Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

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Mikey1968
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Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Tue Apr 06, 2021 2:08 pm

Hello all!

Would a Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy make a good ahooga horn for a 26 Touring? Time period correct?

Thanks,
Mike


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Mikey1968
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Tue Apr 06, 2021 2:28 pm

Or would a Stewart Warner R-6 186-D be better?

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Rich Eagle
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Rich Eagle » Tue Apr 06, 2021 2:39 pm

I don't know exactly when the 18B came out. "Delco-Remy got into the horn business in 1924 with the purchase of the Klaxon Horn Company in Newark NJ". Since Delco-Remy was a "Divsion of General Motors" Ford wouldn't have put in on. Any horn could have been used to replace the Ford horn back then. I would think many auto parts dealers would have carried them.
I don't know how well that answers your question. Perhaps bumping this will bring other opinions.
I do see a lot of old Stewart Horn ads.
Some prefer to have the Ahoogha sound rather than the buzz.
Rich
When did I do that?


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Mikey1968
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Tue Apr 06, 2021 3:18 pm

Well, I'm kicking around adding an ahooga but keeping the original sick duck horn as well. Simple enough until I looked around and there are a bunch of different models and styles that spanned many years. I am wanting one around 1926 that would work. Not much info out there on the details. Yes, I"m 6V.

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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by VowellArt » Tue Apr 13, 2021 1:31 am

The Delco-Remy 18B is not an ahooga sounding horn, I have one and it works really well, and is a throatier "Beep,Beep" horn. Just need the bracket to mount it under the hood.
FinishedKlaxonHorn.jpg
Klaxon18B-Delco-Remy.jpg
Ever hear the klaxon on an Aircraft Carrier? that's sort of the same sound this one makes (and it's loud too).

Now if you want an Ahooga horn, get a Spartan, those are ahooga horns, they're from a Model A but since it will probably be under your hood, no one is going to see it, so who cares. However, if you want an ahooga sounding horn that were period aftermarket accessories for Model T, get the Hand Klaxon, those are also ahooga horns, I've got one on my 22.
Horn.jpg
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Tue Apr 13, 2021 9:45 am

So I found a Spartan that needs minor work. Hope to fix it soon. The motor works. It's identical to this one in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Un31ggR ... 05ROADKING

I'm now needing ideas on how and where to mount it. I intend on keeping the original horn and adding this Spartan.

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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by VowellArt » Tue Apr 13, 2021 5:52 pm

Under the hood works best. The Spartan uses a single bolt to hold it to the Headlight Bar on a Model A, but will work with Model T mounting brackets that use the diaphragm bolts also.

If you need parts for that Spartan, Snyders Antique Auto Parts, sells every part for them including complete new horns...the new horns are expensive, but the parts are really reasonable. You can buy pretty much everything to tune up an old Spartan for about $35.00, including a new diaphragm. Use the link below.

https://www.snydersantiqueauto.com/Prod ... el-a/horn
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by VowellArt » Tue Apr 13, 2021 6:23 pm

The one on his car is adjusted too bloody tight, which is why it sounds so flat. The adjustment on the armature shaft should be light, you want it to spin up fast, so to do that it has to be just a wee bit loose, that's where the "Ahoo" sound comes from. The "Ga" sound is the motor spinning down slower than it spun up when you take your finger off the button. Which is why the armature is so bloody heavy. So to get it to sound that way, the adjustment on the damper screw should be kind of light. It'll take some playing with it to get it to sound just right, but once you do it'll keep stay tuned for a very long time.

That felt pad also needs to be kind of soaked with a light oil (WD-40 works, but better still a good grade of clock oil or even better a light silicone oil works pretty well too for that matter and doesn't gum up either like the organic oils tend to do). But you don't want that felt pad so sopping wet with oil that it drools it everywhere, just want it wet enough to keep the shaft bearing lubed...also apply a drop of oil on the bushing at the other end of the armature shaft where the Motor Horn Ratchet is too (that's the bumping looking wheel that runs against the nub on the diaphragm). Those two areas are generally what keep these horns from not working and or sounding properly.

The ones for outside the car have a flared bell like on my car's hand klaxon and are usually painted black (hot rod folks tend to chrome plate them) with a screen just behind the flair. But the ones like in that video are always under the hood and it looks like it has a 26-27 horn mounting bracket on it too.
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Mikey1968
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Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Wed Apr 14, 2021 1:38 pm

Well, all it lacked were the gaskets, screws and nuts to assemble the horn. I got some nice stainless ones form www.boltdepot.com I made my own gaskets. Cleaned up the motor scotchbrited the rotor and I used LSA gun oil to lube the felts and ratchet wheel. Works and sounds great. The adjustment screw clicks so I started out where it didn't activate the horn and clicked in until it first made the ahooga sound and stopped. My horn came with a two hole bracket.

Here are the eBay pics before I did my repairs.
Attachments
s-l1600 - 2021-04-08T083034.930.jpg
s-l1600 - 2021-04-08T082910.137.jpg
s-l1600 - 2021-04-08T083048.851.jpg


Topic author
Mikey1968
Posts: 229
Joined: Fri Mar 01, 2019 9:08 am
First Name: Michael
Last Name: Jewell
* REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1926 Touring
Location: Northern Virginia

Re: Klaxon 18B Delco-Remy

Post by Mikey1968 » Wed Apr 14, 2021 1:43 pm

By the way, thanks for the link. Wish I knew parts were available. Would have bought the gaskets as that was a little work. I bought some FelPro gasket material which is fairly thick but worked fine. Used a leather punch for the bolt holes.

Wonder if we can post short videos?

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