 03:13 PM	#2
supereal Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2014 Location: Iowa Posts: 1,634	Re: Shocking Horn Ring What you are feeling is caused by the horn(s). The horn relay produces the charge as it open and closes. Manufacturers fixed it by using a resistance wire between the horn relay and the horn ring. A low resistance from a small radio type resistor will do it.

08-22-2021, 10:43 PM	#4
drolston Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Williamsburg, VA Posts: 1,627	Re: Shocking Horn Ring The sponge thing is there and it was not a good fit. I could not get the horn ring twisted back on with the full thing in place, so I trimmed it down some. I believe the function of that sponge thing is simply to give some spring-back to the horn ring, not to electrically isolate it from the 12v power of the horn relay. Can somebody with a '41 check voltage between the metal horn ring and a good ground?

08-23-2021, 11:03 AM	#6
Bob C Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: So Cal Posts: 8,755	Re: Shocking Horn Ring Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) If you look at the wiring schematics it looks like the power is feeding back through the horn relay coil. A diode would stop that.

08-23-2021, 11:25 AM	#7
drolston Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Williamsburg, VA Posts: 1,627	Re: Shocking Horn Ring Checked the wiring diagram and the wire to the horn ring is connected to the "ground" side of the horn relay. When the horn button is not contacting, that will have battery voltage on it. The horn ring is insulated from the round three prong mounting bracket. What started this investigation is that I got a little tingle with my sweaty arm on a window frame with some scratches, and touching the horn ring with my other hand. I converted to 12v; may not be noticeable on a 6v car. To finally convince myself, I jumped a wire from the horn ring to ground, and sure enough, the horn blew. '41 owners, - try it!

08-23-2021, 09:43 PM	#8
JSeery Member Emeritus Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Wichita KS Posts: 16,132	Re: Shocking Horn Ring There have been several past threads on this topic on various years.