I was just given a horn that my friend said he took off of a model T truck in 1951 that had been in a train wreck. It has a Sparton name tag but does not look like any T horn I have seen. What is it?
Bill D

got a photo???

Possibly a Model A Horn as Sparton was one of the major suppliers for the Model A and there were lots of them later put on other vehicles because they had a nice sound. There are several pictures of the Sparton Model A horn at:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ANTIQUE-SPARTON-MODEL-A-HORN_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQca tegoryZ10076QQihZ020QQitemZ300116587724QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW If that is what it looks like -- then probably from a 1928-31 Model A Ford. And yes in better shape it would have a Sparton horn patent plate on the horn cover.

Hap Tucker 1915 Model T Touring cut off and made into a pickup truck and 1907 Model S Runabout, Sumter SC

i have a single twist, rubes horn (but where the name rubes is supposed to be) it has a triangle w/trade mark and (larger word) standard on it. is it then not a rubes, it looks identical. then if you buy the set and horn cover you are aproaching $300, and if you have it restored, wow what are these things worth? i know as of right now you cant buy the repro.

Standard was one of the manufacturers of the bulb horns, as was Rube's, Nonpariel, and maybe others. Ford bought the horns from all those companies.

Mike.

The Standard horn has some peculiarities of design which makes it the only horn that will properly fit some Model Ts.

R.V. -- You mean the Standard horn is the only one which fits peculiar Model T's?

R.V.

Could you elaborate which horn only fits certain Model T's and why? I was NOT aware of that and wonder what that is about.

William, most Sparton horns were found on late 20's Chevies and Ford Model A's I would be surprised to see one on a T.

John

R.V. are you refering to the base where it mounts?

I heard from an eminent source that the Standard horn has some dimension or other that makes it the only horn which wil properly fit some Ts. I think it may have been the '15s but I don't remember for sure. Nor can I say at this point exactly what the difference is but I honestly do seem to recall that it was in the angle of the tubing which passes through the dash. I will get back to the source and see what he says.

come on guys, is it worth restoring a single twist bulb horn if your going to spend at least $300.00.what would you have to spend for a restored one?

If you are going to use it,it's priceless. If you want to sell it,leave it as is.

I recently restored a double twist (11/12 style with 30 degree inlet fitting) brass horn that looks identicle to a friend's Rubes signature horn, except no mfr's name or hallmark. When I say identicle, I mean absolutely identicle, including the gauges, horseshoe mounting bracket, and segment couplings. Anyone know whether Rubes,Nonpirel, or original others may have made these parts for Ford without stamping them? Friends have speculated that this may be earlier repro, or made for other auto???

I've had Rubes, Standard and Nonpariel 1915 bulb horns side by side. They are identical except the mounting base on one of them was made from steel. I believe it was the Rubes. The horns were all made entirely from brass.

The bracket for the bulb to attach to the body was a bit different on each. Wish I had taken pictures of all of them.

Hey Royce: Do all of the brass horns you've seen have the mfr's name? I compared mine with the Rubes on Ron Miller's 11 open roaster...absolutely exact except the stamped name. By the way, I'm in Mexico till the weekend, so like to get your cleaned housings over to you, if you're also in town.
Regards,
Scott

the horn i have was painted black, and i believe it came off of a 1915 T, i believe the brass ones were for the 1913 /1914. though it is brass under the paint, it is a low grade w/ impurities in it ,i was told by a restorer that it would have to be prepared and plated w/ copper then finished w/ brass plating. but would be more expensive than repainting it black.

Guy -- All the 13-14-15 horns I've seen or heard about were solid brass, except for the mounting bracket on some, which were iron. They all were painted black originally, according to all the "reputable" sources. The screen and its oval surround were bare brass, as was the nipple on the tube end of the horn. 13-14's have an oval mounting base, and the 15's were more of a "diamond" shape with rounded points on the diamond. There should not be any need to copper/brass plate it, just repaint it black.

Mike.

as far as i am told 13 and 14 were mounted on the outside of the car (firewall)thats why they were brass, the 15s were mounted , hidden in the engine compartment,thats why they had them painted black? any way , mine has a iron mounting bracket, thats oval. and the nipple is low grade brass too. (meaning you couldnt polish it because there are rust color blemishes,spotted all over the horn and if you even tried to file them off you would go right through the metal.

I have 3 brass single twist horns, Rubes, Nonpariel and Standard. The standard has a diamond shaped mounting made of steel, the Rubes is a brass diamond and the Nonpariel is circular brass. There were steel horns also but I imagine not so many survive due to rusting away.

R.V. I think your comment about some difference in these horns only fitting a certain year may refer to the horns fitted on the 15 T's which were under the hood and had a 90 degree elbow on the inside of the firewall. Besides the mounting plate its the only difference I can find.

Guy. The quality of the brass in these horns is not so bad, at least its not like the stuff that comes out of India. When you refer to rust like blemishes all over, it is de-zincification, brass is made from zinc and copper and when it corrodes the zinc goes first leaving the copper behind. Try rubbing an area with a fine abrasive paper and then polish it. you should be able to get back to brass without removing any of the metal as it is usually only the outer surface that has been affected. At least thats what I found.
13, 14 and 15 horns although made of brass were all painted black.

Let me re-ask my question ...Were 11 and 12 brass double twist horns produced by the known mfr's (Rubes, Nonpirel, Standard) without the mfr's name on the parts?

why dont you have a look thru this site,they have many restorations,(photos) that you can enlarge. http://www.veteranautolamps.com and maybe you could email w/question.

I don't know about the horn but I like it!


http://oz.plymouth.edu/~trentb/ModelT/T7299/T7299.html