Horn not sounding right

Forever A

Forever A

Junior Member
My 1930 Town Sedan with Spartan horn and alternator does not Ahooga properly. Before starting this new thread I followed all the suggestions. I cleaned the commutator, oiled the felt pads, spun the armature for 30 seconds and adjusted all positions of the screw but I get nothing but the "ahoo" without the "ga". I assume the "ga" is created after you let go of the horn button and the armature slowly spins to a stop. Mine stops almost immediately after releasing the button so no "ga". Are some Spartan horns just not adjustable and they sound like they sound or are there some tips I have missed? Thanks.
 

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Welcome to the Barn. Nice car. I think the Ga sound is because the armature moves back and forth. When running the armature moves forward because of the magnetic attraction and when stopping it moves back because the magnetic attraction is no longer there. You could check to see if the armature can move forward and backward.
 
Assuming you are still running 6 volts, make doubly sure ALL of your contacts are clean. The commutator is just one of those.
As a last resort, I have made a horn that sounded like a strangled chicken sound right by removing a loop of wire from a field coil. One is often enough but two will do it.
 
You might need to reshape the bump located in the center of the diaphram. The tip of the bump might be rounded which will affect the sound. Remove the diaphram and with a file recut the angular surface to a point. Also make certain the diaphram has a paper gasket on each side. This helps to isolate the diaphram and improve the quality of the sound.
Go on YouTube and search "Model A ahooga horn repair". There are a couple of videos that address your problem.
 
Note: these part numbers are from Berts website. Some companies make up their own part numbers. www.modelastore.com

1. Broken or bent Motor Tension Spring A-13828. (some cheap springs are not tempered and do not hold their shape)

2. Incorrectly installed or worn-out point on diaphragm of Horn Diaphragm A-13811

(small DRAIN hole MUST be placed at the bottom, sound will be bad if this is not correct).

3. Horn Clapper A-13826 (Worn part, missing lock washer or loose mounting nut)
Some motors have left-hand threads. Read note about which motors are left-hand before you break off the MOTOR shaft!

4. Missing gaskets from diaphragm (one on each side of diaphragm.)
 
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Having restored several units I found the new diaphragms are a .001 thicker than an original. I dug the old diaphragms out of the trash and the GA was back.
 
Thanks for all the advice on the horn repair everyone. Looks like I will taking the horn apart and checking that diaphragm.
 
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