Fitted a Denali Split Sound Bomb the other day, tad expensive but very loud. Replaced some cheap Ebay airhorns which have only lasted about 6 months. The denali is great as I have hidden the compressor behind the fairing and have the horn situated between the forks under the headlights for maximum effect.
Yes, just replied to a thread in gadget section entitled best horn. To save you looking it up, I fitted the split one on my St 1050, sounds great worth the extra cash as have imitation ones off ebay that just don't last.
Anyone tried these? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2pcs-Uni...randed/Generic&_trksid=p2047675.c100008.m2219
r2uzenblot Welcome to the family. Do show us all the steed. As for horns it really is down to what appeals to the rider. Regards Joe.
I bought one of these Stebel TM80 Compact 12v Electromagnetic Car / Motorcycle Horn 109dB Low Note from eBay and its bloody loud a real car horn sound ......unfortunately I've not had occasion to use it ...yet.
In fact i cant remember ever using a bike horn my usual response to threatening life and limb was a dent to the bodywork....these days i thank drivers for moving over.
Fitted the Denali Soundbomb mini to my current Tiger 1200 and its predecessor, yes it’s a straight replacement with no extra wiring needed. Sound as expected is a lot louder than stock but not stupid. You have to think about where to fit it since it’s bigger and needs to face downwards to stop water getting in the cone. My advice, never rely on the horn, too many distracted drivers out there, observation and a safety first approach win out.
The only need for a horn is 1. to pass a roadworthy, and 2. to alert a reversing driver in a parking lot, and the OEM horns are pretty well sufficient for this.
Or alerting the car in lane 1 that they are about to drive into you riding parallel to them in lane 2...in the pouring rain going 70mph The standard pathetic asthmatic OEM horn will not reach their 70 year old ear drums and they will continue to pull into you forcing you to brake heavily or swerve to the far side of the lane to avoid the impact while trying to stop your bike sliding out from under you due to the surface water Yes this did happen to me and although I was blasting the factory horn, even I couldn't hear it Loud horns are an absolute must and factory horns are crap In fact, they are so shit, that a lot of riders prefer to rev their engines with their factory standard pipes at other road users because they are louder than their horns
I used to run a Denali Mini and I find the following member statements to be exact.... @Dozers Dad - Looks a bit out of place on a bike with classic styling. @Red Thunder - that a lot of riders prefer to rev their engines with their factory standard pipes at other road users because they are louder than their horns On my 865 I did not find it really that much louder, just deeper in tone. Despite its product claims, I still had to run a relay. It is also a chunky bit and hard to find a good looking mount and have it positioned correctly. The bracket included was worthless and expect to fab your own. In the end I went back to the meep-meep factory horn, now louder through a relay. All I ever use it for is to scare deer and squirrels hanging about the side of the road. The people, however, don't care......with or without a horn.
Ok, first off let me say that you've obviously been riding for a long time and you know how you want to ride, and what you need with regard to a loud horn and you should and obviously will do what you need to do. Having said that, and directing my answer to others who may be less experienced I'd like to expand on the point of my post which is very much implied rather than overt. My point was that riding safer and smarter is going to be better in many instances where a horn is used. First of all in a parking lot everything is very slow so there's plenty of time. Recently I was passing a car that was stopped behind another car turning right. As I passed them going at a pretty slow 35kph on a two lane narrow road with lots of traffic about, she decided after being stationary for quite some time to pull out slowly as I passed. Even at that sedate speed I did not have time to use the horn I just drove towards the kerb the instant I saw her move, and she finally saw me with a wave of apologies. She would have certainly heard the OEM horn had I used it but I was better off taking evasive action first. At over 110kph I'm guessing you were on a freeway or highway, and if I was in that position in the rain, I would not allow a car to be in a position to do that. If they insisted on driving parallel to me I'd back off to keep a buffer around myself. In order to use the horn effectively you need to be prepped, you need to be thinking to yourself "I suspect this asshat is going to just try and pull into my lane" and you'd be ready for action. However in my opinion being ready on the horn is not the best action for this situation. I keep a buffer at all times and even more so in the rain. Not only that but you're expecting that a louder horn is going to do the job that the pissy OEM horn would not do, do you want to bet your life on that? You then have to rely on situations that are not in your control, for example if it's raining then there's more road noise, the car will definitely have their window closed. Maybe there's annoying kids in the car, maybe the music is on maybe they are eating and maybe they just don't give a fuck about you or your bike. It might be revenge time for them. So I'd suggest less experience people who think a horn is going to be the answer to their road safety, should at least consider some of these points. Personally I drive in such a manner as to assume that people will try and deliberately kill me. And they've almost succeeded a few times and a horn would not have helped. One time I was stopped in traffic and a car in the adjacent lane deliberately ran over my foot which was well inside my lane. This was for something they didn't like that happened earlier, a horn would not have helped me there. I just smashed the entire mirror assembly off their car at the next set of lights and got on with my life. I'd like to apologise in advance if this post makes me sound like a smarmy prat, I don't mean to.
Yes, some of all those comments and a little of the rest. I try to use the maxim 'Don't use the horn in scorn, use the horn to warn'. Am particularly proud of that cos I just made it up.
I usually use my horn on the bike and in the car a couple of times a week. Having been trained to ride and drive using Roadcraft ie the system and everything on a journey can be thought of as a hazard, be it a junction, traffic lift, crest of a hill etc. The last piece to this before the hazard itself is the use of the horn. So approaching a junction with driver looking other way, horn warning, overtaking bus at bus stop, tight country lanes ( more so in car). Angry stare or two fingers is their response sometimes but at at least they have now seen me be have the joy of looking at my nice LED headlights
When Triumph built the SS, they realised they had forgotten a horn. So they then stuck one under the front of the tank that sticks out like a wart on a nose. One day soon i shall move it.
