Weird horn wiring issue

[iansoady]

I'm fitting a pair of Fiamms to my K4 Wee. All was going swimmingly till I completed the wring (through a relay of course). I'm taking the trigger from the twin Lucar type connector that goes to the horn which is up behind the radiator - a black / blue (theoretically live feed from the button) and black / white (theoretically earth) cables. This information is from my Suzuki manual which is for a K6 model although I have a pdf version for the K4 which shows the same layout.

I connected the trigger side of the relay to the black / blue but nothing happened when I turned the ignition on and pressed the horn button.

Further investigation shows that the black / white actually has full battery voltage on it - but no change with the horn button. Black / blue has nothing with or without button pressed and shows no continuity to earth. All these with ignition switched on.

The original horn works fine when reconnected (and doesn't when not - I even thought I may have disconnected something else!).

I confess I'm baffled. Any help would be very welcome.

[MartinW]

Have a look AT THIS and the main post it links too.

[iansoady]

That's exactly what I have with the only difference being that I have connected 85 on the relay direct to earth.

In fact I see I contributed to the original thread with pics of my Tiger!

[greywolf]

Answered at Stromtrooper. http://www.stromtrooper.com/maintenance ... issue.html

You have two earths connected to the relay. Also, it's a bad practice to use the frame for an earth connection. You are sending power through a steel to aluminium connection which tends to corrode the latter due to the principle of dissimilar metals galvanic corrosion. Always use a B/W wire for earth on a light load like a relay or go the the battery negative for a heavy load like a horn.

[iansoady]

I'm not using the frame, but a dedicated earth cable from the battery terminal (possible transatlantic confusion over the use of the term!)

Many thanks for both responses though.

I'll try running 2 wires from the horn connectors and see whether that makes any difference.

[iansoady]

Yes it does - works now. No idea why......

[MartinW]

Result.

That's the way it has been wired in the link too.

[greywolf]

The horn button completes an earth connection, not a live connection. You had two earth connections to the relay.

[iansoady]

Yes that's what I was suspecting although that's not how it's shown on the diagram....



Note OR goes to switch then to horn. I must confess I'm more used to switched earth so was a bit surprised by this.

My original (non-working) wiring:



And a murky picture of the LHS horn in situ. I turned up a couple of spacers 8mm long and used 40mm cap head screws in the front frame joint:



They're now loud enough that my head's still ringing after using them in the garage......

[greywolf]

You know, I read it wrong. The switch is on the hot/live side.

[iansoady]

Actually, I don't think you did - but I think it's written wrong!

And my diagram is also wrong - done in a hurry!

But it's working nicely now.

[greywolf]

That could be. I remember John Weldon saying that some models break the live side and some break the earth side, but all the diagrams show a live side break. I found it. http://www.vstrom.info/Smf/index.php/topic,3541.0.html

So the switch on 650s breaks the earth side and the diagram is wrong.

[Robotstar5]

I'm looking for some Fiamm horns for my bike, where did you get yours from?

My favourite memory of using them was going round an island when a car started to pull on in front of me, a quick blast of the Fiamms stopped him dead, I can still see his wife/GF with her hands pressed against the windscreen    (pre seatbelt days)

[Descolada]

I got mine here;

Fiamm AM80s Luxe Dual Horn Set 12v High & Low Note Snail Compact Car Motorcycle

[Robotstar5]

I got mine here;

Fiamm AM80s Luxe Dual Horn Set 12v High & Low Note Snail Compact Car Motorcycle

Thanks, added to watch list.

[bosnjo]

And a murky picture of the LHS horn in situ. I turned up a couple of spacers 8mm long and used 40mm cap head screws in the front frame joint:



They're now loud enough that my head's still ringing after using them in the garage......

Be careful with one thing:
The hole of the horn has to be pointing to the ground, so any water that gets in will immediately get out. If you leave the hole pointing horizontally or even worse, upwards, you'll get water in (sometimes even moister is enough), and the horn will stop working until it dries out completely and will eventually rust out. Also, don't make it poiting forward to the water and stones flying out of the front wheel. At the end, snail part of the horn has to stay higher then the hole, just the oposite of the horns on my drawing. When I made the schematics I just drew the horns, without thinking that someone could think that's correct way to orientate horns. If you look at the drawing, you'll clearly see the snail lower then the hole. To install the horn properly, do just the oposite. It's simple, think about anything getting into the horn. If the hole is at the lowest poin and pointing down at some angle, it will go out by itself.
In the photo, it's correctly orientated but it doesn't point down. It needs just to be "turned" on its screw some 20º-30º downwards.

[iansoady]

I appreciate what you say, but had the ones on my Tiger in a similar position for several years with no problems. I don't tend to ride where there's muck & gravel at that height anyway!

I may however rotate them a little further down although that could bring the terminals uncomfortably close to the frame. Easy enough to adjust anyway.

[UK_Vstrom650]

They look good. Are they loud? Nearly bought a pair a month or so ago after my Stebel stopped working but never got round to it. Stock horn is crap - beeped a friend I saw at a set of lights and he didn't hear...

[iansoady]

They are loud (deafening in the garage!) and at only around £7 post paid from ebay a bargain - we'll see how long they last though.......

If they do die after a short while I'll get some genuine Fiamms like I had on the Tiger.