[Longboater]

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What is the best way to install the Nautilus Air Horn? :baffled:

Location placement

Electrical interface
Use the OEM wiring and horn button with the supplied relay and a fused lead from the battery?
Totally separate circuit with separately horn button?

Your help is most appreciated. :clapper:

Longboater

 

[Rudy]

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From what I understand of the 1800's horn, you don't need it.

Of course I don't hang around those aluminum can bikes too much so I don't know, personally. But that's the consensus.

 

[Kit Carson]

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I have never put one of these on a Wing. So I will leave the location up to you. I have put one on a Venture and a Valk. What you get into with these horns is they do draw a lot of power and the normal wiring on most bikes will not allow enough voltage to get the full effect to be heard for 3 city blocks. And you can hear them that far.

So you have to use the furnished relay with the horn and rig it up to a separate control. Voltage drop to them makes them just squeak, they have to have full voltage to work properly. On the wing the horn circuit is also the turn signal, flashers and trunk locks and lighting. Already pretty well loaded up.

Location......hum....how about up inside the lower fork tube, not up in the tube but down low up in the inner cowling on the side. Mount the bracket to one of the inner side cowls , that would keep it hid and also leave it open for full volume. Have to pull the seat and shelter to get a wire up there.

Have never done this but that is how I would approach it, and I would make a back up plate for the plastic piece up front too, to provide support at the mounting location so the side inner fairing would not crack. Through bolt it and put a piece of rubber or gasket material between the horn and the fairing.

Kit

 

[Longboater]

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Thanks for the comments Rudy and Kit.

This project will be planned out and presented for further comments as to location, mounting and electrical interface. Please bare with me as I have many Honey Due issues to resolve first.

Happy New Year to all.:jumper:

Longboater,

 

[waggawing]

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I used the supplied relay with power from the battery and the oem wiring for the switch. Mounted on the right engine bar. Looks good and sounds awsome. At about 50 bucks I thought not too expensive to replace if I dropped the bikw ( god forbid )

 

[GWNorman]

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I've seen them fitted under the left fairing pocket as there is just about enough space. You can connect it to the stock horn wire and even leave the stock horns connected for extra loudness.

 

[jbacrawler]

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Can you givea closeup view of the mounting.

 

[waggawing]

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If you are asking how I mounted on the engine bar, I used a Showcrome? 1" chrome engine bar mounting bracket. If I get a chance tonight I will take some closeups for you.

 

[MDKramer]

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Hey Kit, I'm curious here.

What about a situation where someone has done a poorboy conversion? Would the alternator over the stator supply enough current to make these work properly? Or is it a battery capacity issue?

 

[Longboater]

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waggawing wrote:

If you are asking how I mounted on the engine bar, I used a Showcrome? 1" chrome engine bar mounting bracket. If I get a chance tonight I will take some closeups for you.

Hello Waggawing,

Thanks for offering up the mounting picture for the horn. Looks good and I am also interested in any award winning close ups you may produce.

Using the std wiring with the supplied relay looks good too. Don't know if both std horns together with the air horn wouldn't be too Loud.

Many thanks for the report.

Longboater,

 

[Kit Carson]

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MDKramer wrote:

Hey Kit, I'm curious here.

What about a situation where someone has done a poorboy conversion? Would the alternator over the stator supply enough current to make these work properly? Or is it a battery capacity issue?

I had to think about that one for a minute. I would think that either or would be fine. Especially rigged off the battery with a relay and separate control switch. A battery is simply a storage unit. It takes so many cranking amps to crank the engine and that sort of thing. Some bikes like the 1500 will not fire with a weak battery, but that is voltage.

A horn is not on all the time, and is used only in a momentary and short type situation. Would be no different than turning on aftermarket running lights although they do get used longer.

It is the voltage that works the horn. So I would think that with a good strong battery it would not be an issue either way. As the horn is only used for quite a short time at a time. A battery would be hot and have as much power stored whether on an 1200 with a stator or an 1800 with the fancy alternator. Your maximum voltage draw would be a very short duration.

It is by using the existing harness and fuse and stuff on most bikes and tying into the system at the nearest hot wire to an existing horn that backfires sometimes due to the voltage drop in the wiring. Especially if you leave the existing horn or horns connected, the voltage drop goes low enough to not work the high voltage draw horn.

Think I said that right.

Kit

 

[waggawing]

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I removed my old horns altogether and used the wire from the right hand horn as the switch wire on the relay. So when you press the horn button it trips the relay to supply battery power to the new horn.

 

[Longboater]

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waggawing wrote:

I removed my old horns altogether and used the wire from the right hand horn as the switch wire on the relay. So when you press the horn button it trips the relay to supply battery power to the new horn.

Yep, this is one method I am considering too. I'm interested in your bracket that mounts the horn to the engine guard. Do you know the Show Chrome part number and source?

Also concerned about water and dirt being picked up with the mounting out there any maintenance issues?

Thanks,

Longboater

 

[waggawing]

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From Cyclemax. Showchrome B2-423 1" diameter. Had it on for about six months without any issue but I try not to ride in the wet anyway. Not much of an issue at the moment. It was 45 deg Celcius here yesterday.

 

[Longboater]

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Thanks Waggawing I will check it out for fitting on an 1800.

Longboater,

 

[MilkMoney]

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AIR HORN??



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jel6cOHYHDI&feature=related

 

[MDKramer]

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Makes perfect sense to me Kit. I was just worried that maybe the voltage drop required for a horn set like that would be more than the charging system, as a whole, on a Goldwing would be able to carry.

Truth be known, I want the 4 horn set-up from a mid-70's ElDorado on my bike.

 

[Longboater]

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Wacky horn installation mounted on one of two 8" x 22" containers.

(Not for most riders).

These containers are made from 8" schd. 40 PVC pipe with end caps. The containers mount with tapered blocks that match the passenger foot pads of the 1800. Three bolts pass through the container bottom, tapered shim and through the foot pad top half. Nuts and washers are enclosed by the under foot pad cover making for a finished look.

The horn installation is on the right hand container up7" from the bottom facing forward. This allows the air intake tube to be located just inside the right hand rear vent. (It really looks awkward and tight, but no contact fromrider foot either getting on or off or more importantly, bike operation).

The Nautilus Motorcycle Air Horn comes with justthe hornand relay only. The optionalwiring package isOK but forthis application moreitems were required.

The mounting bracket used is a standardbeam clamp typically used for attaching lighting and such to structural members of a building. (Home Depot)

Drill out the beam clamp 1/4 x20 to accepta longer8mm bolt than is supplied. Torque to 40 lb. (Horn instruction for special fastener).

Grind a flat spoton the side of the 8" pipe to accept the beam clamp allowing the clamp to inset into the thick plastic pipe. Drill a tight (Water tight) hole in the pipe to allow a 1/4x20 to pass through so it threads into the tapped hole in the beam clamp.

I followed the electrical instructions accept the 1800s push button line to the old horn is hot, not ground. (the old horn button lead goes to terminal #85 and the ground goes to #86 on the relay. All wire #14 and terminals are from Whally World.

Run a#14 wire with an inline 20 amp fuse to #30 on the relay and #14 wire to the Neg lug on the batt.



This horn was painted flat black as is the container. Easyand low cost. There is a plan to paint the containers with body color with is very expensive as it is a three step automotive paint system.


See the old man below holding the horn? Hopefully he won't screw up thepictures this time.

Longboater

 

[Longboater]

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Note the containers are tucked inside the slip stream for no drag.

 

[Longboater]

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The horn is low, but not too low as to interfear with the bike operation.